Horse Colours Part I

In my last post, I used some words that may have been strange to you, if you don't know much about horses. You might have been thinking, "Bay, palomino, roan, what do all these words mean?" In this post I'm going to answer all of your questions.

Bay:

Bay horses have a reddish-brown coat with black points and a black mane and tail. Their colour can range from a tan colour to a dark brown.

A Bay Horse, picture from

http://flickriver.com/

Black:

A black horse is purely black with a black mane and tail. 

A Black Horse, picture from

http://www.theequestrianreserve.com/

Chestnut:

Chestnut horses have a reddish coloured coat that can range from a light red to a copperish colour to a mahogany.

A Chestnut Horse, picture from http://wallpapersonline.org/

(Seal) Brown:

Brown horses have a coat that is almost black, and lighter brown points around the muzzle, eyes and flank. They are sometimes called dark bay horses, or black and tan horses.

A Brown horse, picture from http://www.bnwd.net

 

Grey:

Grey horses have black skin and white hair. This gives the horse a grey appearance. Grey horses are often black at birth but their hair turns lighter over time and their coats can look anything from white to grey to silver.
 

A Grey Horse, picture from http://maddiesfavorites.blogspot.com.au/

Dapple Grey:

Dapple Grey horses are grey horses that have spots or dapples on their coat.

A Dapple Grey Horse, picture from

http://merseybirders.webs.com/

Flea-Bitten Grey:

Flea-bitten greys have tiny brown spots on their coats and a white mane and tail.

A Flea-Bitten Grey, picture from http://www.horse-genetics.com/

Cremello

Cremello horses have pink skin and a creamy white coat. They are sometimes confused with light grey horses, or grey horses who have faded with age.

A Cremello Horse, picture from http://www.theage.com.au/

Those are only about half of the colours! :) More will come later in Part II including roan and appaloosa.

Until then,

Rachel.