What color is this?

My real life mare (whom passed away a number of years ago)...It's been a hot topic of debate with my father and I, and a few other people as to what color she actually is, and I was just chatting with someone via PM, and it got me thinking, maybe you all would like to take a crack at identifying what Nadine's color was.

Her father was a jet black tobian, mother was a solid jet black mare. Her lineage consists mostly of blacks and bays. She was a paso fino, and any color under the sun can be registered within the paso registry last I looked into it. So unless things have changed in the PFHA, then I think it still is true.

Any color may be registered, but that's a moot point when dealing with genetics and lineage. For example, you could have a chestnut horse registered as roan just because it has white ticking non-related to roan. Doesn't make the horse or any of its offspring roan.

Do you have pedigree information on her sire and dam?

If they were both truly black, then she's black. Faded, but still black.

I can try to track it down, and I realize on a genetic level it means nothing, BUT I still figured it was relevant.


Nadine's Pedigree

it's fairly useless and doesn't state her color, but Im trying to track down more pedigree sites. It seems the old Paso Fino pedigree site is no longer functioning :(

This is not her sire, but is a half brother. (Different Dams). I think his dam was a bay if Im not mistaken? I'll have to double check that, not that her genetic information really matters at all relative to Nadine. I digress, her sire looked pretty much exactly like this though.



Last edited on 2016-06-01 at 12:28:38 by -❆-Buck

What I've gathered (if the information is accurate)...

She was either black or smoky black, through her sire and grand-dam (the buckskin).

Strike that. If daddy was really THAT black, I doubt he got cream from his dam.

Last edited on 2016-06-01 at 12:30:32 by ｖｏｓ ♚

Smokey black was something I'd thought about, but, I was iffy about it because of the depth of her sire's black. Granted, I've only ever seen him in videos and pictures (which I cant for the life of me seem to track down. It's been a LONG time D:)

Is it possible that the cream made its way over though? Recessive?

Im not a genetics expert, but Im not 100% dim to em either. But it's possible isn't it? I don't know XD

Been trying to figure it out for 15 years, and she's been gone for awhile, so genetic testing isn't an option.

Ive been giving information as accurately as I possibly can, so Im sorry if any of it might not be 100% spot on.

Last edited on 2016-06-01 at 12:34:27 by -❆-Buck

Cream is an incomplete dominant. It cannot pass recessively or skip generations.

That I did not know, thank you! Makes more sense why it couldn't possibly be that then.

Also one more thing...she was a Florida girl...parents and brother were from up north. If she was a faded black, could it possibly be the location fading her out so strongly like that?

When she was kept in the barn more than out, her color would darken up.

Sun fading just happens in some horses, for lord knows what reasons. Scientists sure don't XD

Oh good lawd, there goes my latest thoughts. XD

Do you happen to know what they need for genetic testing? Would a hair sample work?

Just out of curiousity.

Typically it's 20-30 hairs with roots intact, for a single test I believe. I would use UC Davis or Animal Genetics Inc. They're the most reliable.

And just to show how little I know about horse genetics I was going to say she was brown.... *slinks off to corner to hang head in shame*

I would say she's black too tbh. I'm not an expert on genetics by any means but I know a mare in real life who looks about the same colour. She's like a faded black colour in the summer, a bit darker than your mare in the picture, but in the winter when she's clipped she looks pretty much just like that (just less shiny haha)

Some blacks can really fade...

Here's a DNA verified black EE, no dominant agouti, no dilutions, nothing. Not even clipped... just straight up sun-faded black.

Yes omg, she used to literally be jet black and now she's 20 and like... almost brown? I guess would be the way to describe her? Like the photo OP posted, as I said earlier. She has a foal who is 7 now and he's jet black as well, though I wonder when/if he lightens out if he'll be more of a dark bay - if that's even possible. His muzzle is brown. She also had a filly that came out buckskin! The mare's full sister was jet black as well, but I don't know her so who knows what she looks like haha