DunGenes.org
a Hippo-Logistics web

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definitions

dun-related:

dilution: lightening, as milk does to coffee ... from subtly to extremely

markings: darker areas or stripes left behind when the rest of the body is diluted. Most common are these two:

dorsal stripe.
leg markings.

barring

darker markings on the back of a diluted upper foreleg that resemble bar-shaped rungs of a ladder

blue grulla

dun gene(s) on solid black, without any cream gene, may give this effect of a cool slate-grey, light or dark.

claybank dun

usually refers to a lighter than usual Red Dun. Sometimes refers to extremely pale-bodied Kiger duns with dark points (see Buttermilk Dun).

cobwebbing

concentric circles of dark lines on the forehead. A dark dot may appear in the middle.

cross

dun

diluted body color with darker points and markings that usually include a distinct dorsal stripe, leg barring, etc.

dunalino

slang for palomino and dun mixture. Looks like a palomino with darker gold, red, brown or tan dun markings; the flaxen main & tail may have darker centers.

dorsal

along the back (spine) from withers to tail

dorsal stripe

	sharp-edged darker color stripe from withers to tail; ideally, it stretches, unbroken, from poll to tail bones, but is often interrupted by any number of modifiers; ideally at least 1/2 inch wide, as sharp and as dark as possible, showing great contrast with the rest of the body color.
	triple dorsal - strong dun characteristic of one strong center dorsal line flanked on each side by a parallel fainter one

dunskin

slang for dun on bay plus one cream gene; buckskin and dun mixture ... usually lighter dun to creamy body with black points & red, brown or black dun markings

ear barring

a band of darker color horizontally midway down the ear on the outside

ear tips

dun and many other colors can have these darker tips on the ears, but so far white dots on the very tips of the darker area seem to be found only in duns

eye barring

a dark line above the eye... sometimes called "eyebrows" or eye lines, usually touching a corner of the eye

eye shadowing

a dark smudge under the eyes, as though the dark eye color has been smeared down the face

face mask

lower face is usually dark in duns; in countershaded/sooty/smutty horses, upper face around eyes is usually dark

fishboning

dark lines extending out from dorsal line as though they were going to wrap around the barrel

frosting : see "guard hairs"

grulla (or grullo)

dun on solid black; body is mousey grey, points and dun markings are black

guard hairs

the hairs that edge the mane (and tail), which are usually flaxen or white on a dun

leg markings (barring, striping, mottling)

found primarily on the rear of the upper forelegs, these may vary greatly from

	*barring* (like the rungs of a ladder) to
	striping (like zebra stripes or marbling) to
	*mottling* (like a sponge painting).

other places to look for these markings are inside the upper forelegs, on or behind the knees, around the hocks, or anywhere on the legs

lobo dun/grulla

lobo dun - a very dark brown dun or grulla; may be dun + seal

mane frosting: see "guard hairs"

mottling

an effect similar to sponge painting; also marbling

neck barring

olive grulla

elusive color that appears to be grulla but with a greenish cast

red dun

dun on red base (no black gene); lighter red body with darker red points and markings

rib markings

usually faint, darker striping on barrel apparently tracing ribs

shoulder bars

smoky grulla

currently most acceptable term for a grulla with one cream gene; may look like a "normal" grulla or have a golden cast in places

striping

tail frosting : see "guard hairs"

ventral

referring to the belly, from chest to genitals

ventral stripe

a darker line along the belly from chest to genitals; may not be a dun trait

yellow dun

another name for a Palomino with dun markings

zebra dun

dun on bay; black points & dun markings, tan body. Often simply called "dun".

other color definitions:

	buckskin
	champagne
	countershading
	cream
	cremello
	frame
	gray
	mask - upper face
	mealy
	overo
	pangare
	paint
	palomino
	perlino
	pinto
	roan
	roaming/roaned
	sabino
	smoky black
	smoky grulla
	sootiness/smuttiness
	splash
	tobiano

For an intro to color genetics, see THIS PAGE.

From old site, to be incorporated into sections above:

Albino - complete absence of pigment from skin and eyes. Does not exist in the horse.

Amber Champagne - champagne on bay. Tan body with brown points, lighter legs, pink freckled skin, light brown eyes.

