# Sorrel VS Chestnut



## Ladybug2001 (Mar 15, 2011)

The all mighty questions of questions! 











Two different colors? Or the same color? 

Have fun!


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

It's only a different color on the registration paperwork.
TB and QH,* exact same shade,* TB=chestnut, QH=sorrel.


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## Tryst (Feb 8, 2012)

Genetically the same color.


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## Ladybug2001 (Mar 15, 2011)

So since the two mares pictured are a grade QH and a registered APHA would they both be sorrel?


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## JetdecksComet (Jun 11, 2013)

Basically if you're riding them western call them sorrel and if you're riding them English call them chestnut. lol I avoid the whole ruckus by calling them RED. ha ha


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

Registration wise, sorrel and chestnut are distinct shades in both the AQHA and APHA. From your pic, in our neck of the woods, we would register them as sorrel, though.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Horseychick87 (Feb 5, 2014)

LOL, the great sorrel versus chestnut debate...get ready to see the fur flying over this one. ;-)

I ignore the registry 'color codes', most registries wouldn't know brown from black and grey from roan even if you beat them over the head with a horseshoe.

I personally define sorrel as any shade of chestnut with a flaxen mane and tail, and chestnut as a solidly red horse, mane and tail matching the body color.

I've seen this done a lot and prefer it personally, but not everyone would agree with it and that's okay too. I just smile and nod and go along with them to make them happy, because in the end, they're all red horses and it doesn't really matter.


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## becky61 (Jun 5, 2014)

That was always an issue between my daughter and her husband-she said chestnut and he said sorrel when it came to my OTTB gelding. My grandson just said Grandma's big red horse.LOL:lol:


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## kimberlyrae1993 (Mar 20, 2013)

Sorrel is "western" term also with quarter horses Chestnut is "English" also term for thoroughbred.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Horseychick87 (Feb 5, 2014)

I had to add, if you have someone you like to play around with or play jokes on, et cetera, you can point to the horses and say something along the lines of ." So which do you think is prettier, the chestnut or the sorrel?" And see what they do or say.

I do this regularly to a few of my non-horsey friends and occasionally my BF, I get some of the funniest looks and the occasional" What's that?...They look brown to me." comment. I can't do it to my mom as she knows horse colors well enough to know when I'm pulling her leg. XD


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## lilruffian (Jun 28, 2010)

Horseychick87 said:


> LOL, the great sorrel versus chestnut debate...get ready to see the fur flying over this one. ;-)
> 
> I ignore the registry 'color codes', most registries wouldn't know brown from black and grey from roan even if you beat them over the head with a horseshoe.
> 
> ...


Funny, it really depends on where you live. In my area it's the exact opposite. Sorrel is a dark red horse and chestnut is a light red horse with/without flaxen.
In the long run, it all comes down to a personal opinion. There is no right answer as they are both the same genetically


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

I always use this picture as an example. Both of these horses are AQHA registered. The one on the left is registered as sorrel and the one on the right is registered as chestnut. Both registered by the same breeder (not me). I've always used them as my guide to what I consider to be the difference even if they are genetically the same. If the coat looks more red then they are a sorrel, more towards a brown hue then they are chestnuts.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

JCnGrace said:


> If the coat looks more red then they are a sorrel, more towards a brown hue then they are chestnuts.


That's the same "test" we use on our Paints.


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## Horseychick87 (Feb 5, 2014)

lilruffian said:


> Funny, it really depends on where you live. In my area it's the exact opposite. Sorrel is a dark red horse and chestnut is a light red horse with/without flaxen.
> In the long run, it all comes down to a personal opinion. There is no right answer as they are both the same genetically


 
Exactly! Geography, western vs English, registry color codes. they will all influence what someone calls a color. 
So long as you have an idea of which term you prefer for each shade, then that's what it is. 

