# What color will he be as an adult?



## WendyJane (Jul 11, 2015)

This is a 2-month old colt and I'm trying to figure out what his adult coloring will be. It looks to me that he'll be palomino, but maybe he could turn chestnut?

His dam is buckskin and sire is unknown though I'm told he's light brown with white spots. Since they don't use the same coloring terminology here I don't know if that means he's dappled or paint or what shade of brown he is - chestnut, palomino, buckskin, dun?

Anyway I thought I'd ask you experts what you think.


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## Red Gate Farm (Aug 28, 2011)

I'm not seeing a dorsal stripe or primitive markings that would signify dun. I'm guessing he got the red gene from daddy and one cream gene from mommy and he's a palomino.


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## Remali (Jul 22, 2008)

Ohhh he's so cute, he's going to be a handsome hunk when he grows up. I agree, I think palomino, too.


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

My guess would be sorrel with flaxen mane & tail maybe with pangere which would explain the light muzzle. In the first picture there's a place on his chest right next to his left leg where it looks like he lost some hair and the new growth is red. The other reason for my guess is that every palomino foal I've seen were born really light and then shed off to their golden color. I'm only guessing though, foal color can be good at fooling a person.


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## Daventry (Nov 24, 2015)

I agree with JCnGrace and will say chestnut as well. We've had lots of chestnuts and palominos born over the years and I don't see palomino.


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## WendyJane (Jul 11, 2015)

Daventry said:


> I agree with JCnGrace and will say chestnut as well. We've had lots of chestnuts and palominos born over the years and I don't see palomino.


His skin is definitely black. I thought chestnuts had pink skin. Or am I wrong?


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## SunnyDraco (Dec 8, 2011)

WendyJane said:


> His skin is definitely black. I thought chestnuts had pink skin. Or am I wrong?


Newborn chestnuts and palominos can have a pinkish color to their skin but that is only as newborns, their skin then darkens to black except under white markings. The only difference between chestnut and palomino is that a palomino has a cream dilution gene which dilutes the chestnut coat. If a chestnut has two cream genes, they would be called a cremellos, have light blue eyes, pink skin and be an off white/yellowish coat color.


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## Daventry (Nov 24, 2015)

SunnyDraco said:


> Newborn chestnuts and palominos can have a pinkish color to their skin but that is only as newborns, their skin then darkens to black except under white markings. The only difference between chestnut and palomino is that a palomino has a cream dilution gene which dilutes the chestnut coat. If a chestnut has two cream genes, they would be called a cremellos, have light blue eyes, pink skin and be an off white/yellowish coat color.


Agreed! Our chestnut and palomino foals have dark skin. The only horses that truly have pink skin are the double dilutes (cremello, smoky black and perlino) and horses with true white markings (pink skin under the white markings).


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## SunnyDraco (Dec 8, 2011)

Daventry said:


> Agreed! Our chestnut and palomino foals have dark skin. The only horses that truly have pink skin are the double dilutes (cremello, smoky black and perlino) and horses with true white markings (pink skin under the white markings).


Slight correction... Smoky black is a black with 1 cream. Smoky cream is a black with 2 creams ;-)
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Daventry (Nov 24, 2015)

SunnyDraco said:


> Slight correction... Smoky black is a black with 1 cream. Smoky cream is a black with 2 creams ;-)


Thanks so much for finding the mistake. Yes, I meant smoky cream. Is there no way to go back and edit my post? I hate for that to stay permanently on the internet...in case someone reads it and takes it to heart and doesn't finish the rest of the thread!


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## LoriF (Apr 3, 2015)

SunnyDraco said:


> Slight correction... Smoky black is a black with 1 cream. Smoky cream is a black with 2 creams ;-)
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


I thought a perlino was a black with two cream genes. Now I know that it is a bay with two creme genes


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## Daventry (Nov 24, 2015)

LoriF said:


> I thought a perlino was a black with two cream genes. Now I know that it is a bay with two creme genes


 Correct. 

Chestnut + 1 cream gene = palomino
Chestnut + 2 cream gene = cremello

Bay + 1 cream gene = buckskin
Bay + 2 cream gene = perlino

Black + 1 cream gene = smoky black
Black + 2 cream gene = smoky cream


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## WendyJane (Jul 11, 2015)

Thanks for the information everyone. I am new to horse genetics, but I love genetics in general and this is all so fascinating to me. I want to take pictures of every horse I see and then post them here so I can better understand what's going on with their colors. :tongue:


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## SunnyDraco (Dec 8, 2011)

Daventry said:


> Thanks so much for finding the mistake. Yes, I meant smoky cream. Is there no way to go back and edit my post? I hate for that to stay permanently on the internet...in case someone reads it and takes it to heart and doesn't finish the rest of the thread!


There is a 10 minute window to edit a post... Supposedly a full 10 minutes but I think it is actually less than that... Seems more like 5 minutes to edit since I have missed the edit window a few times when trying to add a bit more to a post 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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