While some colors have previously been "frowned upon" at shows and
even culled from litters, none of these colors are against the breed
standard.
Origins
Many of the lines producing dogs with the red factor originate
from the second opening of the stud book following WWII, when in 1947, it was
discovered that a less than adequate supply of original Kotzebue bloodstock
remained. This M'Loot type had been bred by Paul Voelker of Minnesota in the
1930's and 40's and his Malamutes were accepted by AKC upon completion of their
Championships.
Breeders since that time have rallied to one side or the other, but key
seemed to be blending of the two lines.
Kotzebue
The remaining Kotzebues were of good
type, with good heads and proportions, although standing smaller than the
original freighting Malamute. Tending to be uniformly grey in color, Kotzebues
were generally more tractable and less aggressive to other dogs.
M'Loot
Conversely the original M'Loot's, though of greater size, tended to be
somewhat more rangy. They were less uniform and often had longer ears and
muzzles. Breeders, like Zoller's at Husky Pak Kennel and Schmitts of Silver Sled
Kennel, with the foresight to cross the early original lines benefited from the
blending. The resulting Malamutes showed an overall refinement of the rangy
M'Loot type- the good hindquarters of the Kotzebue's, balanced with the powerful
fronts of larger M'Loots.
Dogs with M'Loot lines, while transmitting the red genetics, can tend to be
more aggressive with others dogs, vocal and difficult to handle. The key to
successful breeding of these colors lies in maintaining pigmentation and
temperment.
Color Inheritance
Genetics is a long and comlicated study, but basically Malamutes have two colors: Black and Red/Liver. So Malamutes can be black shades, red shades or a combination of the two. Additionally there is a "diluting gene" which lightens the overall coat color to produce the infinite shades of Malamutes.
Other Factors
Environment and feeding can also have a profound affect upon the ability of a Malamute to express the genetics given by its parents. There will be seasonal differences the Malamute's coat grows and sheds. You may notice that with some feeds you dog has a better quality coat, this can control the colors that you will see in the dog's coat as well.
