Color breed

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A color breed refers to groupings of

horses whose registration is based
primarily on their coat color, regardless of
the horse's actual breed or breed type.

Some color breeds only register horses

with a desired coat color if they also meet
specific pedigree criteria, others register
animals based solely on color, regardless
of parentage. A few pedigree-based color
breeds, notably the American Paint Horse
and the Appaloosa, confronted with the
reality of many animals born without the
proper color even though they are from
two registered parents, have modified their
rules to allow registration of animals with
the proper pedigree even if they do not
possess the proper color. On the other
hand, with the prevalence of DNA testing
for parentage, many horses once forced
into color breed status due to being born
the "wrong" color and thus deemed
undesirable or of questionable parentage
by many regular breed registries with
cropout rules can now be accepted for
registration.

For example, some mainstream breeds,

such as American Quarter Horses,
Tennessee Walking Horses and American
Saddlebreds include individuals of the
palomino color or pinto patterns, as well
as a wide variety of other colors. However,
a color breed registry, such as the
Palomino Horse Breeders Association or
the Pinto Horse Association of America,
accepts only horses of each particular
color or color pattern —regardless of their
particular breeds. White horses had their
own color registry that included cremello
horses, but not grays.

Many horses eligible for registration with

their own breed registry and of a particular
color to allow color breed registration are
often "double registered" with both
organizations, often increasing their sale
value by doing so. With stallions, double
registration may also increase their
breeding value by widening the set of
interested mare owners.

Alternative meaning
There are some breeds, such as the
Norwegian Fjord Horse, Appaloosa,
American Paint Horse, Friesian and
Haflinger, which have distinct physical
characteristics and recorded pedigrees but
also typically have distinctive or colorful
coats. These might be considered a "color
breed" by some, but they are pedigree-
based breeds. For example, Appaloosas
are usually spotted, but a solid-colored
offspring of registered parents can still be
a registered Appaloosa. Likewise, a solid-
colored American Paint Horse that has
registered parents may also be registered.

On the other hand, while Friesian breeders

have deliberately bred to exclude chestnut
horses, and will only register black
animals, these black animals also must be
Friesian by pedigree and no other
bloodlines are allowed into the registry.
The same is true of Norwegian Fjord
Horses, which are all a variation of dun.

Color breeding
Some horse breeds exclude certain colors
that are considered signs of a crossbred
animal. For example, other than the Sabino
pattern and some recently discovered
dominant white alleles in horses with DNA-
verified parentage, the Arabian horse
registry excludes all spotted horses. The
Finnhorse was also bred for decades to
exclude all colors but chestnut, and
specifically to remove such "fancy" colors
as roans, grays and spotted (sabino),
which were seen as indicators of foreign
blood, though that policy has now
changed, as for some particular colors,
this might hold true - for example, all
present gray Finnhorses can be traced
back to a certain gray mare of dubious
pedigree.

Due to DNA verification of parentage,

today many mainstream breed registries
that once excluded certain coat colors will
now accept them as long as the animal
can be proved pureblooded. Many colors
are specifically bred for.

See also
List of horse breeds
Equine coat color
Equine coat color genetics

References
http://www.colorbreedcouncil.com/
Color Breed Council (USA). Includes
both color breeds and pedigreed breeds
with a color preference.
"Color breed council conducts
international equine judges seminar."
 Article explains who the members of the
council are and what the council does.

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Last edited 7 months ago by Geeoharee

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