Being I'm in FL, I get a mix of people from every region and they'll argue all day over chestnut versus sorrel. I just nod and go along with them to keep the peace. Why get into a yelling match over what is genetically the same color. Although it can be fun to watch other people arguing over it.


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

Just to clarify.....chestnut an sorrel....as USED BY AQHA registration purposes....DOES NOT distinguish whether you ride western or hunt seat (English). So no......sorrel is not a "western" term. Both are genetically the same, but *AQHA for REGISTRATION PURPOSES*....divided the coat color based on visual (and not genetic) look of the coat color. It's pretty simple......a sorrel by AQHA registration purposes....is a bright red color from copper to cherry red. A chestnut is deeper and has more brown tones in the coat.

The other registries like JC, Arab, Morgan etc.....use the term chestnut for any red horse.


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## rescuechick (Jun 8, 2014)

I always thought a chestnut had different colored hairs in their mane like black or white with the red color, and a sorrel was always just red in the mane no other colors which I was told by a great horseman. I always wondered what the difference was and now I have a lot of different answers :lol:


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

GotaDunQH said:


> Just to clarify.....chestnut an sorrel....as USED BY AQHA registration purposes....DOES NOT distinguish whether you ride western or hunt seat (English). So no......sorrel is not a "western" term. Both are genetically the same, but *AQHA for REGISTRATION PURPOSES*....divided the coat color based on visual (and not genetic) look of the coat color. It's pretty simple......a sorrel by AQHA registration purposes....is a bright red color from copper to cherry red. A chestnut is deeper and has more brown tones in the coat.
> 
> The other registries like JC, Arab, Morgan etc.....use the term chestnut for any red horse.


Similarly, the APHA defines:

Chestnut - Body color dark red or brownish red; range from very light to liver chestnut; liver chestnut can be distinguished from black or brown only by the bronze or copper highlights on the legs; mane and tail usually dark red or brownish red, but may be flaxen. 

Sorrel - Body color reddish or copper-red; mane and tail usually same color as body, but may be flaxen or very dark. 

...and remember, _these definitions are just words in a rule book used for registration purposes._


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

rescuechick said:


> I always thought a chestnut had different colored hairs in their mane like black or white with the red color, and a sorrel was always just red in the mane no other colors which I was told by a great horseman. I always wondered what the difference was and now I have a lot of different answers :lol:


Coat color is the key...mane and tail color are secondary and not what determines a sorrel and a chestnut....in AQHA anyway.


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

I totally agree with the mane and tail color. Flaxen is sorrel, red is chestnut. But, I know that isn't technically correct. 
What I love is when the chestnut being pointed out has a black mane and tail.:lol:


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## Tryst (Feb 8, 2012)

^^^ some red based horses can have black or nearly black manes and tails as a result of sooty


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## Horseychick87 (Feb 5, 2014)

Even though it has nothing to do with sorrel vs chestnut my favorite 'color moment' was when a ex friend of my moms (who supposedly owned and knew 'everything about them') Told me her favorite breed was Palominos, especially when they were grey with dark grey spots. 
My response went something like this..0_0'...-_-'...'Sure okay....um...'


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## Elsa5 (May 4, 2014)

Ok so I have always referred to my mare as a red chestnut. In the winter she is a deep deep red color but in the summer shes more light golden blonde. Her mane and tail has a mixture of golden, black (only tail), and white hairs. Chestnut or Sorrel?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

When I said black mane and tail, I meant black, as in a bay. 
Like the palomino breed that's grey with darker spots.:wink:


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

KsKatt said:


> I totally agree with the mane and tail color. Flaxen is sorrel, red is chestnut. But, I know that isn't technically correct.
> What I love is when the chestnut being pointed out has a black mane and tail.:lol:


My gelding is AQHA registered as sorrel and he does not have a flaxen mane or tail.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

kimberlyrae1993 said:


> Sorrel is "western" term also with quarter horses Chestnut is "English" also term for thoroughbred.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


 
Not just for Thoroughbreds, chestnut is always used whereas sorrel isn't.


