Starburst, dropped pupils, and microphthalmia. Casey the longhaired Dachshund, photos by Mascara from the PKC forum. While it can be quite beautiful to see, the lack of pigment in a double merle indicates there is no melanin wherever the areas with white coat occur on the body. All of this can be avoided by not breeding merle dogs to each other. If your dog gets two copies of m, the gene for Merle, it is considered homozygous (mm) or double merle. Vision impairment can range from being very slight to complete blindness. Each puppy in a Merle litter has a 25% chance of inheriting the two genes and becoming a double Merle. Microphthalmia in layman's term means,  "small eye." This Dachshund is a blue (black) double merle with tan (called a double "dapple" in this breed). Moo is blind in this eye (left) and has abnormalities in her other eye. If two merle dogs are bred together, each litter has a 25% chance of being born a double merle. Many dogs will have multiple eye defects, and most of those will have some vision loss, sometimes to the point of blindness. A double merle inherits the merle gene twice. Some dogs will be born completely blind, or even without eyes. Some are absolutely fine. In a double merle, the marbling/lightening effect is doubled and the coat becomes predominantly white. 1. Auditory defects It does not matter what color the merleing pattern is, or, the breed of dog. Cataracts are also found in the eyes of many double merles. Due to the decreased pigment on the skin, double merles are at a high risk for hearing and sight impairments. I know what can happen with merle to merle breeding since I've seen the results with my own eyes. Spotting a merle isn’t always easy, either. Does anyone know if unequal pupils are a known double merle eye defect? A dog with one normal sized pupil and one small pupil? Vision impairment can range from being very slight to complete blindness. Below you will see photos of different eye abnormalities. You can see how small it is and that it's barely there. Dropped pupils, irregularly shaped, maybe slight microphthalmia. A multitude of Merle Dog Breeds. There are a myriad of different eye abnormalities seen among double merles. These double merle pups have a high rate of deafness and eye problems. Dogs can suffer from one, or in many cases, several. This is a very common condition in the eyes of double merles. Dropped pupils, irregularly shaped, maybe slight microphthalmia. In many of the eyes there is more than one abnormality present. A double Merle otherwise known as a homozygous Merle, is a dog that inherited two (or double) Merle genes. Most double merles will suffer from some sort of vision impairment. Windy is a double merle. Why Can You Not Breed Merle to Merle? Total and partial (one eye) blindness is very common among double merles. While it mainly affects a dog’s coat, it can also result in heterochromia iridum, a condition that causes the eyes to be different colors. Lebensjahres. Whilst in Merle Great Dane dogs blue eyes could be a sign of probable health problems. The pupil will be shaped with spiked, jagged, or irregular edges. Double Merle Collie breeders have no problem with their dogs being blind, and they have no problem pulling the wool over your eyes either. Keeley, a Catahoula mix, was born with no vision in her left eye and only about 5% in her right eye. Slightly irregular pupils (see close-up on is profile page). To see more pictures of eye defects, visit Inheritance of Color in the Australian Shepherd - Aussie Eye Defects. Ralph, a double merle Australian Shepherd, has microphthalmia in this eye. Microphthalmic with starburst/irregular pupils. This is why others call them “albino Pitbulls.” They will have blue eyes or eyes that are very pale. One from the mom and one from the dad. 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