Hi im after some advice a friend of mine is considering breeding from her cocker who is blue roan she has had all the eye tests done and has found a lovelly dog to use with a nice pedigree the only problem is he is golden in my book it says you shouldnt cross parti colours with solids am i correct to think this and if so is there a reason why? any advice appreciated i dont want to sat anything to my frien until ive got my facts straight

Why does your friend wish to use a gold stud dog is the question? Mostly the solids & particolours are kept separate for breeding purposes (unless we are talking about Working Cockers) & only experienced breeders would mix the colours with a specific aim in mind. Your friend won't get a mixture of blue roan & gold puppies if that is what she is thinking? All the resulting puppies will be solids with or without white mismarkings (white feet, white muzzles perhaps). If the blue roan mother carries the gene for orange, then some of the puppies may be solid gold (with or without mismarkings). If she does not carry the gene for orange, then all the pups will be solid black, with or without mismarkings. Cocker colour genetics is quite complicated & I suggest your friend does some research into this aspect before she makes a decision about stud dogs. As she is not experienced, I would suggest that a well-bred particolour stud dog would be her best option - perhaps her breeder could recommend a suitable dog?