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

Clava said:


> Not just for Thoroughbreds, chestnut is always used whereas sorrel isn't.


 JC does not recognize the term "sorrel".....all red TB's are registered as chestnuts.


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## Elsa5 (May 4, 2014)

ideas? Has black in her tail. White hairs in her mane
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

I would say chestnut.


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## Remali (Jul 22, 2008)

No difference. Sorrel or chestnut.... both are the same.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

GotaDunQH said:


> JC does not recognize the term "sorrel".....all red TB's are registered as chestnuts.


 
I meant beyond the jockey club, in the UK no-one uses the term "sorrel" (or if they do I've not heard it) all chestnut horses are chestnut (although they might be also flaxen, liver , bright or dark)


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## Remali (Jul 22, 2008)

Elsa5 said:


> ideas? Has black in her tail. White hairs in her mane
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Pretty! Chestnuts (sorrels) can have darker hair in their tails. She is a chestnut (I use the term chestnut, or if you prefer sorrel...).


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## Elsa5 (May 4, 2014)

Thanks ive been calling her a red chestnut. Sounds prettier than sorrel lol
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Roperchick (Feb 1, 2010)

Here's one for you.

My mare is registered with AQHA as a sorrel.








This guys papers say chestnut








....complete opposite of everything I was taught as a child lol


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

Clava said:


> I meant beyond the jockey club, in the UK no-one uses the term "sorrel" (or if they do I've not heard it) all chestnut horses are chestnut (although they might be also flaxen, liver , bright or dark)


As far as I know....AQHA and APHA are the only breed registries that use the term sorrel.


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

Elsa5 said:


> ideas? Has black in her tail. White hairs in her mane
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


What breed is she??

Here's my AQHA gelding, who is registered as a sorrel:


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## Elsa5 (May 4, 2014)

GotaDunQH said:


> What breed is she??
> 
> Here's my AQHA gelding, who is registered as a sorrel:


Unknown lol guessing appendix but shes grade
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

^then you would call her a chestnut.


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

Roperchick, if I had been filling out their papers I'd have listed the opposite. I think what you were taught as a kid is right.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

GotaDunQH said:


> As far as I know....AQHA and APHA are the only breed registries that use the term sorrel.


 I wonder why they do when it is just a shade of chestnut? (and judging by this thread, just causes confusion).


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

Clava said:


> I wonder why they do when it is just a shade of chestnut? (and judging by this thread, just causes confusion).


I would not be surprised if it is done just for historic purposes as folks, certainly in the U.S. have been ingrained with both terms. To be honest, as you see in some of the registration examples above, I've never seen the AQHA or APHA "challenge" or change a registration application's use of sorrel and chestnut. Like others, we have 2 mares that look exactly the same shade, one registered as chestnut and one as sorrel, and the "copper-ish" tint that we sorrel is very dependent on the sunlight at the time you are looking.


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## GotaDunQH (Feb 13, 2011)

Clava said:


> I wonder why they do when it is just a shade of chestnut? (and judging by this thread, just causes confusion).


Yep.....it's based on color/shade of red in the coat. What I find interesting is with the Jockey Club registration of grey/roan....they lump those two colors together when the genetics of both are totally different from each other. Not sure the reasoning behind that.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

GotaDunQH said:


> Yep.....it's based on color/shade of red in the coat. What I find interesting is with the Jockey Club registration of grey/roan....they lump those two colors together when the genetics of both are totally different from each other. Not sure the reasoning behind that.


I think Weatherbys , who register thoroughbreds in the UK (I'm not aware the Jockey Club does but I know nothing about racing), are not the best example of worrying about genetics and colours - common usage of terms and tradition plays a part as all brown horses with black manes and tails will be registered as bay even if they are genetically not bay but brown. In the UK it is simple what people call that colour, same as in Ireland their connemaras are dun (and registered as such) even though they do not carry that gene.


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