Black Labrador: Changing Colors

For the last few years, Miles – my Black Lab – has been changing colors. He’s gone from jet black to auburn. No, I am not kidding. No, there’s no jokey punchline. I had noticed it before we moved up north, and just sort of figured it was dirt.

Because down south it would get terribly hot, and since he didn’t have access to cool indoor shade like he does here – even though now it’s not necessary – he would be forced to find sanctuary outside, which for him usually meant digging to the cooler layers of dirt and laying down. So I figured the auburn-ness he was developing on his hips & tail were related to dirt seeping into his coat/hair.

But we’ve been up here for a year now. He lays in grass. He swims frequently. There’s simply no way anymore that dirt would be congregating on his hips and changing the color of his coat like that. It’s got to be his hair, plain & simple. Which means that with his age, he’s not really turning gray so much as he’s turning red.

I figure in a handful of years he’ll be my redheaded dog-child.

OK OK, there: a corny jokey punchline. I lied.

Peace.