Red Merle Australian Shepherd (Ultimate Breed Guide)

The Red Merle Australian Shepherd has a beautiful coat featuring mottled patches in copper, white, red and tan. They’re not as common as Blue Merle Australian Shepherds, however you still come across them quite regularly. While Merle Aussies are so pretty, prospective owners need to be aware of the health dangers of the merle gene when breeding, especially surrounding Double Merle Australian Shepherds.

If you are interested in Red Merle Australian Shepherds keep reading this article to find out the all the answers to your questions about this dog breed!

Cover Image Credit: Photo by Maud Slaats on Unsplash

What Is A Red Merle Australian Shepherd?

Red Merle Australian Shepherds feature a mottled coat with red, copper, tan and white patches throughout it. They usually feature a large white patch on their chest and neck as well as smaller white patches on their paws and muzzle. They look very similar to Blue Merle Australian Shepherds except Red Merle Australian Shepherds would have originally had a red (liver) base coat instead of a black one. Besides the merle gene affecting coat colouration, it may also result in them having blue or green eyes and areas of their skin that lacks pigmentation.

Are All Australian Shepherds Merle?

No, not all Australian Shepherds are merle. There are also regular solid-coated or tri-colour Australian Shepherds. These coat colours include solid black, solid, red, red tri-colour and black tri-colour. Approximately 40% of all Australian Shepherds are merle.

Characteristics

Red Merle Australian Shepherd Characteristics
Size	Teacup, Toy, Mini or Standard.
Temperament	Loyal, affectionate, eager to please.
Activity Levels	Moderate to high.
Exercise Requirements	30 to 60 min per day.
Lifespan	10 to 12 years.
Coat	Red merle double coat.
Eyes	Amber, brown, green or blue.
Shedding	Moderate to heavy.
Apartment Adaptability	Small Australian Shepherds may be able to live in an apartment.
Good with Children	Yes.

Are Red Merle Australian Shepherds Rare?

Red Merle Australian Shepherds are rarer than Blue Merle Australian Shepherds because their red (liver) base coat is a recessive gene while the black base coat of a blue merle is a dominant gene. While they are less common than Blue Merle Australian Shepherds, Red Merle Australian Shepherds are by no means extremely rare. They are about as common as Red Tri Australian Shepherds.

What Is The Difference Between Red Merle and Blue Merle Aussies?

The main difference between Red Merle and Blue Merle Aussies are the colours that are featured in their coat. They both carry the merle gene however Blue Merle Aussies would have originally had a black base coat diluted to grey, white and tan. On the other hand, Red Merle Aussies would have originally had a red or brown coat diluted to copper, beige and white. Blue Merle Aussies are much more common than Red Merle Aussies. In fact, blue merle is one of the most common Australian Shepherd coat colours.

Red Merle Coat Variations

Light Red Merle Australian Shepherd

Light Red Merle Australian Shepherds have lots of diluted sections so most of their coat is copper and beige instead of a darker red. They may also have larger sections of white that spread onto their back instead of being isolated to their chest.

Self Red Merle Australian Shepherd

Self Red Merle Australian Shepherds feature a mottled coat with only red and copper. There are no tan or white patches on their coat. Self Red Merle Australian Shepherds do not have the large white patch on their neck and chest like most Red Merle Australian Shepherds. They are much rarer than the typical Red Merle Aussie that features a white patch around its neck and chest area and also on their paws.

Tri Colour Red Merle Australian Shepherd

Tri Colour Red Merle Australian Shepherd is just another name for a Red Merle Aussie. All Red Merle Australian Shepherds have three colours in their coat: red, white and tan.

Price

Red Merle Australian Shepherds usually cost between $2500AUD and $6000AUD+ depending on the breeder. They are usually more expensive than Blue Merle Australian Shepherds as they are a rarer coat colour, the result of a recessive gene. Their unique and beautiful coat colour is highly sought after by buyers.

Additionally, Red Merles that have been ethically bred usually sell towards the higher end of the price range as the breeders have meticulously chosen breeding lines and done genetics tests to certify that they are not Double Merles.

Are Merle Aussies Healthy?

Merle Aussies can have health issues but being merle does not necessarily mean that they have them. Manly Merle Aussies, whether they are blue merle or red merle are perfectly healthy. If a Merle Aussie does have heath problems it’s likely to be hearing problems and blindness however this is much more common in ones that irresponsibly and Double Merle Aussies.

