Solid Brown Dogs

Many breeds have solid brown coats, though some may use a different name like Liver, Chocolate, or Mahogany. Regardless of the name, this page describes all dogs that have a mostly solid-colored brown coat.

What makes a dog's coat brown?

Dogs inherit the brown coloring in their coats from a type of melanin called eumelanin. Eumelanin is responsible for the darker colors in dog coats like black, brown, and grey. Brown coats occur in dogs that only inherit non-dominate eumelanin (b or bb) whereas black coats occur in dogs that inherit dominate eumelanin (B, BB, or Bb).

Keep in mind many dogs are still considered solid brown even if they have small areas of white or black in their coats. These "accent colors" normally appear on the paws, chest, tail, and/or muzzle and is fairly normal even in purebred dogs.