Mouth-Pink or black??

[Southerngirl238]

So here I was sitting here bored and started reading the AKC rottie standard with a fine tooth comb. I noticed that the standard for the mouth says:

Lips-Always black; corners closed; inner mouth pigment is preferred dark. Serious Faults--Total lack of mouth pigment (pink mouth).

I then went and looked at my 4 month old puppys mouth and the inside of his mouth is pink for the most part. His lips are mainly black with some pink, but his gums of his mouth are pink. The roof of his mouth is darker. I thought puppies gums were supposed to be pink!? Are your dogs/puppys mouths pink or black?

[carting]

Lips must be black, the gum and inside the mouth should be black - even as a puppy. However not seeing your pup it is hard to distinguish how severe the dogs mouth might be, also not knowing your lines. I had a pup whose mouth was sort of lighter blue/black gums with bits of pink on the sides and roof of mouth. As they grew it got darker, my breeder recommended Kelp in the food to help pigmentation. I have two other dogs with completely black mouths, and gums. Each line has their faults as well as their better points. You should read up on the AKC standard and not a breeder website. Also teeth must be of the correct dentition and count.

[Southerngirl238]

I did read up on the AKC standard...thats what my original post was about. The more I look at my puppys mouth, its not really that pink. The lips are black and roof of mouth is dark, but the gums are like a purplish pink. They are more on the darker side. When i read the AKC standard, I just thought the entire inside of the mouth was supposed to be completely black besides the tongue. I think as long as the lips are black and the mouth is dark, not bright pink, that it will be okay. I will try and post a picture of my puppys mouth.

[frontierrots]

inner mouth pigment is supposed to be black, but a large portion have black roofs of mouth black and gums dark grey rose

Bubblegum pink are highly frowned on overseas and in german style shows will drop an otherwise excellent dog from a V rating to a SG

[Southerngirl238]

Ok I took a picture of the inside of Bosco's mouth so I can get some opinions on it. Can you look at the picture of his mouth and tell me if the color would be a fault??

[SchH III]

"Lips: Black, close fitting, corner of the mouth not visible, gum as dark as possible." This sentence is from the ADRK Breed Standard; according to the ADRK, "pink or patchy" constitutes a fault. As mentioned above, a Rottweiler with pink in the mouth will not be "V" rated in Germany.

Improper eye color and shape is another breeding fault; eyes need to be very dark and are graded to ADRK standards (as is mouth pigment) during ZTP's and Korungs. A Google search for "ADRK Rottweiler eye color chart" will be of value; since these charts are published on various breeder sites, the URL's will not be supplied.

[jayneliz]

Interesting this would come up... one of my friend's just mentioned last night that they couldn't believe Aeva was V rated with as pink as her mouth is. I thought, "HER MOUTH IS BLACK!!!" and went to look at her. To my surprise, her once beautiful black mouth is now heavily mottled with pink! I never know they could change so dramatically.

[eminbrasil]

I never knew this ! But then our pup is not for showing, but after reading this thread was so intrigued I had to rush out and check my pups mouth ! As frontierrots mentioned, hers is dark grey rose. Well you learn something new every day !

[LunaBelle]

Jayne, that's very interesting! I was thinking about the same thing this past weekend.

Mars' mouth is black except for to small areas on his gums, right next to his rearmost molars. These spots are purplish/rosy, not totally bubblegum pink. However, one of the guys at our Schutzhund club mentioned last night that his dog's mouth used to be pitch black, but is getting pinker and mottled at the age of 3.

Is it normal to change like this as they get older? What causes the change, and can it be remedied? Would feeding kelp really help?

[frontierrots]

MANY MANY dogs mouths get mottled as they age and some even get pinker, even if they were jet black when younger

ALSO heavily chlorinated water can lead to lightening of the mouth as can any illness. Bea's moth was black as a pup, then as she became an adult she developed dark rose grey gums but when she got osteo her gums went mottled pink

[ajemons]

Originally Posted by Southerngirl238

Ok I took a picture of the inside of Bosco's mouth so I can get some opinions on it. Can you look at the picture of his mouth and tell me if the color would be a fault??

Yes, paler than ideal, though I would expect it to darken with age ( I see he still has his baby teeth). No dog is perfect, if this dog is not to be shown I wouldn't even worry about it. I'd far rather a light mouth than an ugly flying ear type fault which would be permanently on show.
Just as an aside, my 11 year old Labrador has the darkest mouth I have EVER seen, even at his age. Oh if only it were on my young Rottie !!!! LOL

[Southerngirl238]

Does anyone know how to darken the color of a rotties mouth and what makes it change colors llike that?

[SchH III]

I would not be overly concerned with the absence of mouth pigment. The perfect Rottweiler has yet to be whelped. I do believe, however, breeders in Germany pay particular attention to pigment and eye color as both will be evaluated during ZTP's.