# Do blue-black dogs actually have blue pigments? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 12, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499 "2018-08-12T21:49:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Contemplation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Contemplation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contemplation)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/1 "2018-08-12T21:49:15Z")
Do dogs with blue-black coats actually have blue pigments in their coats? I know humans don’t but it isn’t too far-fetched for another mammal to have blue fur pigments. There are already mandrills that have blue butts and dogs that have blue eyes, so are their dogs with actual blue coats? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2018, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/2 "2018-08-12T22:37:37Z")
No. Like other dogs, they have melanin, a dark pigment, in their hair. Blue coloration in vertebrates (and most other animals) is not due to pigments, but to structural colors. That is, the color is produced by characteristics of the skin, scales, or feathers that scatter blue wavelengths of light. ---
**Author:** ![Contemplation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Contemplation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contemplation)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2018, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/3 "2018-08-12T22:48:33Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > No. Like other dogs, they have melanin, a dark pigment, in their hair. > > Blue coloration in vertebrates (and most other animals) is not due to pigments, but to structural colors. That is, the color is produced by characteristics of the skin, scales, or feathers that scatter blue wavelengths of light. Interesting that thats actually true. I guess the blue-ish look is just the blue sky reflecting off a black shiny coat. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/4 "2018-08-13T01:33:05Z")
> [@Contemplation](#): > > Interesting that thats actually true. I guess the blue-ish look is just the blue sky reflecting off a black shiny coat. Similarly, blue eyes [aren’t actually blue](https://www.aao.org/eye-health/tips-prevention/your-blue-eyes-arent-really-blue) from a pigment perspective. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/5 "2018-08-13T12:10:59Z")
A dramatic example of structural color is the [blue jay](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_jay#Description). No blue pigment, just the way the light refracts in the feathers. With a dog a good way to see this is to brush your hand with the grain of the fur and notice how some colorings appear and disappear as the angle of light changes. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/6 "2018-08-13T14:21:34Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > A dramatic example of structural color is the [blue jay](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_jay#Description). No blue pigment, just the way the light refracts in the feathers. The fact that the feathers are not actually blue can be seen when they are wet, when they appear black, their actual color. The water prevents the scattering of blue light. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/7 "2018-08-13T15:00:12Z")
Our former master did a [column](https://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2345/are-blue-jays-not-really-blue-plus/) on this. At the time he wrote it, there was some dispute about whether the blue came from scattering or interference. But it’s definitely not blue pigments ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/8 "2018-08-13T15:05:50Z")
I’ve never in life seen a blue or even a partially blue dog. [\*\*Is this real? \*\*](https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5085/5223020529_4a5cf105a5_b.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/9 "2018-08-13T15:19:59Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > I’ve never in life seen a blue or even a partially blue dog. Maybe it’s like with that dress; some people see them as yellow and black. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/10 "2018-08-13T15:49:17Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > I’ve never in life seen a blue or even a partially blue dog. > > [\*\*Is this real? \*\*](https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5085/5223020529_4a5cf105a5_b.jpg) Obviously not. The dog has either been dyed or the image photoshopped. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/11 "2018-08-13T20:10:23Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > The fact that the feathers are not actually blue can be seen when they are wet, when they appear black, their actual color. The water prevents the scattering of blue light. Jays are annoying enough dry. I’d hate to think of the ruckus they’d make if I tried to get them wet! 😉 Anyway …, I come across a jay feather once in a while in the yard. I’ll have to try this. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/12 "2018-08-13T20:36:46Z")
Are we saying blue dogs have structural coloring that make their fur blue?? I don’t think so. The “blue” dogs like the [blue heeler](https://www.dogster.com/dogs-101/blue-heeler-dog) aren’t actually blue. I’m pretty sure the “blue” patches are just light gray patches that look blue when contrasted against the pale brown fur. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2018, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-blue-black-dogs-actually-have-blue-pigments/819499/13 "2018-08-13T21:16:30Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Are we saying blue dogs have structural coloring that make their fur blue?? I don’t think so. The “blue” dogs like the [blue heeler](https://www.dogster.com/dogs-101/blue-heeler-dog) aren’t actually blue. I’m pretty sure the “blue” patches are just light gray patches that look blue when contrasted against the pale brown fur. That’s not the kind of “blue” that the OP is talking about, which is blue-black. As you say, blue heelers and blue tick hounds are not blue, but a shade of gray that we refer to as blue gray. This kind of “blue” is due to pigment. Very deep black glossy hair can appear to have blue highlights due to the reflection of light. That’s an effect of the light, not pigment (although not due to reflection of the sky, as speculated in the third post).