Last Updated on March 2, 2022 by Allison Price
These are the rarest colors of horse in the world. This is a topic I’ve wanted to write for a while. Horses come as many colors and sizes, from different breeds to different sizes. Horses come in many different temperaments and some excel at certain activities. A horse’s color is what first catches our attention, especially if it’s rare or unusual.
Because of the limited research available on this topic, it is difficult to identify the rarest 10 horse colors. But I was able to compile a lot of information from both official records and personal experience. The most rare horse colors are those that stand out.
Today, I will tell you about these rare colors and their genetics.
Cremello.
What distinguishes Cremello horses is their cream coats, white manes, tails, and piercing blue eyes. Cremello horses are prone to sunburns and other skin-related problems. These horses are also known as pseudo-albinos. They have two cream dilution gene, which doubles their color.
Are Cremello horses rare? Cremello horses can be rare? This separate article I wrote about Cremellos will help you learn more.
Albino horses (true White).
White horses may seem rare, but that is not the case. We’re all used to seeing white horses on horse shows and TV. Most of the “white” horses we have seen are actually gray horses, which appear to be white. True White horses are born with one of the dominant white ( W) genes. These horses are extremely rare.
A gray horse with white hair will have black skin, while a true white horse will have white skin.
True white horses with the dominant white gene will have brown eyes and pink skin. There are currently 27 variants of dominant White, but others may be discovered and catalogued over time. This rare color was spotted on Arabian horses and Thoroughbreds as well as Camarillo White horses and the American White Horse.
Buckskin.
How can you identify a buckskin horse. Buckskin, as the name implies, is a horse’s coat that strongly resembles deerskin. Buckskin horses, bay horses with the cream dilution genes, are bay horses. They can have either tan or golden coats and black manes, tails and lower legs.
Many people mistakenly confuse Buckskin horses for dun horses. However, these horses are actually two distinct colors. It is important to note that buckskin horses have the cream dilution genes, while dun horses have the dun-dilution genetic. This is because these horses are so similar. The genetic and physical differences between these horses are not only noticeable, but they also have their own unique appearances. It is important to pay attention.
Buckskin can be found in almost all horse breeds. This color can only be obtained if at least one foal’s parents are carriers of the cream gene. Are buckskin horses rare? There are some buckskin patterns that are very rare, and it is difficult to spot them with an untrained eye. However, the standard buckskin coloring can be found in many horse breeds so it is not as common as the others.
Perlino horses.
Perlino horses are very similar to cremellos. Perlino horses have a cream-colored coat with pink skin, blue eyes or both. Their coat can appear pale off-white, pale coffee or even pale coffee. Perlino horses can have white legs, but they will usually have a darker coat than the rest.
Perlinos and cream horses have a distinct difference. Perlinos have darker tails and manes than cremellos. But even that information can be tricky. If both the horse’s parents are buckskins, it could be one of them.
Pseudo-albino horses can also be called Perlino horses. These horses are used by breeders to produce buckskins, palominos and smokey blacks. Perlino, if you ask me is among the most beautiful horse colors, right up there alongside brindle. …
Brindle.
Brindle is a rare color for horses and deserves to be on this list. While brindle coats have been seen in cats and dogs, they are not common in horses. A horse with a brindle-colored coat is often linked to spontaneous chimerism, which means that the horse has two sets DNA. Each set governs a particular part of the coat’s colour.
Mixing different colors of horse hairs can create unique patterns. No two Brindle horses are the same. Quarter Horse researchers have discovered a heritable brindle pattern that can be passed down from generation to generation. The Brindle1 pattern is characterized by a striped coat in female horses, while male horses have slender tails and manes. However, the coat has no stripes.
The unique feature of brindle coloring in horses is its irregular stripes that extend vertically across the horse’s body and horizontal stripes around the legs. A few brindle horses have a dorsal line.
Champagne horses.
Perhaps it’s me, but Champagne horses and the champagne gene are two of the most underrated genes among equestrians. The champagne gene is responsible for many rare colors in horses’ coats. The champagne gene is responsible for most horses having hazel eyes and pinkish skin with freckles.
These horses have bright blue eyes at birth and bright pink skin. The color of the hair is also affected by champagne horses. Black hair turns chocolate brown, and red hair becomes gold. A foal must be born to at least one champagne parent in order to inherit the gene. A DNA test can be used to determine if the gene is present.
There are several champagne coat colors available for horses. There are a few different champagne coat colors for horses: classic champagne, sable Champagne, amber and gold.
Chocolate palomino.
Chocolate Palomino is also a rare color for horses. Breeders must cross a Palomino with an liver chestnut to get a foal of this color. The result is not always certain. These horses are genetically compatible with palomino horses because they have the creme-dilution gene (and the chestnut base).
Their looks include dark brown hairs, which are chocolate-like, and white manes. However, they can have some brown hairs in the manes or tails. This is rarer.
The unique contrast between the dark coat and the white mane/tail of a chocolate palomino horses is what makes them stand out.
Black horses.
Although black horses are not very common, we have seen them in movies as well as tv shows. Black Beauty is an excellent example. You may not be aware that there are two types of black horses: non-fading and fading.
A fading black horse will turn a brownish shade if it is exposed to the sun. The non-fading black horses are rarer and have a blue-black color that doesn’t fade. It’s also not clear that the two types are genetically different. This has sparked heated debates within the equestrian community. Some believe the difference in aesthetics between the two types is due to simple management.
Black horses can only be described as complete black horses that are free from any white markings. You can spot a true black horse among a group of bay or chestnut horses by looking at the muzzle and hairs. These hairs will also be black on a true black horse.
A non-fading black horse is one of the rarest colors in horse history, at least according to my opinion.
Silver Dapple.
To round out my list of rare horse colors, I included a color that is attributed to the Silver gene. This gene is responsible to a few horse colors such as Chocolate Flax and Taffy. The silver gene dilutes or lightens black pigment in the body, while the mane/tail receive more intense silvering.
Silver Dapple horses can have both dapples and a silver tail and mane. The Silver Dapple is rarer than other horses that have this gene. There are many horse breeds that have the silver gene, including Connemaras, Saddlebreds and Mustangs. It can sometimes be found in the Kentucky Mountain horse or the Missouri Fox Trotter in the United States.
There are two main Silver Dapple varieties: black and bay. It can be difficult to identify a silver-dapple foal. It is most likely to be silver dapple if it has a pale, yellow-colored body, with white eyes and tapering vertical stripes on its hooves. The silver dapple gene can also cause Multiple Congenital Ocular Anomalies in horses.
Flaxen Chestnut.
Flaxen Chestnut horses, also known as Flaxen Chestnuts, are rare due to their distinctive looks. The Flaxen gene makes the chestnut-colored horses’ manes and tails lighter than their coat colors. The mane and tail can appear almost gold-like.
Some horse breeds have the flaxen chestnut coloration. The Haflinger horse is a fine example. I wrote an entire article on it.
While some chestnut horses are slightly flaxen due to the presence of the flaxen gene, others are more obvious. According to recent research, the flaxen gene is inherited in Morgan horses. Some researchers also believe that the gene may be recessive. The flaxen trait is not present in black or bay horses, but it only occurs in chestnut horses.
Last words.
Some of the most rare horse colors are also some the most beautiful in the world. These horses have unique appearances due to genetic markings or genes that give them unusual coat colors. Although I am not an expert on genetics, all information I have is sourced from reliable sources.
Send me your suggestions if you’d like me to add another color of rare horse to the list. If you’re the proud owner of a rare horse like this, please send me photos!
