Nearly two years ago I adopted a cocker-mix from the local animal shelter. He was coal-black. The vet estimated his age at 5-6 years.

Now he is turning brown, from the ground up. All four legs are mostly chocolate brown. Ever hear of that? Also, he is turning grey, not only on his chin, but on his hips also.

what color was he when you got him? Some dogs will start losing their healthy looking coat when something is wrong. I think you should talk to your vet again.

Color changing should not occur in a dog (sometimes in puppies as they grow into their true coat, but not in grown dogs). A change in color or hair loss is typically indicative of an illness in a dog (not necessarily something very bad, but a sign nonetheless).

The graying is a natural process though - just as it is with aging people.

Have you noticed any other changes - perhaps in diet, demeanor, body functions, etc.? A trip to the vet is likely in order...

He's a healthy and active dog. He walks me from one to three miles every morning, and romps on the floor with me in the evening.

He has a heavy coat, which is clipped in the summer, and I don't see much change in it, except the new brown hair seems coarser. He sees the vet on a regular basis, and I have pointed out the color change to the doc, who seems to have no concerns about it.

Perhaps, then, it's just part of the aging process...if he's healthy and the vet doesn't seem to be concerned...then no need to be I guess...

Do you think that your dog is getting his winter coat? I don't remember that this happens with Cocker Spaniels but you said he is a mixed breed. The under coat can come in lighter. We had a black Belgian Sheep dog and the undercoat was lighter. We also had a black English Cocker Spaniel a number of years ago. I can't remember the details but it seems that when the hair was allowed to grow too long and not kept groomed, the ends lost their glossy black color and lightened up. It may be a grooming problem.

DD

I have similar problems with my female cocker, and my male Shih Tzu. Both are black and whites, with the color change in the black of their coats. Its almost a redish brown. My groomer has recommended a liquid suppliment because she thinks lanolic acid may help. The coats are shinier and I am hoping they will return to the original black. Either way, the vitamins aren't hurting. Check with a groomer or a pet supply place. Good luck.

This happens quite normally.

I note that you have a cocker mix. I have bred cockerpoos here i.e. the dam is an American cocker and the sire a miniature poodle.We have three recent examples of young ones changing colour. In the first two instances the pup had been jet black, like the dam. The sire is apricot. Each bitch gradually turned silver grey, a process which continued over quite a time with the coat still getting lighter and lighter. This is interesting because in each case the coat did not change while the bitch was a puppy. Each was at least a year old before there was any sign of this happening; they are now well over two years . All silver poodles are born black but change colour within months. These half-poodles evidently took time to think about it: was it a good career move to make ?

The other pup was born a pale cream, as were some of her sisters. However, she too has changed colour as an adult. In her case she has darkened and reddened so she is now a glorious gold to chestnut colour , of a shade such as we once saw on golden retrievers ( when they were golden and not the washed- out white things they now usually are ). Any more and she'll be like a red setter.None of her cream sisters has changed in this way, thinking perhaps that gentlemen dogs prefer blondes and see redheads as dangerous.

Genetics provides some explanation. The sire, though apricot, was himself sired by a silver poodle. His dam was white. The dam of these pups, though black, had a brown 'chocolate' sire.Now, it is normal nowadays for breeders to mix colours. What is happening is that an underlying colour tendency is emerging as the dog gets older. The cream example is peculiar because the whole litter must have the same basic bloodline, having the same parents, yet only one of the cream sisters has gone dark gold.

As to white hairs appearing, all dogs develop white or grey hairs when they get old. As in humans though, there is a notable tendency for those with black hair to show white hairs when still fairly young. The dam in the instant case is only 4 but already has some white hair around her muzzle. (Perhaps having two litters in short order would age anyone prematurely. Anyway, she's retired now. )

By the way, I have had experience of bitches, Irish Wolfhounds, getting a patch of a different colour on each hip. In each case there was some hair loss first and then the new hair was a different shade. This mysterious condition proved to be hormonal in origin.

There is a form of alapechia that looses the pigment in the fur but that is something that is seen more in puppies the elder pup I would place my bets on it being the aging process. OUr black lab has gone though the gray/brown moosh furs since he was about 2 and when new hairs from injury comes in they are white.