coat color

Question
We have a liver and white Brittany.  He is 15 months old.  His coat, once dark brown (liver color), is becoming much lighter brown, particularly on his right and left sides. His coat seems to be also getting softer, where as before is was a bit more coarse.  Earlier this summer, we had him closely trimmed and his hair is in the process of getting back to its pre-cut length. Is this all a function of his hair growing back?  Is there such a thing as an undercoat?  He is acting normally otherwise.  Thanks

Answer
Hi Anne,

After being trimmed for the summer your dog's coat only seems to be a different color, because it's not fully grown in yet. There is such a thing as an undercoat, and Brittany's have it.

There is some debate about color change in clipped dogs, particularly those with harsh, terrier type coats. A dog's coat color usually comes from the color of the long, course "guard" hairs, the stiff top-coat hairs that protect the dog from cold, heat and water. Clipping the coat short exposes the light colored undercoat. Because the undercoat grows faster and is more abundant than the guard hairs, the dog appears to be a lighter color.
Clipped dogs do generally feel softer because the soft downy undercoat is exposed and it is no longer covered over by the hard outer coat.

As your dog's coat continues to grow back in, I think he'll be back to his original colored coat, and texture.

Best of luck,
Patti