At its meeting on 6^th January, the General Committee approved a ban on the registration of Chihuahua (Long or Smooth Coat) puppies sired or whelped from a merle parent. This follows representation from the British Chihuahua Club and will be effective from 1^st March 2009. No puppies from matings which take place on or after this date which involve a merle parent will be accepted.

This announcement is in addition to the press release issued in July 2007, where it was agreed that merle puppies would no longer be registered due to the possible health problems that are associated with this colour, which does not exist naturally in the breed.

Previous information relating to the merle colour indicated that this colour could only be produced as a result of a dominant gene. Therefore, the merle colour could not be carried without it being exhibited in the dog. However, the British Chihuahua Club provided evidence from Genmark, an American company confirming that ‘cryptic’ merles exist, whereby a dog could show no outward appearance of being merle but could still be carrying merle.

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