Bay - black based, with agouti gene, which restricts the black to the points, leaving the body red.

Bi-Color Mane or Tail - see Frosting.

Black - no agouti gene, entire body is black. When not modified, no brown hairs are found on the muzzle or flanks.

Brown - mostly black with brownish muzzle and flanks, etc.

Buckskin - bay with one cream gene. May have dorsal shading that looks a lot like a dun's dorsal stripe.

Buttermilk Buckskin - pale creamy body with black points

Buttermilk Dun - pale creamy body with black points and dun markings

Chestnut - red horse, black is restricted from entire coat.

Classic Champagne - champagne on solid black. Body, darker mane & tail look very dark taupe; pink freckled skin, light brown eyes.

Countershading - dark/black hairs where the sun would usually highlight the animal and lighter hairs where there would usually be dark shadows. See Sooty, Smutty, Mealy, & Pangare.

Cremello - two cream genes on chestnut. Cream/flaxen all over, blue eyes, nearly pink skin.

Flaxen - ivory or extremely pale yellow to white. Not normally used to describe pure white. May be silvery as in a silver dapple's mane.

Frame - pinto pattern of white confined to the middle of the horses' body on each side, not crossing the back or belly or on the face, legs or feet. Lethal when gene is doubled.

Frosting - m & t have light-to-white outside edges.

Gold Champagne - champagne on chestnut or sorrel. Gold body, gold or flaxen m & t, pink freckled skin, green or light brown eyes.

Gray/Grey - horse is born any color, usually with at least a few white hairs around the eyes, goes gradually grey-then-white as it ages, with the points sometimes darkening markedly in the process.

Isabella, Isabelo - female & male very light Palomino; or any Palomino in parts of Europe.

Ivory Champagne - champagne on any base color plus at least one cream gene. Cream body, m & t vary according to base color (never black, often frosted), pink freckled skin, blue, green or amber eyes.

Mealy - a lightening of the muzzle, lower flanks, belly, armpits, and lower legs. Also called Pangare.

Overo - pinto other than Tobiano (sabino, frame, splash - did I miss any?)

Palomino - one cream gene on chestnut. Gold body, flaxen m & t.

Pangare - a lightening of the muzzle, lower flanks, belly, armpits, and lower legs. Also called Mealy.

Perlino - two cream genes on bay. Cream body, darker m & t, blue eyes, nearly pink skin.

Roan - interspersing of white hairs mostly on body with face, m & t and legs remaining original color.

Roaning - intermingling of white hairs in any pattern, any place.

Sabino - pinto with any of the traits of jagged white socks/stockings, bold blaze usually extending below the chin, jagged or lacy spots from the belly extending up the sides; can cause entire horse to be white except a tiny, nearly invisible spot; roaning, from around the white spots only to covering the entire face, body and legs evenly, to nearly a white horse.

Silver, Silver Dapple - dilutes black body color slightly, and black m & t usually become mostly flaxen/silver; only affects black so cannot be seen in a red horse.

Smoky Black - solid Black with one cream gene. Looks like anything from black to dark brown chestnut

Smoky Cream - solid black with two cream genes. Believed to look much like a Perlino.

Smutty - areas of dark, usually black, hair, variously forming a topline (fuzzy dorsal), upper face mask, shoulder or hip patches, upper leg shadowing (imitation barring), intensifying dapples, and sometimes almost making the entire horse look black with brown shadows. Can make a flaxen m & t dark. Also called Sooty.

Sooty - areas of dark, usually black, hair, variously forming a topline (fuzzy dorsal), upper face mask, shoulder or hip patches, upper leg shadowing (imitation barring), intensifying dapples, and sometimes almost making the entire horse look black with brown shadows. Can make a flaxen m & t dark. Also called Smutty.

Sorrel - sometimes used for a light or golden chestnut; geneticists tend to use this term to describe a chestnut with the Pangare, or Mealy, lightening effect.

Splash - pinto with white coming up from below in smooth-edged large patches. Often associated with blue eyes.

Tobiano - pinto with white crossing the back in usually predictable, smooth-edged patterns, white on legs and face is usual also.

Definitions