# Foal coloring...



## QHa (Apr 8, 2011)

I am still trying to guess what some of the colors of foals are when they are born. Last year I seen a sorrel colt out of a buckskin mare and a chestnut stallion. However by the time the colt was 4 months old he was nearly a dark brown. 

So could some one explain what a foal of a particular color would look like at birth - four months of age? I am interested in knowing for future registrations on foals raised.

Palomino

- All yellow?

Cremello

- All white?

Pernilo

- All cream? Do they have the black skin?

Buckskin

- Yellow with black main and tail?

Black

-?

Bay

- ?


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## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Black foals are generally a mousy colour. Sometimes they look like an adult grullo would.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

That's the funny thing about foals, they can always surprise you . 2 horses that are the exact same color as adults might have looked like completely different colors as foals.

ETA:

I don't have a ton of foal pictures, but I will share what I've got.

This guy was born this really light sorrel color









And he shed out to be a nice, rich, blood color.









And this guy was born this mousy, smokey color









And shed out just as black as you please.









Most foals who are going to be bay or buckskin are born with lighter colored legs, almost a grayish color.


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## RodeoLoco (Mar 11, 2011)

Oh , this frustrates me ! Our last foal was out of a black mare and a grullo stud. The foal was born very light grey, and turned dark red dun when he was 5 months old.


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## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

Yellow/cream w/ black points, main and tail for buckskin I'd say....at least for my buckskin 


47b9cf37b3127cce98548ab988a900000035101EcsW7hs5ZQ by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr

Most recent, still kinda wet from bath.

1wb by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr


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## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

It can vary from horse to horse, like smrobs said. For example, most palominos are born a creamish, pumpkinish colour, but a member of the forum has a beautiful gold palomino gelding that was born cherry red chestnut. The best you can do is guess, and wait till the foal sheds out. Yearling coats are a much better indication of adult colour.


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Just to add to your post Chiilaa.

Most of the time, the first shed of the foal's coat is the darkest their coat will ever be. Now this isn't 100%, but it does happen a majority of the time.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

That's so odd, and it fits. When Rafe first shed out as a weanling, he was more of a dark chestnut color rather than the blood red.


Interesting.


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## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

This is completely off topic, but ND, is your new avatar of Nav?

And I agree with foals black points being a mousy, gray colour, if not just the colour of the rest of their bodies until they shed out


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

lol Yes it is! It's part of a WIP digital painting I am doing. I have a thread up in the art section with pictures.


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## Velvetgrace (Aug 17, 2008)

Can you tell if a palomino is going to be dark or not by the shade of their coat when born?


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Not as far as I know Velvet.


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## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

I do know that cherry red chestnuts are the preferred colour for breeding palominos. Other than that, I haven't looked at enough foal to adult comparisons


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## Shananigan (Apr 8, 2009)

Grays can be born any color I believe (solid or pattern), and as they shed out each year they grow lighter! I was really excited / suprised when I saw Sasha's color when she was born, then my trainer/instructor/friend told me she would turn gray!:smile: Yeeppp!

Also, I believe to be classified as a gray, the horse has black skin and white hair. (They may have pink skin where there was white on them when they were born) Like Sasha's little white star has pink skin and the white on her back left foot, but the rest of her skin is black. 

Sasha -few weeks old (her dad was a dark brown / white paint) (her mom is a flea-bitten gray *seen in picture)








Sasha -2 yrs old. 








Sasha - 3 yrs old -- taken day before yesterday  -her neck looks a little funny because of my angle and the way she was bending trying to nibble on the snap of the lead rope. :wink: You can see how she's lost pretty much all of the red out of her coat color. Also, you can see how white her face has turned.







She will eventually look like her mom Dandy (My avatar).


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## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Shananigan, that's because gray is technically a "modifier", not its own colour. Every gray horse is another normal colour (ie, black, sorrel, bay, etc) genetically and are born that colour. Gray just takes over and masks that colour. And to be gray, the foal must have at least one gray parent.


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## Shananigan (Apr 8, 2009)

> Shananigan, that's because gray is technically a "modifier", not its own colour. Every gray horse is another normal colour (ie, black, sorrel, bay, etc) genetically and are born that colour. Gray just takes over and masks that colour.


