I have some silver blacks that dapple and some that don't and others that only dapple for part of the year. That's been so unpredictable. The dam of the bottom 3 fillies only did the dappling with "stars" the one year - that I'm aware of. And that was only noticeable when she was partially clipped (a trace clip while working as both a riding lesson pony and learning to drive single/pair). Yet, she's had dapples since - just not the same. Sometimes her winter coat is dappled and others her summer coat is. Weird.
I have several other mares that are heterozygous black silvers. Some are darker than the homozygous blacks. The dam of the first foal I posted pics of (post # 76) is homozygous silver but she is heterozygous black (can produce chestnut with another heterozygous black or a chestnut). She is one of the ones that looks gold - during part of the summer/fall/winter. This is probably the darkest she will be this year (unless I start keeping her stalled), since she has shed. The 2nd pic is of her in winter coat.
Probably the best way to see pics of the various silvers we currently own is to go to our website. Each pony's picture album is featured at the middle of their page.
Currently own 5 Sr mares that are silver black. Bell - tested single black & double silver. GG, daughter of Bell by chestnut stallion - tested single black & silver (produced red tobi filly by single blk, double bay, double tobi stallion in 2016. Koalah - tested double black, single silver. KoKo - tested single black, single silver (produced blk tobi colt by single blk, double tobi stallion 2016). Stuffy - tested double black, single silver. Flower - untested silver bay 1/2 shetland. Taff - untested silver buckskin - produced a silver bay colt this year by a single black, single bay, double tobiano.
SR Mares
Currently own 5 Jr Mares that are silver black. Ami is tested heterozygous black, heterozygous silver. She has no other relatives in our herd and has never been bred. Bunny (looks gold) is not tested - but will be homozygous black and believer her to be homozygous silver. Classy is not tested - could be single or double black & silver. Her 1/2 sister is GG (above, out of same dam - Bell). Flashi is tested homozygous black, single silver (and when she was being shown/kept in barn, she was almost black in color, when body clipped she is a metallic blue/gray shade). Shamrock - not tested - but is homozygous for black based on sire and dam color testing. Classy, Flashi & Shamrock are full sisters.
JR Mares
Have 3 geldings. Full brothers Cupid - tested double black, single silver, double tobi & Rio, not tested - will be double black, out of Stuffy. Dandy is a silver bay - not tested but both parents are. He gets his single silver gene from his sire and single bay gene from his dam - don't know if single or double black. Is double tobi based on parents' tests.
Geldings
Not sure exactly how the silver gene will carry forward in future breeding. Most of the silvers, sired by the same stallion, have now shown up to have different levels of sticky stifles. The 3 worst (2 - 1/2 Shetland siblings; 1 mare - sibling to the 2 geldings) and the stallion were euthanized in 2014. Working with vets now to decide if any others will be euthanized and which of the two stifle surgeries may be required (or continuing to maintain on diet/exercise as currently doing) and at what cost(s) for the remaining mares/3 geldings.... Sticky stifle issue is why I had a promising colt (in so many other ways) gelded in 2012.
Along with a couple that have popped up with cryptorchid issues, this pretty effectively ends breeding for a while for us.
2014 thru now have been some interesting and rough learning curves! I will always wonder if the stallion that I couldn't afford for years then became available did so because someone knew that he was siring foals with stifle issues (that didn't show up until the foals were 2-3 yrs of age). Neither the stallion nor his offspring display(ed) conformation that shows a predisposition to locking stifles and the sire never locked up himself. Some of the "lockers" are out of the same dams, some are not. He sired a total of 11 foals for us - 8 of whom reside here with us for now. Foals by other stallions out of the mares have not displayed any locking stifles.
and just for fun - a pic of summer faded silver mares taken in 2015.