Colors and Markings of Horses

Question 1

• also known as Kastano
• light reddish or tan shades to dark brown and mahogany/auburn shades
• always have black points (legs, muzzle, mane and tail, and the tips of their ears are black)
• many bay horses have black legs that are covered by white markings

Answer 1

BAY

Question 2

Dark brown coat, reddish or black highlights black points

Answer 2

DARK BAY

Question 3

Some breeds registries use the term for “brown” for dark bays

Answer 3

BROWN

Question 4

• Also known as alazan and sorrel
• reddish brown; points (mane, tail, legs and ears) are the same color as the horse’s body (with the exception of their white markings)
• light yellowish brown to a golden-reddish or dark liver color
• red shades in their coats

Answer 4

CHESTNUT

Question 5

• bright reddish and/or orange shades
• very appealing since it is usually bright and shiny, and very saturated
• have red highlights that really stand out

Answer 5

RED CHESTNUT

Question 6

• darkest of the chestnut colors

- do not have black points

Answer 6

LIVER CHESTNUT

Question 7

• chestnut in color but with light flaxen (cream/off-white) colored mane and tail
• legs and tip of ears are the same color as the body
• often get confused between palominos and light chestnut

Answer 7

FLAXEN CHESTNUT

Question 8

• also known as mono
• often mistaken as “white” but their skin is dark, making them gray
• born dark, sometimes black or brown
• hair coat becomes lighter as they grow older

Answer 8

GRAY

Question 9

• small, white ‘eraser’ mark

- have dapples throughout their entire body, often with darker colored points

Answer 9

DAPPLE GRAY

Question 10

Light gray body, but with little freckles of black or brown

Answer 10

FLEA-BITTEN GRAY

Question 11

• horses that have solid colored coats, but with white hair interspersed
• white hairs are not actually spots, but with single white hairs mixed with the darker coat color

Answer 11

ROAN

Question 12

• also known as red roan; is a chestnut horse with roan gene

- interspersed white hairs on the horse’s body

Answer 12

STRAWBERRY ROAN

Question 13

• black horse with a roan gene

- with interspersed white hair all over the body

Answer 13

BLUE ROAN

Question 14

Pure black coats with now brown or any other color

Answer 14

BLACK

Question 15

• the golden horse
• gold-colored coat with white or cream mane and tail
• coat color ranges from light-off white to deep shade of gold

Answer 15

PALOMINO

Question 16

• grayish-gold or tan, characterized by a body coloring ranging from sandy yellow to reddish brown
• always have a dark stripe down along their spine, a mane and tail darker than its body coat and usually darker faces and legs

Answer 16

DUN

Question 17

• tan or gold colored coat with black points in their mane, tail and lower legs
• dorsal stripes (dark stripes along the spine)
• zebra stripes on the back of forelegs
• shoulder blade stripes
• cobwebbing

Answer 17

BUCKSKIN

Question 18

Coat have irregular patches of white or any color except for black

Answer 18

SKEWBALD

Question 19

• body coat consist of large patches of black and white

- color demarcation is well-defined

Answer 19

PIEBALD

Question 20

• any white mark on the forehead

- size, shape, intensity and position should be specified

Answer 20

STAR

Question 21

• used to describe the narrow white markings down the face not wider than the flat anterior surface of the nasal bone
• the star and stripe are continuous and should be describe as star and stripe conjoined
• when the stripe is separate and distinct from the star, it should be described as interrupted stripe

Answer 21

STRIPE or STRIPS

Question 22

A white marking covering almost the whole of the forehead between the eyes and extending beyond the width of the nasal bones and usually to the muzzle

Answer 22

BLAZE

Question 23

A very wide blaze, extending to or past the eyes, some though not all bald-faced horses have blue eyes

Answer 23

BALDFACE/WHITE FACE

Question 24

Especially wide bald face

Answer 24

APRON FACE

Question 25

An isolated independent white marking situated between or in the region of the nostrils

Answer 25

SNIP

Question 26

White markings just above the hoof, around the coronary band, usually no more than 1 inch above hoof

Answer 26

CORONET

Question 27

White marking that extends above the top of the hoof, but stops below the fetlock

Answer 27

PASTERN

Question 28

• also known as sock, half-stocking or anklet

- white markings that extends higher than the fetlock but not as high as the knee or hock, occasionally called a “boot”

Answer 28

FETLOCK

Question 29

White markings that extends to the bottom of the knee or hock, sometimes higher

Answer 29

STOCKING

Question 30

Black spots on the area of the pastern

Answer 30

ERMINE SPOTS