Ahhh! okay! That's interesting, I hadn't heard that tid bit. Thank you!



> And to be gray, the foal must have at least one gray parent.


I did know that. And gray is the dominant gene isn't it? Like if a foal has at least one gray parent, it will most likely (though not always) turn gray?


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## crimsonsky (Feb 18, 2011)

foal to adult colors confuse me. especially if you have a foal needing to be registered. how the heck do you know if the color you're marking on their registration papers is anything remotely close to what color they ACTUALLY are/will be? ugh... can you tell i'm dealing with this problem currently?


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## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

Shananigan said:


> I did know that. And gray is the dominant gene isn't it? Like if a foal has at least one gray parent, it will most likely (though not always) turn gray?


If the gray parent is homozygous gray, the foal will always be gray regardless of what the other parent is. It'll be born a different, regular colour, but it'll gray out. If the parent is heterozygous, then there's a 50% chance the foal with gray out and a 50% it will stay a normal colour.

Crimson, I'm pretty sure you can call the registry and have them change it if your colour is wrong. It might cost you a little bit, but I don't think it's much. Also, don't most foals get registered when they're a few months old? By then, you should have a good idea of what colour it is. I think my mare was registered as a 2-year old..


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## crimsonsky (Feb 18, 2011)

Poseidon said:


> If the gray parent is homozygous gray, the foal will always be gray regardless of what the other parent is. It'll be born a different, regular colour, but it'll gray out. If the parent is heterozygous, then there's a 50% chance the foal with gray out and a 50% it will stay a normal colour.
> 
> Crimson, I'm pretty sure you can call the registry and have them change it if your colour is wrong. It might cost you a little bit, but I don't think it's much. Also, don't most foals get registered when they're a few months old? By then, you should have a good idea of what colour it is. I think my mare was registered as a 2-year old..


well... he'll be a year old next month and i have until then to register him before the price goes up. the breeder didn't register him so that i could pick his name. of course the little ****** changes colors every month so who knows. his dad is a grulla and his mom is a buckskin but she looks like she's a "varnish" so idk. ugh.


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## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

Koda? I would register him as brown going grey.


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

Going to agree with Chiilaa on that crimson. Register him as a brown going grey.


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## crimsonsky (Feb 18, 2011)

i'll have to post more current pictures tonight as he's not brown at all under his winter fuzz. he's gold/buckskin and most of the grey fuzz that's on him now is shedding out. the kid is testing my sanity. hahaha


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

Velvetgrace: Most palomino's darken as they get older. I do not know what my little fella looked like when he first shed out as he wasn't mine then. But the photos from him born and growing he gets darker now a year and a half and he is getting rather dark even with winter approaching instead of going lighter. But he is rugged at nite and will be rugged during day throughout winter too. Hopefully these pics load...


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

No not "most" palominos get darker. You would have to say that for every shade of horse then. It all depends on genetics. 

Some palominos look very, very much like a chestnut/sorrel as a foal only to be super light as adults. Then you have some that are super light as foals only to be darker as adults. 

There is no way to determine how dark or light of a shade a horse is going to be when they are a foal. You have to wait for them to grow up.


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## lblagden (Apr 12, 2011)

What age would be considered grown up? Do horses generally reach an age where they settle into their colour, or does it often continue to change throughout their lives? I know winter vs. summer coats are different, but I just mean in general terms.


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## NdAppy (Apr 8, 2009)

lol well they can and do change year to year, but usually it isn't a drastic change, i.e. super dark to super light or reversed. No clue why i said grown up. Lack of sleep i think. :S


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## Chiilaa (Aug 12, 2010)

Found a thread that is of interest here:

http://www.horseforum.com/horse-colors-genetics/guessing-game-what-color-will-foal-74011/


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

i would say when i said 'most' its lack of sleep too NdAppy, but a fair amount of palominos that I have seen actually do get darker with age.


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

and thankyou Chiila that is a very good thread and yes that is true too! I guess I really am tired lol I think I should head to bed lol!! Thankyou ladies I stand corrected... mostly.


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