# I should know this but.... flaxen chestnut with white hairs?



## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

I'm utterly useless with colors unfortunately...

This is the mare that I ride out on the farm. Her name is Corona, and she's 7-8 years old, according to her coggins, word of mouth, and her teeth. She's gaited (can rack, pace, and running walk but we don't encourage it) though we don't know the breed. We've had her since she was a late 5 year old. This picture of her is when we first brought her home (hence the feet >.>) at 5. I don't often take pictures of her so I don't have any 'in between' photos unfortunately.

Flaxen chestnut, correct? Only her mane is that BRIGHT bleached blonde type color, her tail is light but fairly typical looking.
































in different lighting:












This is what is confusing me. In the past....I don't know. 8-9 months, I've been noticing a lot of white hairs in concentrated areas, and light spatterings of white hairs all over her body. Obviously she still seems flaxen chestnut to me, NOT roan or anything, but its too late for her to be greying out, and too early for her to be getting grey hair from aging, right? So what is this from? She had a little bit of sweet itch on her face and dock 3 months ago, but that isn't where the grey is showing up most. These white hairs are different from the ones that have grown in from bites, too, so I'm confused!

Sorry about photo quality her coat color isn't really this washed out, but I have an old point and shoot camera that I can't adjust brightness or color on. This is how much white is on her flanks, belly, lower shoulders, and back now.









her mane is still very light.


















belly









But then her legs have a MUCH higher concentration of white on them.










throat latch









So what do you guys think this is from? Weird greying out at a late time? Just looking old early? Fungus related? If so, should I be worried? Her coat is shiny and healthy looking to me, other than the weird coloring, but I honestly just don't know!


----------



## greentree (Feb 27, 2013)

Does she have a "spray" of white hairs coming from her facial marking?

If she does, I would say she is sabino.

Definitely chestnut with flaxen, though.

Nancy

ETA: just looked back at the first pic, yes, that is sabino.


----------



## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Most red horses have white hairs all over their body, but the way hers is concentrating in addition to how neat and symmetrical her face white is, I'd say sabino.


----------



## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

Neato! So we do have a little bit of unique going on there! You guys have no idea how worried I was that we had a fungus among us 

Why is it only starting to really show up now though? She's always had white hairs around the face, but as far as I know she only had a few sprinklings of white when we got her...not really even enough to say anything about. She also has saddle scars from some dummy who insisted that she was a QH (can QH even be sabino? I KNOW they can't rack naturally, even if they do occasionally have a natural pace or shuffle...) but they're drastically different from the white everywhere else.


----------



## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Yes, QH can have sabino. They carry all of the overo patterns. Sabino is kind of sporadic and does its own thing, which can include adding white with age. Peppy barrel Racing's sabino gelding is more white now than he used to be when he was young.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------

