# Leopard Appy's black legs turning white?



## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

Are you sure it isn't just a winter/summer difference? His spots look black in winter/spring and then faded to brown in summer. 

Also, Appsloosa patterns are notorious for changing constantly.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Rachel1786 (Nov 14, 2010)

MacabreMikolaj said:


> Are you sure it isn't just a winter/summer difference? His spots look black in winter/spring and then faded to brown in summer.
> 
> Also, Appsloosa patterns are notorious for changing constantly.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


It's possible. I don't remember his legs being this light last summer, not that I really pay that much attention but I'm having trouble finding a clear summer time pic that shows his legs. I found this blurry pic from july 2010 and they look pretty dark.










What causes them to change color? I've never had an appy before so the thought of their color changing is odd to me lol


----------



## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

It could be varnish roan causing it. 

Appaloosa genes are ridiculous, that's why he's losing his leg color. They just are. They act within certain guidelines, but are all over the place most of the time in how they distort color. Someone just posted a thread not long ago about this mare that is genetically grulla, but her Appyness has skewed her color so much that you would guess her to be a chestnut without knowing any different.


----------



## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

I honestly don't know a lot about Appaloosa coloring, only that it's notorious for changing much like grey. I thought that was mostly varnish roans though, not so much with leopards but I suppose anything is possible! Hopefully one of our color experts can figure it out, I'd like to know to!


----------



## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Varnish does work similarly to gray, but rather than being like gray, which is a process that starts colored and ends white over a few years without issue, it does whatever. I board with a chestnut snowflake mare that is 12 and just now starting to show varnish. And I know of a lady who has an Appy gelding that was born black and now, being 20, is entirely white, but is not gray.

NdAppy also has a progression of one of her mares and the affect of varnish over several years.


----------



## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

Is it just varnish roan that is wacky or is it ALL of the Appaloosa complexes? It just seems strange that this horse doesn't appear to show a trace of varnish and he's 20 now, so can it occur that late or is it entirely possible that it's just that leopard complex acting wacky? I guess we also don't have photos of how he's progressed from foalhood to now!


----------



## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

I'm not very good at explaining Appyness and I am not very good at even identifying the different patterns because I can't even keep them straight. I just chalk the weirdness up to Appaloosa genetics. :/ 

I'm sure Chiilaa, NdAppy, or Faceman will come give a better explanation.


----------



## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

This is the tested grulla mare. 

I like to think of the appy genes as the "funkify" genes. They love to do whatever. Appy really especially loves to funk with black hair. In this case, it could be varnish roan funkifying his legs, or it could be just plain appy funkification. Either way, I can't offer more than that. It's funking ridiculous what appy will do.


----------



## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Yes it could take that long for varnish to affect the legs as it affects "hard" spots last. On a solid horse or mostly solid the boy would varnish to reveal the "holes" (spots) that would be there if the horse were a leopard or blanket appy. Varnish, unlike grey, will not erase spots. 

Varnish, similar to grey, can be something that is extremely fast or extremely slow or some where in the middle. 

I am guessing that his legs were "solid" and the varnish is probably just now starting to get to them, if that makes sense.


----------



## Faceman (Nov 29, 2007)

NdAppy said:


> I am guessing that his legs were "solid" and the varnish is probably just now starting to get to them, if that makes sense.


Yeah, although I suspect he had dark legs with lightning marks, which generally color out to be either mottled or spotted - pretty common in Appys...


----------



## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Yep that would be my guess as well Face. Kind of like Lard Butt is turning into a white horse :rofl:


----------



## tbridertrainer (Sep 15, 2012)

NdAppy said:


> Yes it could take that long for varnish to affect the legs as it affects "hard" spots last. On a solid horse or mostly solid the boy would varnish to reveal the "holes" (spots) that would be there if the horse were a leopard or blanket appy. Varnish, unlike grey, will not erase spots.
> 
> Varnish, similar to grey, can be something that is extremely fast or extremely slow or some where in the middle.
> 
> I am guessing that his legs were "solid" and the varnish is probably just now starting to get to them, if that makes sense.



I think Age has more to do with losing color. I had a very old leopard appy by the time he died he was white. he in tiime lost all of his spots to in the case of the largest ones little black hairs the smaller ones no white. It was so slow of a change i even forgot he had larger spots. but looking back at photos they are clear as day.


----------



## texasgal (Jul 25, 2008)

^^ Welcome to the forum...


----------



## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

No sorry, that that has nothing to do with Age. Varnish roan/LP roan is a progressive color change that is different on each and every horse. It is similar to grey in that it continues to "whiten" a horse throughout their lifetime.


----------



## tbridertrainer (Sep 15, 2012)

It may be but he got white after he became 30. until then it was a progressive whiting. So in my eyes unlike many color breeds that carry their color to death many with white hairs in the dark with age appy's change in most cases I have seen is whiting. maybe slower than the Lipizzaner but in the same general direction . as the appy's aged they became white. I only owned 2 but there are many in the area that did as mine did. the second one i had died in her late 20's but she was 90% white coming from a blanket appy.


----------



## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

What ND is saying is that, while varnish (the gradual roaning out to white effect that many appys have) is related to the passing of time, it is not actually related to age. Same goes for grey. Both are progressive, in that the horse will keep losing colour until either they pass away or they are completely white. However, this process van vary hugely depending on many factors. Some appaloosas with vanish never lose all their colour, some are coloured out by the age of 5 or so. Same with grey. I have seen a yearling that was completely white due to grey and silver having a fun time together.


----------



## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Grey and LP together on a horse causes an extremely fast greying process as well. :lol:


----------

