What's the one colour you wouldn't want in your breeding program?

[Matt73]

Probably just a confusion between "silver dapple" and "dapple grey" terms (not necessarily the colors).

A "silver dapple" is, actually, a silver black horse with dapples. A "dapple grey" is a grey horse with dapples. They are two different things; nothing to be confused about. It should be a dapple silver horse, like a dapple grey or a dapple palomino or a dapple bay or a....I'm sorry. The silver "dapple" thing bugs me. Sorry. To put it simply, a silver black is born silver black. A grey can be born any colour and turn grey over time.

 

[Minimor]

Thing is, the horse was initially described as a true dapple grey that will not fade to white. To me that indicated that the horse could be a silver black with lots of dappling, and was just being mis-described as 'dapple grey'. I suspect that is what ohmt thought too. However, when she saw a photo she changed that to say that the horse is in fact grey. The "confusion" came from the statement that the horse will not fade to white.

Because the horse is in fact grey, and not a dappled silver black, the horse will eventually turn white.

I could have actually voted for the double dilute colors too. I can see the value of a double dilute in a breeding program if you wish to breed for palomino and/or buckskin, but a double dilute isn't something that I care to own. I just don't care for all that pink skin on the face.

At one time I preferred to not have much white on the face or legs of our horses. However, now that I have a loud pinto and several sabino pinto/roans I do kind of like the white markings.

I'm surprised that so many people dislike roan--I have one true roan and I don't think that he clips out to be a yucky color at all! I love my sabino roans--that is some very neat coloring.

 

[normajeanbaker]

A great horse is never a bad color, however, you will never see a double dilute in my barn. And, I am also not a fan of bays. Even when I was in full szed horses, I never cared for bays.

~Jen~

 

[Annabellarose]

Some grey horses do stay grey and never turn completely "white" (and, even then, they are still called grey), but, most all grey horses do lighten considerably over time. I haven't seen the horse in question (that was described as a grey that "will not fade to white"), but if that horse is truly a grey and lives into its late twenties it will probably be considerably lighter than it was when it was a two year old.

 

[Kari Masoner]

A good horse is never a bad color... However, after conformation, personality, and atheleticism, I would still not have a grey horse... I'm with the rest. It would be heartbreaking to watch a colorful horse fade out like a well-worn pair of blue jeans...

Perlinos and cremellos are a necessary evil... <g> I too started out not liking the 'freaky blue eyes and pink skin' and would run as far as I could. But, I LOVE buckskins and know the only way to breed them true is to have cremello or perlino in your breeding program. That being said, I have the cutest little cremello stallion by LK Doctor Dream. Unfortunately, he has sticky stifle and will have to be gelded. I am now looking at the most beautiful cremello (think the Lone Ranger's Horse Silver) stallion. He looks like satin.

I also (usually) don't like sorrels, but I have a beautiful "Little Girl with a Red Dress On" sorrel Quarter Horse mare... Has but a small white star on her forehead. During the summer she gleams like a new copper penny.

Also don't particularly care for red roans, but love a dark blue roan with black points. Love blood bays - used to have a blood bay Arabian mare (El Paso granddaughter) that was gorgeous with a blaze and 3 white socks.

I normally don't like Appaloosas because I don't like their pink 'spottled' noses, (but recently found out that some owners are blackening the noses for the show ring)... The large horse Appaloosas I've been around have a few screws loose and have scrawny tails. But, I have a Pintaloosa stallion (with a crappy attitude that's going to get him gelded if he doesn't straighten out!) that is really very pretty and naturally doesn't have the pink nose and has a flowing white & black tail... Just the pink 'spottled' ahem, undercarriage.... He has four white socks and large white patches on his body with more of a 'blue roaning' on the dark areas. He's a son of Brewers Dynamo DreamMaker and a grandson of Bond Dynamo with Orion Light Vant Huttenest in his background as well... And Orion is a beautiful Appaloosa!

So, basically, as soon as you say "I don't like (insert color here)" along comes one that makes you salivate... There are no absolutes when it comes to horses or colors...