Responsible Breeding Practices

Breeders who want to produce merle puppies should mate a Merle Australian Shepherd with a non-Merle (m/m) Australian Shepherd as the incidence of health risks is reduced. Roughly 50% of their offspring will be Merles and most likely none will be Double Merles. That being said, there is still a risk of producing Double Merles as a cryptic merle mutation exists. Breeders should perform DNA tests for the cryptic merle mutation before breeding.

Double Merle Australian Shepherds

What Is A Double Merle Australian Shepherd?

A Double Merle (M/M) Australian Shepherd has little to no colour in their coat as they have inherited two copies of the dominant “M” allele. Unfortunately, Double Merle Australian Shepherds are affected by severe ocular defeats and deafness. They may be deaf in one or both ears and may be blind or have totally lost an eye.

Double Merle Australian Shepherds are also called ‘lethal whites’ due to their colouring and health issues. They are very controversial if they have been purposefully bred. Most official bodies refuse to register dogs that are a product of merle-to-merle breeding.

Double Merle Health Issues

Hearing Impairment – up to complete deafness
Vision Impairment – up to complete blindness
Skin Cancer – an increased risk due to the lack of pigmentation on skin
Micropthalmia – rare condition causing small and often non-functional eyeballs (high risk for Double Merles)

Sizes

Red Merle Australian Shepherds comes in three main sizes: toy, miniature and standard.

Toy Red Merle Australian Shepherd

A Toy Red Merle Australian Shepherd is the smallest Australian Shepherd size. They are the same size as Teacup Red Merle Australian Shepherds – the two names are used interchangeably.

Toy Red Merle Australian Shepherds gets to a height of 25cm to 35cm tall at the shoulder and weigh between 6kg to 10kg when fully grown.

Mini Red Merle Australian Shepherd

Mini Red Merle Australian Shepherds are the middle Australian Shepherd size – somewhere in between the Teacup/Toy Australian Shepherd and the Standard Australian Shepherd. They are a medium sized dog breed with a solid build.

Mini Red Merle Australian Shepherds gets to a height of 33cm to 46cm tall at the shoulder and weigh between 12kg to 18kg when fully grown. You can read our full in-depth Mini Australian Shepherd guide here!

Standard Red Merle Australian Shepherd

Standard Red Merle Australian Shepherds are the largest size of the breed. A Standard Red Merle Australian Shepherd gets to a height of 46cm to 58cm tall at the shoulder and weighs between 16kg and 32kg when fully grown.

Out of all the Australian Shepherd sizes, you are most likely to find a Red Merle Aussie in this size.

Shedding

Do Red Merle Australian Shepherds Shed?

Australian Shepherds, regardless of their coat colour, are moderate to heavy shedders. They shed all year round and it is particularly heavy during moulting season. As Australian Shepherds have a double coat, the thickness of their undercoat will change depending on the season. It’s thicker during winter to keep them warm and thinner in summer to keep them cool. The transitional periods towards winter or summer are the two periods where shedding will be much heavier than normal.

If you are looking for a dog breed that doesn’t shed that much, a single coated breed is probably more suitable than a double coated one. Nearly all Poodle Mix breeds are classified as light to non-shedders so something like an Aussiedoodle, Groodle, Labradoodle or Bernedoodle would be suitable if you are still looking for a larger dog breed. If you love the temperament or look of an Australian Shepherd, an Aussiedoodle would be your best option as they are a cross between an Australian Shepherd and a Poodle.

Are Red Merle Australian Shepherds Hypoallergenic?

Red Merle Australian Shepherds are not hypoallergenic as they release a considerable amount of allergy inducing dander into their immediate environment. Dog allergy symptoms are usually caused by dander which is composed of tiny particles of skin shed by dogs along with a bit of their fur. It can be really problematic as dander is so small and can linger in air for long periods of time.

Allergy symptoms can also flare up from the proteins founds in dog saliva, urine and feces. Like dander, dried saliva can flake off a dog’s skin or fur and become airborne.

Name Ideas

Red Merle Australian Shepherd Girl Names

Ruby
Sienna
Cinnamon
Ariel
Pippi
Anne
Autumn
Amber
Pumpkin
Maple

Red Merle Australian Shepherd Boy Names

Blaze
Fox
Chilli
Jasper
Redmond
Pepperoni
Bandit
Rosso
Hunter
Bandit