Skip to main content

Due to decreasing use over the years, I have decided to disable the forum functionality of the site.

Forums will still be available to view but new posts are no longer allowed.

about gray

I have a couple of gray mares. I am amazed at the comments and ideas people have about gray/grey. so what 'do' we know about gray?? One parent must be gray. Gray turns whiter with age. I have heard that a homozygous gray will whiten faster than a single copy. (However, my single copy girl is turning white quickly and is much whiter than the other gray at the same age) My observation is gray is not as bothered by bugs or nose flies as badly as bays. (No chestnut-no observation) Someone has proposed that you can always tell a gray base color by the leg color. A bay gray will have dark points and dark legs. Personally I am not sure about that, I know one of my grays is a chestnut base, she seems to have dark legs,(dark being a reletive term). The other gray (unknown base) is changing more slowly and does have darker points. Wondering......could lighter bases turn whiter faster than darker bases? please jump in........

Fledgesflight Mon, 08/02/2010 - 23:00

Upload to a place like photobucket and copy the image link to paste here.

Yeah, not all (Greys) are born dark or obvious.

JNFerrigno Mon, 08/02/2010 - 23:18

Well I know word of mouth from Percheron breeders is that a Black foal who will grey is born pitch black, while a Black foal that will stay black is born with their mousy colored coat. I don't know about other colors, since most of the the breeds I've worked with really try to avoid breeding Greys.

RiddleMeThis Mon, 08/02/2010 - 23:33

Its the majority of grays. Gray does start with hyper pigmentation. Gray takes the coat, darkens it, and then grays/lightens it out.

When or how fast that happens, varies, but the actual process doesn't if that makes sense.

accphotography Tue, 08/03/2010 - 00:53

Chestnut going gray:
http://www.whyneemah.com/web/news/26.9%…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Chestnut not graying:
http://www.brokenbackranchqh.com/images…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Bay going gray:
http://www.teamceoeventing.com/eve_gall…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://rlv.zcache.com/white_mare_with_b…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Bay not graying:
http://www.hallmarkstud.co.nz/Champagne…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Black going gray:
http://special.equisearch.com/blog/hors…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Black not graying:
http://www.aberaeron.net/stud_graphics/…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://vichorse.com/forum" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Krickette Tue, 08/03/2010 - 08:41

[quote="colorfan"]er.. are you saying most grays start out darker than gray? I know all grays don't start out as a black or dark color.
sorry still can't figure out how to post a picture here.[/quote]
Yeah, some are born lighter, but they started the process earlier (in utero). They all seem to take it at different speeds or start from different points in the process. Like I said, I know a horse that was born grey. He's really neat looking fleabitten, and I asked what his foal coat was, and they were like....grey. His name is something like Johnny Be Grey, lol.

colorfan Tue, 08/03/2010 - 09:47

[img]http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33…]

Here she is at about 5 months. The mini beside her is her best friend. They have been together since they were babies. Mini is a silver bay.

(yes, I know the fence is broken, I was on my way to fix it when I took the picture.)

You probably guessed it is the same horse in my avatar.

Jenks Tue, 08/03/2010 - 10:15

[quote="JNFerrigno"]Well I know word of mouth from Percheron breeders is that a Black foal who will grey is born pitch black, while a Black foal that will stay black is born with their mousy colored coat. I don't know about other colors, since most of the the breeds I've worked with really try to avoid breeding Greys.[/quote]

That is also the general rule with arabs - born black and has a grey parent, will be grey. But with Friesians? They are born black out of blacks and stay black. So it's "usual" thing, but not always!

chestnuts? I had the same thing as you colorfan. Born copper, went dark, then whitened.

accphotography Tue, 08/03/2010 - 12:22

I've seen a fair number of Friesians born mousy, but yes some are definitely born jet. I do wonder if this may be the difference between those that fade and those that don't, at least in this breed.

Jenks Tue, 08/03/2010 - 12:41

Hm! I don't know. Maybe! I haven't seen many Friesian foals, but my first was black out of blacks and it struck me that the rule does not always apply... I think with some logic though it would be a good indicator in general for greys with a black base out of grey parent(s).

JNFerrigno Tue, 08/03/2010 - 14:44

O_O The Friesians topic just reminded me of this Appy filly. I have to see if I have old photos of her that survived the fire. She was out of a palomino app stallion and a TB mare they brought from a pasture up north. She was all legs and hit the ground pitch black. I don't know if she developed characteristics or not. It was an odd year for this stallion, as they were breeding loud horses together and getting all solid babies. I remember the filly tho, cause they called her cricket. She had her mommys long legs and to itch herself she'd cross them in front and rub them together like a cricket.

