# White buckskin?



## verona1016

I think that's the shade that many people refer to as "buttermilk buckskin". No different than a regular buckskin in regard to the genetics that we know about and can test for... essentially a bay horse with a single cream gene.

The sire of that particular horse is a buckskin (Desdemona's Hot Brandy), and her dam is a chestnut (Naughty Naranda). I couldn't find a color picture of the sire (shame, I was curious if he was also buttermilk...) but the dam has a picture on her pedigree page: Naughty Naranda Saddlebred


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## NdAppy

No such thing as a "white" buckskin. A horse is either buckskin or not. It's a black based horse with agouti and cream. That horse just happens to be a light shade of buckskin.


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## Poseidon

Just an extremely light buckskin. Nothing all that special, just not the normal. I'm guessing that horse is actually quite a bit darker in person, based on how pale the background is.


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## EmilyJoy

Hmm, that's interesting... Is there such a thing _as _a pure white horse with black points?

Thanks for correcting me!


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## TexanFreedom

Just a more extreme form of a light, pale buckskin, but genetically the same.


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## Poseidon

EmilyJoy said:


> Hmm, that's interesting... Is there such a thing _as _a pure white horse with black points?


Maybe some bizarre stage of gray would look like that for a bit, but it wouldn't be permanent. Or maybe an Appaloosa that's varnished strangely. The closest you'd get is a very pale buckskin.


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## EmilyJoy

Okay! Just wondering!


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## lilkitty90

i honestly don't think the horse is even as pale as the photos make it look. those are just crappy old photos, making it seems so white.


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## Allison Finch

My sister had an extremely pale buckskin way back when. He was small, but was the Florida State reserve champion pole bending champion. He is the one on the far right with my 6 foot tall sister. I am the tiny one. This horse was as close to white as he could be and never changed color. And, OMG was this horse smart!!


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## Hoofprints in the Sand

Yep just a light shade of buckskin...like my girl in winter 








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## Hoofprints in the Sand

Plus that photo looks like it was kinda washed out...if I adjusted the contrast in mine I could make Sandie look that shade too!
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## flytobecat

I would call that a buttermilk buckskin as well. It is just a light buckskin. My neighbor's buckskin is almost white like that in the summer, but darker in the winter.


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## BarrelRacingLvr

No he is a buckskin....his light coat color is well known by the name Buttermilk Buckskin


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## EmilyJoy

Love the examples! Yeah it must have just been the photo... hmm.. I suppose cows have more "colors" or different types then horses??? Or is this breed of cows also buttermilk... You don't have to answer, as obviously cows are way different then horses, maybe I just have a weird way of thinking...:lol:

















Thanks all, for your help..I'm starting to love the color world:wink:...Now I'm beginning to look forward to biology & color genetics!


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## Hoofprints in the Sand

BarrelRacingLvr said:


> No he is a buckskin....his light coat color is well known by the name Buttermilk Buckskin


Gorgeous buckskin!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## TexanFreedom

I have a feeling that the above horse has dun, too. What do you guys think is causing the frosting? 

...on a second thought, maybe no dun... but something has got to be causing it, right? OR MAYBE I'm just being ridiculous with myself


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## verona1016

It's pretty common for buckskins to have frosting.


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## Poseidon

Not a dun because there are no signs of any dun markings. And the only duns I've seen that light have been Fjords. Many buckskins have frosting.


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## TexanFreedom

Really? I guess I have never seen it... 

Weird ._o


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## Hoofprints in the Sand

Yep my buckskin has frosting starting to show up in her mane and tail 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## minstrel

Poseidon said:


> Maybe some bizarre stage of gray would look like that for a bit, but it wouldn't be permanent. Or maybe an Appaloosa that's varnished strangely. The closest you'd get is a very pale buckskin.


This is really interesting. My sister's horse is an Arab x Lipizzaner, and he has always been grey with a black mane and tail and dark legs. I always called him a grey, and that's what he is on his passport, although he's most likely strictly a blue roan or something, right? 

Pics are from our last cross country, so pretty recent - and he has always been this colour in the four years we've known him, and as far as I'm aware he's not a dapple grey gone light. He's 13 or 14 now.


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## Chiilaa

He is grey. Eventually, he will be completely white, in theory. Old age can beat the greying process in some horses. The mane, tail and legs are often the last to retain colour, so it is not usual to see them dark for an extended period of time. Have you compared pictures of him now to when you first bought him home? I would be interested to see older pictures


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## minstrel

Here's some from when we first got him - he was originally for me, but I only rode him for a year before we realised that him and my sister made a better match. 

Now I look, actually, I think you're right - his mane looks a little lighter now than it did four years ago. Very interesting!


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## SplashedOvero

If hes Really that light hes a buttermilk buckskin they are a light shade of buckskin but i think its a bad photo messing with the color


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## smrobs

Yep, like others have said, just a particular shade of buckskin that is known as "buttermilk". Genetically (as much as we currently know about genetics, anyway) no different than any other buckskin out there.

As for the frosting, pretty much any buckskin horse can have frosting. I'm not sure whether there is any connection, but IME, it does seem to be more common or more apparent on the lighter colored buckskin horses. I don't recall having seen very many that were a rich gold color that had much frosting.

Buttermilks are slightly more unique than your average golden buckskin though. I prefer the darker shades, but I can see the draw to the lighter ones as well. It's fairly common for their points to be more of a dark chocolate brown as well instead of a stark black.


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## EmilyJoy

They are really beautiful!


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## Hoofprints in the Sand

Here's a better pic of my buttermilk girl ;-) She has frosting in her mane and starting to get it in her tail, started coming in when she was around 9 (she's 11 now)...

















And here's a thought about what lighting can do to a photo...here's another of her, same time of year, in the sunlight...much more of a golden color then:


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