Homozygous merle (see Lethal Whites) - This color is by far the most well known, and most feared. The name double merle is also used. The "Lethal White" stigma arises from complications with the double merle gene. Most Aussies born homozygous merles will be blind or deaf, or both. This coloring occurs when one merle of any color and another merle of any color breed. It cannot occur with a solid parent. Both parents MUST be merle. Most cases have an excess white. Other indications are: missing or tiny eyes, sunburst pupils, one-third or more white, faded merling, white around eyes or ears.

Pattern White (most commonly referred to), piebald, or pinto -  When the normal Irish spotting pattern (acceptable white trim) is exceeded, the coloration of a dog is known as Pattern White. Easily mistaken for homozygous merle, this color pattern occurs in all dogs, merle or solid. It, too, can produce deafness or blindness associated with pigmenting. If the dog has black eye rims and dark skin/colored ears, then blindness and deafness is not a problem. Color is usually normal looking, just more white than allowed.

Phantom Merle - This occurs when a heavily merled dog has little or no light base, giving the illusion of a solid dog. A dog that could otherwise be a solid, may have had a spot of merling on its tail when docked, or it has no merle appearance whatsoever. Nonetheless, it is a merle and will breed as one.  This puppy has merling on her ear.

Sable - This is a dog with reddish hair tipped in a darker color, usually black. It can occur as pure sable, like a honey colored collie, or in conjunction with an incompletely recessive gene for black. It is generally not liked because all that black tipped red muddies a blue merle's coat. Sables are more difficult to detect if they are red or red merle. This puppy is a sable with black eumelanin (pigment). Sables can come in black eumelanin or brown (this is the dark tipping) and tannish phaeomelanin or paler (the lighter color).

Dilute- This color is a grey-to-brown merle or tri, and The red version of this same thing is called isabella, peach or (in Dobes) fawn. In merles, dilutes will have slate blue "dark" patches or spots on a light blue background. Red merle dilutes would be correspondingly lightened but might be difficult to distinguish from some washed-out versions of this color. (This dog is a red merle dilute.) The dilutes sometimes have skin problems. In other breeds, the color "blue" or lilac refers to the incorrect blue dilute as described here. In Dobes, where the color is more common (and allowed) they feel that dilutes out of dilutes are more prone to the skin trouble than dilutes out of non-dilutes. In collies there is a genetic defect in which the pups are born looking rather like blue dilutes. It is lethal and the pups die in a few weeks to a few months. I am not aware of any cases of this in Aussies.