Kari

 

[Matt73]

Thing is, the horse was initially described as a true dapple grey that will not fade to white. To me that indicated that the horse could be a silver black with lots of dappling, and was just being mis-described as 'dapple grey'. I suspect that is what ohmt thought too. However, when she saw a photo she changed that to say that the horse is in fact grey. The "confusion" came from the statement that the horse will not fade to white.

Because the horse is in fact grey, and not a dappled silver black, the horse will eventually turn white.

I could have actually voted for the double dilute colors too. I can see the value of a double dilute in a breeding program if you wish to breed for palomino and/or buckskin, but a double dilute isn't something that I care to own. I just don't care for all that pink skin on the face.

At one time I preferred to not have much white on the face or legs of our horses. However, now that I have a loud pinto and several sabino pinto/roans I do kind of like the white markings.

I'm surprised that so many people dislike roan--I have one true roan and I don't think that he clips out to be a yucky color at all! I love my sabino roans--that is some very neat coloring.

There is no such thing as a "true dapple grey that will not fade to white". A dapple grey is just an intermediate step in a lightening of a grey horse. I've never seen a grey horse not get much lighter over time.

""Dapple gray" is an intermediate stage not seen on all grays, but often considered highly attractive. It consists of a dark hair coat with "dapples", which are dark rings with lighter hairs on the inside of the ring, scattered over the entire body of the animal. It is another possible intermediate step in the graying process of the horse. Dappled grays should not be confused with the slight dappling "bloom" seen on horses that are very healthy or slightly overweight, as "bloom" dapples disappear should the horse lose condition."

 

[chandab]

A "silver dapple" is, actually, a silver black horse with dapples. A "dapple grey" is a grey horse with dapples. They are two different things; nothing to be confused about. It should be a dapple silver horse, like a dapple grey or a dapple palomino or a dapple bay or a....I'm sorry. The silver "dapple" thing bugs me. Sorry. To put it simply, a silver black is born silver black. A grey can be born any colour and turn grey over time.

I realize they are very different, but that doesn't mean someone might not confuse the terms.

I have 4 silver horses: one silver black (she is definitely silver dapple, has dapples always), one silver bay dun (looks very dark dunalino), one silver bay varnish roan, and one silver buckskin (probably actually a silver smokey brown).

 

[midnight star stables]

There is no such thing as a "true dapple grey that will not fade to white". A dapple grey is just an intermediate step in a lightening of a grey horse. I've never seen a grey horse not get much lighter over time.

""Dapple gray" is an intermediate stage not seen on all grays, but often considered highly attractive. It consists of a dark hair coat with "dapples", which are dark rings with lighter hairs on the inside of the ring, scattered over the entire body of the animal. It is another possible intermediate step in the graying process of the horse. Dappled grays should not be confused with the slight dappling "bloom" seen on horses that are very healthy or slightly overweight, as "bloom" dapples disappear should the horse lose condition."

I just wanted to agree

My mare is a "dapple grey" but gets lighter and lighter each year. It's just the way greys are.

I am odd in that I dislike silvers, buckskins, palominos and I hate tobianos.

Other than those, I like all other colours. I love a sharp black or bay and I love frame overos. I also love the look of my perlino gelding - glad he's a gelding though as I'd have no intrest in the colours he'd produce.

 

[midnight star stables]

I also found it funny that so many dislike grey and double dilutes. I only have 4 horses and own on of each of those disliked colours! To each their own.

 

[MountainMeadows]

Seems like color is kind of a "fad" thing in minis -- probably because we are lucky and they come in so many different variations ! ! !

Lot's of folks here are kind of down on grey - which I personally think is a beautiful color on a well conformed horse. If you have been in this industry for quite awhile, there was a time when grey dominated the show ring -- just think about all those beautiful Blue Boy and Egyptian King horses -- THEY RULED ! !

Then along came the buckskin craze - Buckeroo ! !

Then came the appaloosas - Happy Appy ! !

Then there have been the stunning chestnuts -- Boogerman & Return of the King ! ! !

Now there seems to be a trend for dilutes - Billy Idol & Buff ! ! !

