There are several dozen different coat colors in horses. All of them are artificially obtained on the basis of four basic ones. Some of the colors are so beautiful that it is impossible to look away from them. It will be interesting for fans of the equestrian world to consider the rare colors of horses in the photo, because individuals with such colors can only be seen in films or on large horse breeding farms.
Rare horse color
What is oil?
Contrary to popular belief, this is not just a coat color. This is a combination of factors that affect the appearance of a horse. The suit is the main distinguishing feature of the animal and includes:
- shade of skin pigment;
- coat color on the body and legs;
- hair color of the tail and mane;
- eye color;
- the color of the stratum corneum of the hooves.
It is the combination of signs that plays a role in determining the suit. For example, two animals have the same shade of hair on the body, but the limbs and hair of the mane and tail are differently colored. Accordingly, we are talking about different suits. For comparison, we recommend that readers take a look at bay and red horses, as well as compare Isabella and light-colored horses. Outwardly, they are very similar to each other, but have a different suit.
According to different classifications, there are only 2-4 basic colors. Ann Bowling distinguishes 2 basic colors – black and red. According to Philip Sponenberg, bay also belongs to the main colors. Hippocrates, in his writings, also ascribes gray here.
All other types of colors are formed by mixing the genes of the owners of the basic suits, because the color of the coat, spotting, excuses and ebbs are inherited from parents to children. The initial result is more dependent on which genes dominate.
The rarest suits
Among the whole variety of colors, rare colors are of particular interest to horse lovers. Their owners are highly valued. Not everyone can afford to buy a horse with an unusual coat color.
Isabella
Considering the beautiful colors of horses, it is worth getting to know Isabella, it is also called cream. It is characteristic of the Akhal-Teke horses, bred more than 5 thousand years ago on the territory of modern Turkmenistan. This coloration is characterized by:
- pink skin;
- blue or light green eyes;
- the tail and mane are colored in the same tone with the hair on the body or may be slightly darker (this is the difference between the isabella color and the nightingale);
- animal hair has a pleasant even shade of baked milk or ivory and shimmers in the sun.
Isabella horse color
There is a legend about the origin of the name of this color. In the early 17th century, Queen Isabella, who ruled the Netherlands, made a vow that she would not take off her nightgown until the Austrian king Albrecht captured the Belgian port of Ostend.
The whole 3 years continued the struggle for this strategic object. During this time, the queen kept her word – she did not take off her shirt. The port has been taken. For 3 years, the clothes have lost their original appearance and acquired a creamy shade. During this period, horses with a light color were popular in Europe. Thanks to the queen, they began to be called Isabella.
Attention! One of the varieties of the isabella suit is called pearl or perlino. It is characterized by a light cream shade of coat on the body and dark hair on the tail and mane.
Dappled Gray
The gray suit outwardly resembles white. The difference is that its owners have skin with dark pigment. Apples are small spots on the fur of horses. They can be lighter than the main body hair color or darker. Scientists are still arguing about their origin. Some believe that spotting is purely genetic, others suggest that the appearance of inclusions is somehow related to the nutrition of animals.
Dapple gray is one of the varieties of gray color. Most often it is found in representatives of the Oryol trotter breed. Interestingly, foals have more spots, and as they grow older, some disappear.
Gray breed in apples
crow-roan
This coat color is characterized by the presence of white hairs in the black coat, which are evenly distributed over the body. The exceptions are the following areas – the lower part of the limbs, tail and mane. Here, if there is an admixture of white hair, then it is almost imperceptible. On this basis, it is easy to distinguish crow-roan individuals from dark gray ones.
Outwardly, horses with this color appear blue or smoky. At different times of the year, the shade of the coat may change, but areas where there are almost no white hairs retain their original appearance. Raven-roan horses do not turn gray with age, but on the contrary, they can acquire a darker shade.
Attention! A clear sign of this suit is the regrowth of mixed hair (white and black) on damaged areas of the skin. In horses with a different color, white hairs grow in place of the scar.
Pinto
Considering the rare and unusual colors of horses, one cannot fail to mention the color of the pinto, the name of which comes from the Spanish word “pintado”, which means painted. Horses with such a suit are distinguished by the presence of large spots scattered throughout the body. They come in different shapes. Depending on the main color of the coat, animals classified as pintos are divided into 2 types:
- Tobiano. Horses with this color are black with white spots.
- Overo – all other colors except black.
The pinto mastery is also classified depending on the location of the spots on the body of the horse. The frame type includes blue-eyed individuals with large horizontal white lines concentrated on the head, neck and sides.
Pinto horse
The splashed group includes individuals with multiple light spots with fuzzy edges scattered over the body. At the same time, the hair on the head of animals is white. Sabino is another variety of pinto color, which is characterized by a slight piebald on the body, and the head, underbelly and limbs of the horse are painted white.
Champagne and its varieties
Until recently, scientists did not distinguish between champagne and isabella suit. Outwardly, horses with such colors are very similar. Thanks to genetic research, it turned out that some individuals with a cream shade of coat have a special gene (CH) called “champagne”.
The individuals in which it was found differ from the racers of the Isabella suit in such signs:
- they have blue eyes from birth, and as they grow older they become amber;
- around the eyelids, in the inguinal region and near the nasal passages there are barely noticeable dark specks;
- the skin has a pinkish tint.
The suit under discussion has several tricks. Horses with classic champagne colors are distinguished by a chocolate or olive sheen of wool. The amber variety is characterized by a golden sheen, while the tail and mane hairs are usually dark. Other types of champagne suit:
- sable;
- golden or golden;
- Ivory.
Golden champagne is considered a rare color for horses. It was obtained as a result of the effect of the champagne gene on the bay color of the coat. The owners of this color look very impressive – the whole body shimmers in the light like gold, and the mane and luxurious tail are presented in straw color.
Igrenevaya
Horses of the game color are very beautiful and are quite rare. They are characterized by red or dark red, and in some cases chocolate body color and the presence of light, almost white hair in the mane and tail. Horses with a dark body look especially impressive; in this case, the contrast with the light mop at the withers is striking. Sometimes golden strands form in the tail.
The playful color of the horse owes its origin to the recessive lightening gene. A foal can only inherit this unusual color if both parents are carriers. Scientists will not come to a consensus on the question of why this gene brightens only certain parts of the body – the mane and tail, while the hair on the body, head, abdomen and limbs remains dark.
Playful horses
Leopard
Leopard color is a kind of chubar suit. The peculiarity of such horses is that the main color of their coat is white, it acts as a background, on which there are many spots of a contrasting shade. They have an oval shape and are randomly scattered throughout the body of the horse. Usually the speckles are stretched along the hair growth of the animal.
Attention! Some leopard horses have very few spots. In this case, they are concentrated in the head or on the legs.
Rare and unusual colors of horses attract attention and fascinate. Horses with an original color are highly valued among breeders. Some individuals, thanks to their mastery, received the title of the most beautiful horse in the world. For example, a horse of the Akhal-Teke breed of isabella suit, living in Turkey. Even those who are far from the horse world and racing do not cease to admire him.
