# TWH Changed Color? Maybe?



## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

I'm not very good at uploading photos the way I want, but I'll give it a go and see if it works.

My TWH has seemingly changed color. 
His papers list him as black. 
He was black when we got him. 
He stayed black for months, no stall, no blankets, without fading.

In the past couple of weeks, however, he has been looking more bay-ish and there's stripes in his coat (which may or may not be clear in the photo). It looks kind of like a brindle dog, right around the stifle/belly/flank area.

I am completely unfamiliar with adult horses (he's 5) changing color, so if anyone has any info on this, I'd appreciate it. Maybe he isn't *actually* a black horse after all...

Photo 1 should be a shot taken in the weeks right before we got him, est. November or December 2012. He's standing by a gate. (old color.jpg)

Photo 2 should be a shot taken earlier this week, August 2013. He's halfway under the run-in, but he's mostly still in the sun. (Color.jpg)

Thanks


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## Red Gate Farm (Aug 28, 2011)

On my computer, he doesn't look black in the first photo. He looks brown. In the second he looks bay.


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## DraftyAiresMum (Jun 1, 2011)

He's brown.

See the lighter areas on his soft points (under his flank, elbow, by his eye, around his muzzle, on the points of his butt under the tail)? Those are classic signs of a brown horse.

Also, seasonal coat color changes are a hallmark if brown horses. How long have you owned him?

Many many MANY brown horses are misregistered as bay or black because their foal coat color looks like one or the other. Genetically, they are very close, so it's understandable.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

I agree, the first picture isn't the best example of when he looks black, but I couldn't find my winter pictures. The contrast of having snow on the ground made him look really, really black. Oh well.

We've had him for less than a year. 

Honestly, it doesn't make much difference to me what color he is, but it really threw me for a loop. I was cruising along with my black horse and then all of a sudden, I had another bay, and it was very surprising. Hence the question.

The misregistration thing makes a lot of sense. Thanks!


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## toto (Mar 3, 2013)

He looks like a sun bleached black to me- i used to ride a few black horses that turned brown behind the ears there from it being moist with sweat and the sun beaming on it- like a reverse sun tan, lol. 

But the other lighter parts of his body is where horses sweat and sunbleach out.

He is black, lol.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

If this is the same horse as the one in your avatar, then I agree that he is likely a black that has been sunbleached. When they sweat (often on the neck/shouders and the flanks), that is where they bleach out the worst, which can make them look brown sometimes.

There is one school of thought that the diet of a horse will affect how much or how little they bleach out in the sun and your guy could sure use some more weight.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

You have one of the those "Amish Black" horses, who stay black as long as you keep them out of the sun! I have one, too.


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## CLaPorte432 (Jan 3, 2012)

I'd say he is a sun-faded black. I have one. Its sad. :-(
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Tryst (Feb 8, 2012)

I agree with sun faded black.


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## Peppy Barrel Racing (Aug 16, 2011)

This horse is NOT agouti based just a black who has sun faded. The lighter areas around the flank are sweat fading. 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

Looks like sun-bleached is beating out brown. Who knows? 

He is not the same one as my avatar. She was definitely black.

As far as his weight goes - yes, I agree he is a bit under. 
The first photo was taken long before he was mine. 
The second photo is the more recent of the two, and it makes him look much more angular than he really is. 
He was borderline when we got him, and dropped off some after arriving (stress, diet change, what have you). 
He has been gaining steadily and should be back to normal very soon.


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## Peppy Barrel Racing (Aug 16, 2011)

Here is sun bleached black like your horse. This horse is 100% for certain black. Notice the color is similar to your horse. 









Same horse with sweat fading down the flank and sides.

















These horses have brown based agouti. Notice the cinnamon color that is slightly different than sun fading and is restricted to the soft parts of the horse. This coloring in the soft places is often pretty noticeable even when brown horses sun fade. 
























_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

Very thorough and lovely pictures!
Thanks


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