Diluted Basic Coat Colors
Some colors result from a gene actually diluting, or reducing, the depth of the base color. The color can either be a single dilution or a double dilution on the base color. The single dilution color is always darker than the double dilution color. There are currently 5 genes that have been identified as dilution genes, and they create a variety of colors depending on what base color they are diluting. We will talk about the two most common, cream and dun, here. We will discuss the less common gene in the Advanced Coat Color module. These diluted colors can be seen in solid colored horses, as well as pinto patterned horse colors.
Cream dilution gene
Buckskin and Perlino
The cream dilution gene can create two different colors on the bay base color. If there is one cream gene, the color is buckskin. Buckskins have a yellowish base coat, and the black points that are typically associated with a bay horse. A perlino is the bay base color with two of the cream genes (known as a double dilution). The perlino is a very light creamy color, with the points slightly darker, and sometimes having a reddish shade.
Buckskin Miniature Horse
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Perlino Quarter Horse
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Palomino and Cremello
The cream dilution gene on a chestnut or sorrel base coat results in horses that are palomino (single dilution) or cremello (double dilution). A palomino has a light yellow to dark golden body, with a white mane and tail. Palominos cannot have dark hairs in their manes or tails. Cremellos are lighter that palominos, and almost white. They will have white skin and light colored eyes. Sometimes, it can be very difficult to tell a cremello horse from a white horse, but cremellos can have white markings, so if you look closely and see a difference in color on the legs or face, the horse is probably a cremello.
Palomino Welsh CobP
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Cremello Quarter Horse
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Smoky Black and Smoky Cream
Any base color can be diluted, including black. A single dilution of the black by the cream gene results in a horse that is smoky black; and a double dilution results in a smoky cream horse. As you can probably tell from these pictures, it can be very difficult to tell some of these colors apart. In the past, the only way to tell if the horse carried some of these genes was through seeing what colors their foals are, like in the photo below. Genetic tests are now commercially availalbe, and many breeders of horses with dilution genes do have their breeding animals genetically tested so they know exactly what genes are present in the parents.
Smoky black mare with cremello foal
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Smoky Cream Miniature Horse
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Dun dilution gene (also known as Dun Factor)
The dun gene dilutes the body color of the horse, but does not change the color on the points or head. It is also common so see primitive markings
in dun horses. Depending on what the base color is, the dun can range from a very light apricot color to red dun, and very dark colors.
in dun horses. Depending on what the base color is, the dun can range from a very light apricot color to red dun, and very dark colors.
Red dun (diluted chestnut)
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Bay dun (diluted bay)
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Brown dun(diluted brown)
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Grulla (diluted black)
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Modified Coat Colors
Some colors are created by a gene making a modification of a base coat color, or a change where the original color is still recognizable.
Gray (Grey)
Gray horses can be in many shades and varieities. Horses that are gray can be born in any base color, and then as they get older, they get more and more gray or white hairs in their coat. Some horses stay very dark for several years before becoming lighter, and some horses get gray very quickly. Foals will have a hair color of the base color when they are born, so you may not know for a while that they are going to be gray. There are a couple of good ways to tell if your colored foal is going to turn gray.
- One of the parents must be gray. Gray is a dominant color, so if neither parent is gray, they cannot pass the gray gene on to their foal.
- The foal starts to get white hairs around it's eyes and muzzle when it's foal coat starts to shed out.
There are many ways gray colors are described. One way to describe a gray is based on the base color.
Rose gray (modified chestnut)
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Cinnamon gray (modified bay)
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Steel gray (modified black)
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Grays can also be described with terms such as dappled, where the variation in the hair color is in a circular pattern, which you can see on both the rose gray and the steel gray above, and fleabitten. These specks to do not get lighter as the horse gets older. The final thing to remember about gray horses is that they have dark skin and eyes. That is how you tell a gray horse from a white horse. Some horses when they finishing 'graying out' look to be completely white, but if they have dark skin and eyes, you know they are actually gray. Gray horses may also have white markings, but you often can't see them when the horse becomes more gray. You can tell if they had white markings by looking to see if they have pink skin on their legs and faces. Sometimes when a gray horse is wet, you can see where they have white markings. If you look closely at the horse below, you can see that he does have white leg markings, although they are hard to discern from his coat color.
These specks to do not get lighter as the horse gets older. The final thing to remember about gray horses is that they have dark skin and eyes. That is how you tell a gray horse from a white horse. Some horses when they finishing 'graying out' look to be completely white, but if they have dark skin and eyes, you know they are actually gray. Gray horses may also have white markings, but you often can't see them when the horse becomes more gray. You can tell if they had white markings by looking to see if they have pink skin on their legs and faces. Sometimes when a gray horse is wet, you can see where they have white markings. If you look closely at the horse below, you can see that he does have white leg markings, although they are hard to discern from his coat color.
Roan
Roan is another modification of the basic coat color, where white hairs are scattered throughout the basic coat color. Roan horses have heads and legs the color of the base coat, and the white hairs can either be uniformly scattered throughout their coat, or may be heavier in some areas than others. Unlike gray horses, roan horses do not become whiter and whiter as they get older. Although their coloring may be a little different in different seasons, and roan will always have the base color showing. Just as in grays, roan colors are identified differently depending on the base color.
Strawberry Roan (modified chestnut)
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Red Roan (modified bay)
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Blue Roan (modified black)
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Information adapted from eXtensionCampus - 2015
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