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The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog can have other base colors, however, they can not be shown in AKC conformation shows. Other colors include:

Blue: Often seen as a lighter, dusty looking grayish black. As a young puppy the color is a silvery gray. It does darken with age. The blue color still retains the white and red markings. Some blues have blue eye color while others have the standard brown eye color.

        
This is the same Blue pup as seen above.

Red: The red color, is seen as the main base color. The dog retains the white markings, but does not have a tri-color appearance. The red color gene is thought to be a recessive gene going back to the Greater Swiss Mountain dog's relationship to the Saint Bernard.

    New born red.

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog usually has markings that are symmetrical, however this is not always the case. Sometimes it can have more white on its head. This is usually considered a mis-marked dog. It can also have one or both eyes blue.

Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs that are not properly marked or have the wrong base color should not be bred, but they still make great pets and can be shown in obedience.

An adult Swissy with one blue eye.