Blue Eyes

[Little Wolf Ranch]

I am going to be getting all my pinto horses LWO tested to see who is positive and negative for it but I got to thinking about the blue eyes. . .

I LOVE blue eyes and I am breeding for loud pintos with the beautiful blue eyes. I then realized I never knew exactly what genetics and color coat patterns are connected with the blue eyes?

What about a horse (like my mare Missy) who has one partial blue eye? What does that mean?

Thanks guys & Happy New Year!

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

Good question, I dont know the answer but am interested to hear what others have to say. I have a solid smokey black filly with one BRIGHT blue eye and both parents are solid, so I would like to know how she managed to get a blue eye.

 

[wpsellwood]

According to this article its caused by overo or splashed white. http://www.planetaccess.net/dangerranch/Bl...es/blueeyes.htm

 

[crponies]

Blue eyes are thought to be associated with frame overo and splashed white as far as pinto goes.

 

[Lucky-C-Acres-Minis]

Frame and splash overos

All of my horses with blue eyes are splash as they either tested LWO negative or sire/dam are negative..

 

[MBhorses]

ok so the minis i had at one time that had blue eyes that were tobianos what does that mean?

 

[crponies]

If a tobiano horse has blue eyes it means it has more than tobiano going on.

The same is actually true if the horse has white on its face. Even "normal" face white is caused by some sort of pinto gene(s).

 

[Little Wolf Ranch]

Frame and splash overos
All of my horses with blue eyes are splash as they either tested LWO negative or sire/dam are negative..

I am a bit confused. . .so if a horse tested negative for LWO they are splash and if they are positive for LWO they are frames?

Is there any way to look at a horse and tell if they are frame or splash?

Thanks guys!

 

[kaykay]

Frame can hide so you cannot tell just by looking at a horse. Its always best to test to be sure.

Splash can come in minimal form (for example just a big white blaze and blue eyes) so splash can be hard to see also.

Most Tobianos also carry other genes such as sabino and splash

 

[rabbitsfizz]

No, absolutely no way at all.

We can and do make educated guesses, but I would never guess with LWO.

Having said that, IME, a horse with a blue eye or a partial blue eye is usually Splash.

I would still test for LWO before breeding it, though, after all it only costs $25.00 and you avoid any chance of a dying foal....cheap at twice the price, I think.

 

[Little Wolf Ranch]

I plan on having my horses LWO tested before breeding them but I was just wondering how to determine what pattern they are - not their genetics.

 

[targetsmom]

We have three with at least one blue eye and they are LWO+. Well, 2 were tested and the third is a gelding so not tested, but his sire is LWO+ and I would guess he is too. All three are Rowdy bred. None of our other pintos - even those that must carry splash - have blue eyes.

 

[Carolyn R]

Frame and splash overos
All of my horses with blue eyes are splash as they either tested LWO negative or sire/dam are negative..

I am a bit confused. . .so if a horse tested negative for LWO they are splash and if they are positive for LWO they are frames?

Is there any way to look at a horse and tell if they are frame or splash?

Thanks guys!

It is typically thought that the blue eyes in a horse (other than those that are double dilute) are from splash and/ or LWO+. If a horse has blue eyes and is LWO neg, then it is assummed the horse's blue eyes are from splash. If a horse has blue eyes and is LWO pos. the blue eyes can be from LWO but the horse can ALSO carry splash. There is no way to tell because there isn't a test for splash.

The above mare is LWO neg. Has two bright blue eyes a strip and a snip. Foal in photo gets the tobiano from the stallion in my avatar (stallion is very minimal toby) but has a partial blue left eye, a strip a snip, and high hip white on one side, which indicates he also carries splash from his dam.

The foal above was a tovero ( overo from dam and toby from same sire)

his dam is the silver black below

 

[minie812]

I just tested our one stallion and he is Homozygous for Tobiano but also tested for LWO and he is negative (he has Rowdy in his background is why I tested for that)also tested Agouti & red/black factor-heterozygous &neg for sabino. I have a filly that is out of Fiesta(pinto /brown eyes) & a solid black bay w/brown eyes and she has one bright blue eye with facial markings so will test her this spring.Any of my horses that have Rowdy in their background I will be testing for LWO.

 

[vvf]

Frame and splash overos
All of my horses with blue eyes are splash as they either tested LWO negative or sire/dam are negative..

I am a bit confused. . .so if a horse tested negative for LWO they are splash and if they are positive for LWO they are frames?

Is there any way to look at a horse and tell if they are frame or splash?

Thanks guys!

Here is a good example of a minimal splash. This is our stallion that has 2 blue eyes, and just a small snip. No other white. (the black horse on the left) He was lab tested negative for LWO.

Now here are 2 of his foals out of solid mares. Both foals each have both bright blue eyes like their sire.

 

[Becky]

I'm also of the opinion that one or more of the sabino patterns can carry blue eyes. Generally just one blue eye on a horse. There may be some that disagree with that, but I do believe it's true. I've had several sabino horses with one blue eye and pass it on with no signs of splash and no LWO.

 

[Fantasia]

I just pulled out my horse colour genetics book (Sponenberg) and he has stated the Sabino is often wrongly linked in with Overo category.

Becky I have a number of Tobianos and a line with Sabino in it and they often throw up blue eys, so I'm with you!

In relation to the blue eyes, the only mention I can find is that apart from comsistenty with two doses of the Cremello gene, the actual understanding around why blue eyes occur on dark collour horses without extensive white is not well understood. It is regcognised that horses with extensive white around the eyes are more prone to having blue eyes (so there's your Sabino & Overo coming in) and they believe that the eye colour is linked to the genes responsible for white.

Sooooo - yeah we know it happens, we're just not sure why!

Maybe someone else has some more up to date reference material

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Nope, sorry, I will never believe that Sabino carries blue eyes, there just is nothing to support the theory.

I keep an open mind on most things but not this one.

Blue eyes go with Splash, and Frame.

Sabino has never been an "overo" as far as I am concerned as we have never used this term, I am not sure why it continues in use but there you go, it does not really mean anything except "Any pattern that is not, obviously at least, Tobiano"

How hard is it to say Splash, Sabino or Frame

Still, if we all believed the same things then we would have no basis for discussion.

I know people that still believe Tobiano carries face white and blue eyes......

 

[Fantasia]

Weeelllll, considering I just posted that the actual genetic link is poorly understood maybe we're all just going around in circles!!

All I know is my tobianos have no overo in them and we get blue eyes. So there is SOMETHING there.

Hopefully some scientist-type-person will get interested and investigate further

 

[crponies]

How do you know your tobianos do not have another pattern? There are not even tests for all the patterns so there is no way for you to prove they do not have splash for example. Do they have white on their faces?