There have always been bays & tobianos that have done well in the breeding programs and the show ring. Palimonos are also always desirable, but getting the truly gold palomino seems elusive in the miniatures.

Sooo - it seems to follow what is winning in the ring at any given time - and as many have said -- There is no bad color for a good horse ! ! Lucky us - we are miniature horse folks - we don't have to stick with just a few "boring" colors

 

[AshleyNicole]

Of course like a lot of people have said a nice horse of any color is what we are after first and foremost. I have several very nice grays one is a nice mare I use for breeding and another a older EK stallion I might use a few times. I think the mare has only had one or two foals that have grayed out of maybe 8 and she usually produces really nice grullo foals so I think I can take my chances lol. Usually I don't like appys but love Piano man and loved Sign on the dotted line from Critter Creek so I try to not to say I don't like a certain color lol.

 

[Songcatcher]

Sure a lot of argueing over the difference between Silver Dapple and Dapple Gray. Of Course there is a difference, but a lot of people still don't know what it is. If I had a dollar for every Silver that was registered as a Gray, I could buy a whole herd of horses.

 

[Riverdance]

I love the Cremello horses. When I was a little girl, all I ever wanted was a white horse with blue eyes and a long mane and tail.

I am not a pinto fan, but own some. As for Apps, I have never likes them. (except for a really pretty blanket App)

 

[D W 2]

Well, seeing as you ask about a breeding program I would have to say grey and red roans. I like to have the double dilutes in my program because of the beautiful colors that they throw, then you can have chestnut, sorrel, black and they all throw beautiful offspring, of course as everyone else says you look at conformation first, but to me nothing puts a well put together horse over the top then raising those beautiful buckskins and golden palominos.

 

[Annabellarose]

Sure a lot of argueing over the difference between Silver Dapple and Dapple Gray. Of Course there is a difference, but a lot of people still don't know what it is. If I had a dollar for every Silver that was registered as a Gray, I could buy a whole herd of horses.

I feel that way about smokey black horses that are registered as grey. I own a "grey" (on her registration certificate) mare that is actually a smokey black and I have seen a lot of others.

 

[Kim~Crayonboxminiatures]

Looks like according to the poll, I picked the wrong pattern to get addicted too... good thing there are other appy spot lovers out there!!

 

[High Meadow Miniatures]

I am not especially fond of grey, though it wouldn't ever keep me from buying a good horse. Double dilutes are also not one of my favorite colors to simply look at, but I do love the colors they produce. My Buckeroo son is a cremello, my Buckeroo grandaughter is a perlino and my Destiny grandaughter is smokey cream.

 

[Dona]

Since I love the wild pinto patterns, I would never use a gray stallion in my breeding program.....altho I think a gray/white horse with dark skin can be extremely beautiful to look at.

I have also never liked the double dilutes, simply because their pink skin & "off" white coloring is just not attractive to me. But if I were into breeding for Buckskins, I would definitely have some in my breeding program.

 

[ruffian]

Looks like according to the poll, I picked the wrong pattern to get addicted too... good thing there are other appy spot lovers out there!!

It's interesting that "Appaloosa" was listed as a color option, when appaloosas can be any color.

Apparently a lot of these folks never heard of the Lone Ranger, and his fiery horse "SILVER!" If I remember right, Silver was a perlino.

I have to admit that the appaloosa patterned horses IMO are much much better conformationally than they were 20+ years ago. Some friends specialize in apps, and they are stunning.

 

[Matt73]

It's interesting that "Appaloosa" was listed as a color option, when appaloosas can be any color.

Apparently a lot of these folks never heard of the Lone Ranger, and his fiery horse "SILVER!" If I remember right, Silver was a perlino.

I have to admit that the appaloosa patterned horses IMO are much much better conformationally than they were 20+ years ago. Some friends specialize in apps, and they are stunning.

I said that I knew many of the options were not colours (ie. silver, appaloosa, pinto etc.). I guess I should have titled this "What's is/are the colours and/or patterns etc. you wouldn't want in you breeding program"