For a German Shepherd to be born white, what must occur regarding the recessive gene?
Answer
Both parents must carry the recessive gene and pass it on.
The expression of the brilliant white coat in a German Shepherd is entirely dependent on Mendelian inheritance principles concerning recessive traits. Since the allele responsible for the white coat is recessive, an offspring must inherit a copy of this specific allele from both its sire and its dam to display the white coloration phenotypically. If only one parent carries the gene but does not pass it on, or if the parents carry dominant alleles for other colors, the resulting puppy will not exhibit the white coat. This strict requirement highlights that the color is rooted deeply within the specific German Shepherd gene pool.
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