HORSE COLOURS In the horse community, a specialized vocabulary has evolved to describe the diverse array of coat colours and distinct markings found within each individual horse. While most horses remain the same colour throughout life, a few, over the course of several years, will develop a different coat colour from that with which they were born. It is important to understand that not every person or breed organization agrees on or defines horse colours in the same way, and may not be accepted by everyone as accurate. Along with the body, the deciding factor in determining the colours of a horse lies in the colour of the points. The points are the; the muzzle, the tips of the ears, the mane, the tail and the legs from the knees and hocks down.

One colour over the whole body, mane, tail and legs. SOLID COATS One colour over the whole body, mane, tail and legs. Chestnut is when the body is ginger or reddish in colour with similarly coloured points Chestnut Black is when the body and the points are uniformly covered with black hairs. Black

DIFFERENCES IN COLOURS Mixed Coats DIFFERENCES IN COLOURS Mixed Coats Two Separate Colours Two Separate Colours BAY A Bay coloured horse has hair varying from brown to a bright reddish colour with dark or black mane and tail and extremities. A uniform colour on the body, but the mane, tail and extremities of the legs are black. BUCKSKIN A Buckskin coloured horse can be beige to yellow body with a black mane and tail and extremities, usually has a dorsal stripe down it’s spine. A Mouse coloured horse has ash grey hair with black mane, tail and extremities.

Mixed Coats STRAWBERRY ROAN GREY Two Colours Mixed A mixture of chestnut and white hair in the mane and extremities. A mix of white and black hair in the mane and extremities. which are usually darker in tone when younger. As a grey horse ages its coat becomes lighter.

Mixed Coats Three Colours Mixed Bay Roan mixture of brown, white, and chestnut hair. Blue Roan mixture of black, white and chestnut hair.

PAINT COAT Skewbald if white and any base color other than black. A combination of two distinct coats, generally a white coat with patches of another colour-black, brown/bay or chestnut. Piebald white with black patches Skewbald if white and any base color other than black.

COLOUR BREEDS The Palomino, Paint and the Appaloosa have their own registries; they are recognized as breeds and have their own colour guides. Paint Palomino Appaloosa

Attributes Music by Nathan O. Wills Pictures from Wikipedia   Music by Nathan O. Wills Pictures from Wikipedia By Jean - originally posted to Flickr as Miniature Stallion, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10896000