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This page has a lot of photos and will take awhile to download.
Buckskin
vs. Dun
A Horse Of A
Different Color – Kings Coat Color Explained
We receive quite a few questions about Kings real color. King is buckskin, not dun. To be a dun, he would HAVE to have one dun parent. He does not. King inherited the smutty gene from his buckskin dam (bay & palomino parents), Cow Pasture and his sire; King of Four Mac is Black (bay & sorrel parents). Depending on what time of year he is seen, King will look almost black, mottled (reverse dapples), or golden tan. Unlike a dun, buckskins change color with the seasons - at least 4 times a year with many transition periods in between so they always look like "a horse of a different color". Besides being buckskin, King also carries and displays the “smutty” or counter shading gene, which produces a “face mask”, shading across his withers, cheeks, hips and a “dorsal” which might be easily confused with dun factor. King does not have leg barring which is another distinction between buckskin vs. dun. Photos of King’s ever-changing coat color are below. These photos will replaced with "conformation" type photos taken in the same location same time each month to give a more accurate display. They will be replaced as each month passes. "Dorsal" seen 1/28/04 "Black phase" 3/6/05 & 5/31/04
June 2004 July 2004 August 2003
10/18/03
mottled 10/18/04 under saddle A
Good Horse Never Comes In A Bad Color
“What color
will I get if I breed my mare to King?”
This may seem like a rather simple question but the answer can be very complex. Depending on the color of your mare, the dominant and recessive (hidden) color genes present and the genetic roll of the dice, the outcome can vary. You can breed the same mare to King (or almost any stallion) multiple times and get a different color each time. Equine color genetics is not an exact science and many factors can play a part in your horse’s color. In addition to the “base” coat color, there are many “modifiers” that can be presented on a horse. King adds the creme gene modifier and primitive markings. We won’t go into the genetics aspect on this page but have provided links below to excellent websites dedicated entirely to color genetics that explain it better than we can on a single page. Please see the chart below for color possibilities when breeding to buckskin. We will discuss what we’ve seen so far with King's foals and are always happy to discuss YOUR expected results with you. We do want to mention that our emphasis is on breeding for conformation, disposition, and ability. We view coat color as a bonus because you don’t ride color. King has a high color production rate but as impressive as it may be, we cannot guarantee color. Please see the chart below for possible colors when breeding to buckskin. The "TYPE" Through six foaling seasons, we have a good understanding of the "type" of foal King will produce. With 16 foals on the ground, King has consistently given his conformation, ability, disposition, head, mane, tail, full hips, strong legs, and intellect to his foals. Of course the mare contributes 50% to the resulting foal, but we have seen that King's input has been very dominant and has created the "type" of foal you can expect if breeding to or buying a foal by King.
King's Foals and Their Colors King has sired foals that are bay, black (maybe smoky
black) and
different shades of buckskin. To date King has not sired sorrel or
palomino. King will not
produce dun or grullo foals unless the mare is dun or grullo. Buckskin
foals can range in colors of buttermilk, silver, silver/mauve, light
tan, golden, dark golden and almost brown. Sometimes it can be difficult to determine the actual color of a foal and or what it will be
as an adult since color is not firmly established until the age of 2 or 3.
The question of bay vs. buckskin foal can also be difficult since
buckskin is a dilute of bay and both colors have many different shades
within the color. With Kings smutty gene and any presence of the
"mealy" gene, this can be harder still.
Dark buckskin (gold tones) will sometimes look like bay and vice
versa. The bay color is more
"red" based not "gold or creme" based like
buckskin. A darker “dorsal” stripe does not
always mean the foal will end
up that color. It could
simply be the smutty gene expressing itself.
Buckskin and Bay foals may be born with lighter colored lower legs which
will darken as they age and shed the first time. Manes & tails can be
black or silvery on the newborn buckskin foal. Silvery or light
manes will darken with time but will be frosted at maturity. The honest
"displayed" coat color of a mature horse should be viewed in a well groomed state in their summer coat. Unless
we are positive of a foal's color, we do not register them until they have
shed the first time. This should give us a better understanding of their
true color for registration. Primitive Markings: Primitive markings can change or camouflage the base coat somewhat to either lighten or darken the color in certain areas. Sometimes these markings can make color verification a bit more difficult. Most of Kings foals have inherited his smutty gene to some degree. So far we’ve seen the following on Kings foals:
Click on the photos below to enlarge Smutty hips Frosting on tail Mealy color
White
Markings: Kings rear pastern & sock seem to be very dominantly expressed on his foals thus far. He minimizes white facial markings of the mare but all foals have at least inherited a small white star. White markings are evident at birth. The lower legs on a foal can be so light once dried that white marking may be hard to detect. If the hoof is white, there is white on the lower leg. Some Of Our Foal/Adult Colors:
Comet as Filly Comet at 18 months Comet was born very light with a smoky hue to her mane and tail. Her mane and tail turned black as she aged but still contain white hairs known as frosting.
Noche at birth 3/19/04, Shedding 6/19/04 & faded 8/21/04 Noche may turn out to be a Smoky black
but is registered black. He does fade but had lighter hair in his ears at
birth, light "arm pit's" at shedding, and
definite black points. If so, he will throw palomino and buckskin
when he begins breeding. The 8/21/04 photo above shows him as a
faded black with reddish base.
Jess 2 days old Jess at 3 months Jess's Chest Jess was a bit perplexing to us. We were unfamiliar at the time with the mealy or pangare' gene. She was bay on top but her underside was most definitely buckskin. We waited through a few shedding cycles to see what color she'd end up. She is registered as a bay and is considered a mealy mouthed bay. Not complimentary at all but she's a beauty. She has frosting in her mane and tail and displays the mealy gene (lighter color) around her eyes, muzzle and underbelly, legs and butt. She is also pictured under the 'mealy' definition above. What Color Foal To Expect When Breeding To Buckskin? Expected Results of Color Crosses (as excerpted from Appendix 3 of Equine Color Genetics, by D. Phillip
Sponenberg, D.V.M., Ph.D.)
If you are interested in learning more about equine color genetics, I recommend the following websites: Great website about color, modifiers and foal color. http://members.aol.com/battyatty/
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