Zeus and Orin have saddles which are receding from the bottom up? It's not a trait I've seen in Blanik boys before and I think it's more obvious as they are both at different stages of coating. Oh don't get me wrong it's not a fault, it's not even in anyway distracting, well it actually took someone else to point it out to me in Orin, and even then I didn't notice that Zeus was going the same. My only interest in it is that I didn't know where it's come from, like I said I've not seen it in any Blanik bred male and Fransisco has a solid full saddle .. Hmmm interesting, lets get digging!
Zeus and Orin at the top, when I look back at photos of Orin in the ring, yes definitely it's more obvious when he's out of coat, but you do see it at various degrees at all times! The bottom photo is of Merlin, their brother, (Ken) he has a full dark saddle like his mother Sammi and grandad Nico. The other dog is Tony degli Achei, Fransisco's maternal grandfather, with his paternal grandfather also a little faded I think we can safely say it comes from Fransisco's side of the family.
Bitches often fade, non more so here than Asha, but what didn't help her was her poor colour. Poor colour and faded and judges really often dismissed her on colour alone. I must admit colour is important to me, I like a rich tan, but at the end of the day it is of secondary importance and she was often denied her win on colour alone. Just to show how dramatically they can change, here are some photos of Asha, from puppy, to yearling, to adult and veteran.
