COLOURS AND PATTERNS OF THE HORSE
When I started this, I had no idea the minefield I would be treading in. I thought it would be easy to put a colour to a horse, and had no idea how upset people could become about this.
I realise different countries have different names and ideas about colouring, but very often people from the same country, with horses of the same colour, will each swear blind it is a certain colour which is completely different from what the other is saying.
I would like to keep this as easy as possible, as this site is predominantly for people starting out on their horse journey, so please forgive me if it is a little simplified. My idea is to help, not offend, and whatever colour we call the horse, it does not detract from how wonderful they are.
I have also only covered the basic colours so please do not feel offended if I have missed off your precious horse’s colour, but this section would go on forever if I included every colour.
My information is taken from
Maxine Cave BHSSM+T, chief examiner for the British Horse Society.
The UK Paint Horse Association and some American friends.
The British Appaloosa Society together with my American friends.
The profile picture is with thanks to “correct and collect horse training”.
Points are-
mane, tail and sometimes lower legs and muzzle
GREY
Body- white/grey
Points- white/grey
These lovely horses have a dark skin. They often start out dark and get lighter as they age, many eventually looking completely white.
This is the same horse at 3yo and 11yo.
You can get
Iron grey- very dark grey.
light grey- white but with dark skin.
Dapple grey- a lovely circle pattern.
Flea bitten grey- small specks of darker hairs.
BAY
Body- brown
Points- Black
These amazing horses have many shades.
Bright bay- reddish brown body and black points
Dark bay- with a very dark coat and black points.
CHESTNUT
Body-brown/red
Points-Brown/red
These stunning horses have yellowish red, ginger or brown coats with brown points, usually matching the coat colour.
You can get the bright colour and also liver chestnut- a very dark, reddish coat with brown points.
PALOMINO
Body-yellow
Points-white
These fabulous horses have many variations and you will have to refer to the countries’ Palomino Societies for their accepted names.
Outside the UK you may call the redder shade a sorrel, covered later
DUN
Body-yellow
Points-black
These gorgeous horses have a yellow body and black points with a dorsal stripe (a black line running down their spine). In the UK, if they are missing the dorsal stripe, they are still called a dun, but in most other countries this would be called a BUCKSKIN.
A GRULLO (grulla) also called a blue dun or mouse dun have a tan/grey body with dark points and sometimes a dorsal stripe and zebra markings on their legs.
ROAN
These fabulous horses have a dark skin with a mixture of colours and white in their coat.
You can get:
Strawberry roan
Points-brown/red
Sometimes called red roan- a brown or red colour hair mixed with white in their coat with chestnut or brown points.
Bay roan
Body-mixed brown and white hairs
Points-black
Blue roan
Body-mixed black and white hairs
Points-black
BROWN
Body-brown
Points-brown
In the UK these are often classed as chestnuts. These lovely horses have a brown coat (no red tints) with a brown mane and tail.
BLACK
Body-black
Points-black
These stunning horses have a black skin, coat and points with no brown mixed in, except if they have been sun dyed.
WHITE
Body-white
Points-white
These rare horses have a white skin and points with brown or blue eyes.
CREMELLOS
Body-cream
Points-cream
These unusual horses have a cream coat and cream or white points.
PERLINOS
Body-cream
Points-creamy red
(Not generally called this in the UK)
These lovely horses have cream bodies but more reddish points than the cremello.
SORREL
Body-yellow/red
Points-blond
(Not generally called this in the UK. They would call this a chestnut with flaxen mane and tail or palomino if yellow)
These heavenly horses have a yellow or reddish body colour and a blond mane and sometimes tail.
PIEBALD
Body-white and black patches
Points-white and black patches
(Not generally recognised outside the UK)
These amazing horse’s have large black and white patches of colour all over their bodies. Under the white patches they have white skin, under the black patches they have black skin.
SKEWBALD
Body-white and any other colour patches
Points-white and any other colour patches
(Not generally recognised outside the UK.)
These splendid horses have large patches of any colour and white over their body, manes and tails. There are many varieties
PAINT
A breed not colour
The American Paint horse is actually a breed of horse. They have a combination of white and any colour of the equine spectrum- black, chestnut, bay, brown, roan, buckskin, dun, gray, grullo, perlino, cremello, palomino, bay roan, red dun, blue roan, red roan, sorrel. The pattern categories, although they can be just a solid colour, simply put are:
OVERO
These beautiful horses have irregular patches of white on their head (often the majority of their head), legs and underbellies, with the colour not being broken by white over its back from the tail to withers. The tail is usually one colour.
TOBIANO
These terrific horses generally have white legs at least from the knee or hock down. They have large regular patches of usually dark colour with a dark head, that sometimes has solid colour markings such as a star stripe or blaze. The tail is often 2 colours.
TOVERO
These awesome horses have dark pigment on their ears which may extend down the forehead. One or both eyes are usually blue. They usually have dark pigment around their mouth and dark blotches or spots over their body.
APPALOOSA
This is a breed not colour
Appaloosa is actually a breed of horse. These stunning horses come in a variety of colours and are known for their spotty coats, although they can be a solid colour.
The pattern categories simply and briefly put are:
LEOPARD
These stunning horses have a white base colour in their coat and have spots over their entire body.
NEAR LEOPARD
These amazing horses have a leopard body but coloured head and legs.
FEW SPOT
These splendid horses have a white base coat and just a few spots.
NEAR FEW SPOT
These superb horses have a solid base and a few spots.
SPOTTED BLANKET
These fabulous horses have a dark coat with white over their loin and hips, with spots on the white.
WHITE BLANKET or SNOWCAP BLANKET
These divine horses have a dark forehand with a white blanket with no spots.
FROSTED BLANKET
These marvellous horses have a dark base colour with a frost or white spots on their hip and loin.
SNOWFLAKE /SNOWCAP
These terrific horses have a dark base colour and white spots over their whole body. They often start out a solid colour and spot out eventually becoming a roan.
Final Thoughts
I have outlined just some of the amazing colours and coat patterns you can find on our lovely animals, but there are many more. I have tried to keep it simple and correct and, as I said in the markings section, my thanks goes to the Facebook groups: “Cremello, Perlino Champagne and smokey horses and other equine”, “Paint Horses Lovers” and “Appaloosa Appreciation Group”. When I asked for photos of their lovely horses the response was amazing. I am just in awe of what amazing animals we have.
Some people get very serious about colour, I personally think if you have a go at remembering colours and get it wrong, it does not detract from the horse and it was definitely not meant to offend. If it does cause offence, I believe it says more about the person offended than you!