Horse Basics Category

Rare Horses of the World A – D

Rare Horses A-DThere are hundreds of horse breeds across the globe, some we see every day and some are far more elusive. In fact, some of them are rare enough to be considered endangered and that’s positively sad.

The Tip of the Iceberg

Take a look at a selection of the rarest horses on the globe, there might even be one or two in here you’ve never seen before. And this is just the start of the alphabet, I’ve got plenty more to come, video, images info & all!

Be sure to check out the rest of the alphabet: F – K | K – O | P – W
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Learn Your Horse Colors

There is a huge variety of horse colors and they all stem from four bases, on top of that coats can be affected by a variety modifiers, dilutions and white patterns.
Base Colors

There are four basic horse coat colors: black, chestnut, bay and brown. From these stem the wide variety of color modifications, dilutions and white patterns we see today in domestic and feral horses the world over.

Modifiers

There are several genes which modify base colors, including mealy, sooty and flaxen. The can also affect other modifiers, dilutions and white patterns creating an even wider range of each coat color.

Dilutions

There is a number of dilutions that affect color, including dun, silver, champagne and cream. They have an effect on bases, modified colors, other dilutions and can be double diluted for more extreme expressions.

White Patterns

White patterns can affect any color and produce some of the more spectacular horse coats, like pinto, appaloosa and roan. Some breeds are bred for their spotted patterns, while others discourage and won’t register them.

Markings

White markings on the face or legs can occur in all colors and are not (always) related to a white pattern. There are also a variety of different body markings, some from spotting patterns and others simply genetics at work making nice things.

Horse Color Modifiers – Flaxen

Flaxen Shades

There is a fairly wide variety of flaxen shades, but they fall under four (slightly) different general chestnut categories.

White Patterns on Flaxen

Flaxen animals can be affected by white patterns on any breed that carries them, making some brilliantly beautiful combinations. White patterns can also mask and even mimic some of the flaxen characteristics.

Horse Color Modifiers – Mealy / Pangare

Identifying a Mealy

This is one modifier that is fairly easy to visually identify, they almost always have obvious pale hairs around their muzzle. The other soft spots tend to be affected in varying degrees. Here are some of the characteristics that define a pangaré animal and generally the easiest way to identify them.

Mealy eye
Light hair around the eyes
Mealy flank
Light hair around the flank
Mealy muzzle
Light hair around the muzzle.

Mealy Shades

While mealy doesn’t affect true blacks, when associated with a black base it is called a ‘carrier’ gene. On chestnut coats, it can present itself as flaxen by creating a blonde mane and tail.

Mealy Modified and Diluted

Mealy animals may also be affected by other modifiers and dilutions, some of them can mask visual mealy identifiers.

White Patterns on Mealy

The white patterns affect most of the other dilutions and modifiers in the horse color world, although they can mask identifying characteristics. Perhaps easier to recognize on roan or rabicano animals, appaloosa and pinto can mask mealy traits almost entirely.

Horse Color Modifiers – Sooty / Smutty

Basic Smutty Shades

This coloring can be found on chestnut, black, bay and brown coats. Although for obvious reasons, darkening of the coat only has a visible affect on variations of bay, brown and chestnut animals. The cause of this coloring and how it’s passed on genetically is unknown.

Diluted Sooty Colors

The sooty dilution is far more obvious on a lighter coat, so it tends to have the most dramatic effect on those displaying a single dose of the cream dilution gene.

Sooty White Patterns

The white patterns can mask or conceal sooty coloring, although when the sooty shines through it gives them a new depth of unique coloration.

Define Your Horse’s Face Markings

Horse face markings are as varied as the animals who wear them. Each horse marking is wholly unique to them, but most fall under several broad categories.

Define Your Horse’s Leg Markings

Almost all horses have leg markings of some sort, from a tiny spot of white to whole white legs. Here are the general definitions of each marking, which are a bit more definitive than markings on the face because they are based on leg anatomy.

Horse Colors – Unexplained Markings and Patterns

Unexplained Markings and Patterns

While some of the rarer markings are the result of various white patterns (especially pinto), there are also plenty of unexplained markings and patterns. Some of which have had geneticists scratching their heads for years.

Horse Color Dilutes – Champagne Gene


Champagne Characteristics

There are a few characteristics exclusive to animals affected by champagne, which makes it one of the dilutions that can be visually identified with a reasonable degree of accuracy. It is one of the few dilution genes that affect the skin as well, making it a dusty pink color. They can also have faint dorsal stripes, but dark like a true dun. Otherwise the champagne coat is very uniform in color, with no obvious counter shading.

Champagne Metallic Coat
Metallic Sheen
Champagne Freckles
Freckles
Champagne Eyes
Light Eyes

Champagne Shades

The champagne gene affects the bases, along with some of the modifiers and dilutions to varying degrees. Any animal affected by the gene can carry a metallic sheen and reverse dappling in their coat.

Learn More About the Champagne Dilution

Be sure to check out a guest post with a more complex look at the champagne gene: Equine Champagne Gene