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The

Pomeranian

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Red Pomeranians

Overview

Red is an accepted color for Pomeranians and a lot of people want to learn about red because it is common for owners to be a bit confused about this color. We'll dive right into this and also take a look at some photos of incredibly beautiful red Poms.

In essence, a red Pomeranian will be a very dark orange. However, the line in which orange crosses over into red blurry and is up to interpretation. What one may consider to be a dark orange will be a red to another person.

In addition, a huge element regarding red Pomeranians is that this breed almost always has a color change. It happens during the change-over from puppy coat to adult coat, also referred to as the puppy uglies.

This is typically a dramatic time in which the soft puppy fur falls out to be replaced the the adult coat, which is a two-layer coat of dense inner fur and a longer top layer of guard hairs. During this time, color will change as well.

A light colored Pomeranian may transition over to red as he matures; his true color therefore, may not appear until he is an adult.

However, it also works the other way. You can have a red Pomeranian puppy that is registered as a red whose coat lightens so much during his first year that he loses that dark color. It is very common for red Pom pups to be orange adult dogs.

For these reasons, red is a color that simply cannot be promised or guaranteed. And if you are looking for a Pom puppy, steer clear of a breeder that makes any promise regarding final adult coloring, especially with one as rare and as transitional as red.

Keenai, at 7 months

Photo courtesy of Rachael

Luigi Donatello; Photo courtesy of Stephanie Murtha

Will a Red Pomeranian
Change Color?

Will a Red Pomeranian Change Color?

As mentioned, this breed is famous for a transition that it makes, referred to as the puppy uglies. The soft puppy coats falls out, there is a stage where the pup looks just terrible with thinning fur and sometimes even bald patches, and then everything rights itself when the adult coat comes in.

And with that, there is often a color change.

With red Pomeranians, this may indeed happen. An orange may darken to red or a red may lighten.

But, you do not necessarily lose the red.

If you look at this Pom (above), this is a 10 year old Pomeranian that would be considered by many, including us, to be a red (again, a 'gray area' in many cases).

You'll notice that the coat holds a range of color; there is a lighter orange on the chest and then a darker, deep red on the head, back and flanks. Being at this age, the red Pom is staying red. Any changes have long since happened.

Red as a Marking or Secondary Color

What is interesting, is that while red can be the main coat color on this breed, it can also be seen as marking or as one of the colors in a parti (two color) coat. And this is even more rare as the solid red.

Any time that a Pom holds two colors and the 2nd one is less than 50% of the coat (and certainly if it is only 5 to 30%), that 2nd hue can be interpreted as part of a two-tone coat or as a marking. When it is seen on several areas of the body, it is often classified as a secondary color.

So, with this Pomeranian (right; below on mobile), we see an amazing coat of black with red markings. Notice how the 2nd color cannot be mistaken for orange (this red is dark) and it cannot be mistaken for tan (the red sheen is undeniable).

There is always the expectation that a Pom will have a color change as he matures, but this black and red adult proves that red may indeed remain.

Landon, Photo courtesy of Joan Robinson

Red Sable

With this, red refers to the base color and sable is a marking that refers to dark tipped hairs. Sable is really pretty, because it creates a 'dusting' or a layer that nicely frames a Pom and offers depth to the coat.

Just about any colored Pomeranian can have sabling (most common is orange and cream).

When you have a nice, dark red base as with this Pom pictured below, and that sabling is there, you have a gorgeous red sable.

With this color, in many cases, as a Pom puppy grows, his sabling grows off.

However, this Pom is 2 years old, so this is his final adult coloring.

Poppy; Photo courtesy of Brenda Rogers

Why Red is So Rare

There are so many colors with this breed and therefore market demand (potential puppy buyers) are looking for a variety of colors.

For this reason, it would not be advantageous for breeders to offer only reds. If a breeder does concentrate on just one color, most often it will be white.

This said, there are plenty of breeders who have red in their program.

Luckily, enough red Pomeranians are being produced that this beautiful color is still seen in the line and is an expected coat of the breed.

Fun Fact - Queen Victoria, who had a big influence on breeding the Pom down in size, personally owned a red Pom; she adopted him in 1888.