23/02/2024
Friday Feature - Heterochromia!
On Tuesday I had a chance meeting with Rogan the husky, who, as well as being a big bundle of energy, has eyes that are different colours!
So, as an ex-biology teacher I thought what a great thing to discuss in one of my Friday bloggy/social posts!🙂
What is it?
The condition is called Heterochromia and it is not an uncommon in certain breeds. Aussie cattle dogs, Huskies, Border collies and Dalmatians are just some of the more common breeds that this condition can affect.
How does it happen?
As an ex-biology teacher I would love to dive deep into the genotypic reasons (like the study that showed there was "...a duplication directly upstream of the Homeobox gene ALX4, which plays a part in the development of mammalian eye..."1) . I love this stuff- it is pure science and being able to apply something like this to my new career, is brilliant!😁
Essentially, it means that heterochromia is a genetic condition, so most pups have their eyes different colours from birth (the eye colour gene determines the eye colour from conception when the s***m and egg haploid DNA fuse after fertilisation takes place- sorry!! Got caught up in teacher-mode!👨🏫) and this has no effect on their eyesight! It is a myth that dogs with different eye colours will be blind later on in life, but scientific research has debunked that!
If some pawrents have experienced their pups eyes changing over time, go and get your beloved pup checked out by a veterinarian, just to be on the safe side as this could be due to cataracts, glaucoma or other eye conditions2.
Well, from a purely selfish standpoint, I think that they look amazing and should be celebrated for their uniqueness and I love talking their pictures as they are amazing!!
Do you have a pup with this wonderful condition? Leave a comment below if you do!!👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇
(Oh, it is chromosome 18 which carries the tandem mutation near the ALX4 gene in Siberian Huskies and in some coloured Austrailian Shepherds, if you were really keen to know 🙂 )
References
1: Deane-Coe PE, Chu ET, Slavney A, Boyko AR, Sams AJ (2018) Direct-to-consumer DNA testing of 6,000 dogs reveals 98.6-kb duplication associated with blue eyes and heterochromia in Siberian Huskies. PLoS Genet 14(10): e1007648. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1007648
2: Jean Marie Bauhaus (2020) Heterochromia in dogs: Why your dog has different coloured eyes https://www.hillspet.com/dog-care/behavior-appearance/heterochromia-in-dogs