Is this something that usually happens? I only know of one other black foal of his, it was from his first or second foal crop. Not sure what he foaled as since when I got there he was almost a yearling. But he was pitch black with a white spotted blanket. Then at around 3 he started to roan out, and was sold to some one up north. Last picture I say of him and he had roaned out so much he looked almost all white minus some spots.

bonjovifan Tue, 08/03/2010 - 23:41

[quote="accphotography"]Chestnut going gray:
http://www.whyneemah.com/web/news/26.9%…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Chestnut not graying:
http://www.brokenbackranchqh.com/images…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Bay going gray:
http://www.teamceoeventing.com/eve_gall…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://rlv.zcache.com/white_mare_with_b…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Bay not graying:
http://www.hallmarkstud.co.nz/Champagne…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Black going gray:
http://special.equisearch.com/blog/hors…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Black not graying:
http://www.aberaeron.net/stud_graphics/…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://vichorse.com/forum" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;[/quote]

Good post thanks ;-)

Krickette Mon, 08/09/2010 - 13:18

[quote="accphotography"]I've seen a fair number of Friesians born mousy, but yes some are definitely born jet. I do wonder if this may be the difference between those that fade and those that don't, at least in this breed.[/quote]
I always thought that was the case. Like, I was always told that the only way a black horse is born jet black is if it is a nonfading or true black.

Daylene Alford Mon, 08/09/2010 - 18:25

Not true unless roan can play with stuff. My blue roan that was born jet black fades.

colorfan Thu, 08/12/2010 - 20:24

[img]http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33…]
[img]http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33…]

Any thoughts on why some grays are a more even mix of dark and white, even for a a few years and some are more white on the body and almost splotchy and or dappled?
I have heard aged blamed/credited for this but I have seen grays of the same age look very different.

These mares are very close to the same age but still I guess it is not a fair comparison since one is in winter woolies, but this is the idea I mean.

I don't know the top mares parentage at all. I do know the bottom mare is heterzygous.

colorfan Thu, 08/12/2010 - 20:32

I recently had a discussion on color with someone and was told quite definitively that the mares color does influence whether gray is passed from the sire.
She was very selective on her mares, did not have any history of gray in any of them and so her gray stallion had sired very few gray babies over the years.
Is this new research?

RiddleMeThis Thu, 08/12/2010 - 20:52

She was lucky. That's all.

It wouldn't matter if every horse for 8+ generations in a mares pedigree was gray if the mare was NOT gray.

God, people like that SERIOUSLY irritate me.

colorfan Thu, 08/12/2010 - 23:21

ok, that is what I thought but I am still in the early learning stage.

lipigirl Fri, 08/13/2010 - 07:57

It's ok Colorfan, RMT was not having a go at you. I too get very peed off with friends of mine who say that any colour can come from any horse because it could have laid dormant in that line for many years just like the black couple who just gave birth to a perfect white baby - errr no it doesn't work that way. :BH

RiddleMeThis Fri, 08/13/2010 - 14:53

[quote="lipigirl"]It's ok Colorfan, RMT was not having a go at you.[/quote]
This yes.

I was NOT nor would I EVER get upset at someone who was trying to learn or get clarification on something.

The people who irritate me are the ones like Lipi said. The ones who try and teach everyone, but have no clue what they are talking about and spew misinformation all over.

lipigirl Fri, 08/13/2010 - 15:24

Off topic I know but RMT where are you going to be in the UK when you visit ?

colorfan Fri, 08/13/2010 - 17:59

RMT I did not take your post to mean you were choked at me. No worries. smiley face (can't find the icon)

RiddleMeThis Sat, 08/14/2010 - 02:20

Incredibly sadly Lipi (and it is VERY sad as I would LOVE to go to the UK) the UK I'm talking about is the University of Kentucky.

lipigirl Sat, 08/14/2010 - 15:10

ahhhh sorry didn't know you were Uni age !...well sure you will be busy and have fun.

CMhorses Thu, 08/19/2010 - 00:34

I had a vitiligo question; how often does it occur on non-grey horses and what causes it?

Monsterpony Thu, 08/19/2010 - 16:23

It seems to be very rare in non-grays and some have been linked to nutrition problems.