How To Identify A Seal Boston Terrier

Have you ever wondered how you can identify a real seal Boston Terrier? It’s somehow confusing for some fur parents nowadays as seal becomes a catch-all term for Bostons of most color.

Well, seal is actually a difficult color to pinpoint for those who are newly introduced to the Boston Terrier breed, and even those that are already familiar with them may still get confused.

Listed below are the things that you must take a closer look at in order to identify a seal Boston Terrier.

THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING THE COLOR

Why you may ask, is it so important to know which one is the real seal colored Boston? It’s because there is an official standard of the Boston Terrier from the American Kennel Club that recognizes only black, seal, brindle, and white as the official colors of this breed.

There are some colors that are usually called seal even though it’s actually not, and in making that mistake, you may be buying one that doesn’t belong to the AKC standard and is not qualified by the Boston Terrier Club Of America.

There will be times that the breeders of disqualified colors don’t test or don’t disclose the information of what was mixed into the bloodline to get a certain color (that you might mistake as seal) and it may lead you to buy a Boston Terrier puppy that has health issues. Remember that buying a puppy that is a non-standard color is a gamble.

Not only that, if you are a fur parent who is planning to let your Boston join a conformation event, a competitive show open to purebreds in order to evaluate the dogs’ external appearance and structure compared to other dog breeds, your dog’s color is also one of the utmost importance.

The breed standards describe the ideal qualities measurable through movement, appearance, and temperament of each breed, that is why your dog’s color is very important.

These are the disqualifications as listed in the Breed Standard that prevent a dog from participating in conformation events:

Eyes blue in color, or any trace of blue
Dudley nose
Docked tail
Solid black, solid brindle or solid seal, without required white markings
Any color not described in the Standard (black, brindle and seal are the only colors described in the Standard, and so are the only colors allowed in the show ring)

You may sometimes be confused and think that your dog is Seal, and it fits the standard, but the organizers will know better. It will be nice that you are sure about your dog’s color first before you bring it to the event. Read on and see how you can be sure of it!

COLORS THAT MAY BE MISTAKEN AS “SEAL”

Here are colors that people usually get confused with. It is necessary to identify other colors also so that you will easily recognize if they are actually seal Boston Terriers, just like some breeders will say, or not.

RED BOSTON TERRIER- There are times that this color will be called seal because they have different darker or lighter shades of red. Bostons with this coat color will also have a red nose and hazel eyes. The Boston Terriers’ red color is actually liver color, and it is not recognized by the Kennel Club and Boston Terrier Club of America.

Red boston terrier puppy with pearl necklace and pink background

BLUE BOSTON TERRIER- Boston Terriers with this coat color were born because of some breeding issues which caused the dilution of the black pigment that they are usually known for. There are times that people would refer to them as seal also as they are confused about its bluish-gray color and the real seal color. You would know if they are blue-colored because they are born with blue or gray eyes that transitions to hazel when they are older.

Boston Terrier's head peeking out of blue wallpaper

LILAC BOSTON TERRIER- This breed is also known as lavender, blue fawn, or champagne, but at times, they are incorrectly labeled as blue, silver, or seal. It is because they are typically a distinct purple/blue in hue and sometimes they resemble a very dusty red. Lilac Bostons are a combination of black dilute and brown, and their iris is a bright blue color.

BLACK BOSTON TERRIER- Seal is usually a color that is used to specifically describe Boston Terriers, and it’s even often mistaken for the black and white-colored ones. What also makes it hard to differentiate them sometimes is that they both have brown eyes and a black nose.

THE REAL SEAL

Now that you know the colors of this breed that are usually referred to as seal but are actually not, and as their other features are also mentioned let’s go on and see what a seal Boston Terrier really looks like.

The seal colored coat is not red, brown, liver, or chocolate colored. Even though it also looks dark that it’s almost lack, its real shade will appear when in direct sunlight.

This coat type resembles a wet sea lion as red undertones will show through when the light hits it in a certain way. So, the best way to identify a seal Boston Terrier is to put it under the light and see if its dark color becomes highlighted with another color such as burnt black or copper.

COLORS AND HEALTH

As reputable breeders caution fur parents against falling prey to claims that a Boston Terrier puppy is displaying “rare Boston Terrier colors”, one thing that you should watch out for is the claim that the puppy is “seal-colored” and it fits the standard of the AKC.

That is one way of the careless breeders to sell off a puppy with the assurance that it will have no health issues except the ones that even qualified Boston Terrier colors also have (since they are all brachycephalic).

Even though you may not want to put your dog in the show ring and would just like them to be your companion at home, it’s still important that you know everything about them. Even their true colors! We hope that this article has given you knowledge on how you can identify if your pet is real seal-colored or not.