Horse Color Dilutes - Silver Gene
Image from Silver Dapple Morgans Project
One of the rarer color dilutes, the silver gene does not affect hair with red pigment. This means that it has a much more dramatic effect on a black base than it does on a bay horse.
Silver dapple is often confused with flaxen liver chestnuts because they both display dapples and often have creamy colored mane and tail hair.
Basic Silver Gene
- Generally called silver dapple
- Still rare, but becoming more commonly found
Different Silver Shades
Silver Dapple or Chocolate Silver
Image from Pond Lake Stables
- Result of silver gene on black base coat
- Shetland and miniature breeds call it silver dapple
- Gaited and mountain breeds call it chocolate
- Icelandic breeders call it blue silver
- Vary from light to dark
- Light silver / gray and dappled common in pony breeds
- Also occurs in chocolate color ranging from light to dark
- May have flaxen mane and tail
- Darkest color is almost black
Silver Bay
Image from Tamars Ventures
- Result of silver gene on bay coat
- Silver gene does not physically affect red pigment
- Body color stays the same
- Dark points can be diluted
- Foals have light legs and as they age they become darker
Learn more about horse colors
November 19th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
[...] horse displaying both champagne and silver dilution [...]
November 20th, 2008 at 11:13 am
[...] combination of silver and dun genes on a black base. Even more rare than the silver dapple color. So rare, in fact, that [...]