hi guys i have been reading up on colour genetics and the merleing gene. ok the merleing gene runs in par with the roaning gene with cavies which i understand well but with the colour genes of the merles which breed of dog should i be looking up as most koolies have kelpie,border collie,blue or collie hidden in their background some were any ideas would be of great help.

Hi royalla

Probably the most similar breed to reference is the Australian Shepherd at least as far as colour goes. They have an extensive amount of information written on them and I and others believe that Koolies are an ancestor of the Aussie. Also, lucky for us, we have a very experienced Aussie breeder who is a regular visitor to our forum, who may be able to answer relevant questions.

Something that people in Oz often confuse is the speckling of the ACD with merling, they are definately 2 different genes. But one wonders if the speckling evolved from the merle......but don't put that to an ACD "expert".

Let us know how you get on, Royalla, just make sure you get your info from a proven source, many like to think they have the handle of genetics but as you already know there is more to it.
You could give the genetics group in Melbourne a hoi, they might know something.
Hopefully they will be up for the Koolie gathering tomorrow, if they show, I'll be sure to ask.
Silhouette is right, there is strong reasoning behind the thought that the Koolie could be a foundation parent of the Aussie shepherd, Jeanne Joy would certainly be one I'd ask.
Maybe we can ask the genetics guys about the ticking theory, that answer might be a hoot.