Int'l CH Branded Man, CGC
We receive alot of e-mail. This one came today. I thought I would share my reply back in case others of you have the same questions.
**BTW it was very nice meeting you. I am interested in learning more about the white Dobermans and the Z designation. I looked at a couple of sites, one pro and one against. What can you tell me?**
Hi ,
Condensed version:
AKC registers them as 'white'.
The Dobe Parent club calls them 'albino'.
The parent club has made the 'color' a disqualification in the conformation ring. The parent club ALSO has gotten AKC to add a scarlet letter to the reg number of ANY Dobe who traces back to the first 'ALBINO' (and it's parents) so that they can avoid the 'line' when making their breeding decisions.
So needless to say, there's a lot of misinformation because of the downright hatred between all factions.
Information about what makes a white Dobe 'different' healthwise, and I say this from over 15 years of owning whites, is that [obviously] they are fair skinned and have a higher incidence of skin cancer, the same as humans with fair skin. They also can burn if left in the sun too long (like, all day at a summer dogshow in the valley- you'll get a burned nose, so will your dog.) Other than that, they have all the same health issues as colored Dobes.
Their blue eyes are sensitive to bright sun, and they will squint.
If transitioning from dark to bright sun, they are temporarily blinded for a couple of seconds until their eyes adjust. Same as me with my blue eyes, but I thought everybody with any color experienced that.
Temperament- as in humans, color has no bearing. It's the pedigree behind the dog. Not all white people (or black people) commit crimes. Some whites have high drive, courageous, good work ethics fit for schutzhund, and some don't; just depends on the dogs behind it. Generally, your German lines will have the higher drive, and your American Dobes will less drivey.
The Conformation of the whites, because of breeders not yet afforded the opportunity to show AKC Conformation with them, as you can imagine is not overall the best.
Lots of people just like the color and breed only for puppies, giving good breeders a bad name, just like in other breeds...
So that's the condensed version. We have some nice dogs that we adore, and as with a skin child, it melts my heart to meet the gaze of one of the furkids, whether blue eyes or brown. We love them all.
Jim
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