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Colour Coat Genetics - Chestnut
  

WHAT ARE THE COLOUR GENETICS OF CHESTNUT?
Like SORREL, a CHESTNUT carries TWO copies of the RED gene only (or rather, non-BLACK) meaning it allows for the colour RED only, CHESTNUT possesses no other colour genes, including BLACK, regardless of parentage. It is completely recessive to all other coat colours. When breeding with a CHESTNUT, any desired colour other than SORREL or CHESTNUT will come exclusively from the other parent. A SORREL or CHESTNUT bred to a SORREL or CHESTNUT will yield SORREL or CHESTNUT 100 percent of the time.

WHAT DOES A CHESTNUT LOOK LIKE?

A mature CHESTNUT may exhibit a deeper red with an almost 'wine colour' sheen. It is oftentimes a red so dark that it appears BROWN and may be confused with 'seal" BROWN. The mane and tail are usually the same as the body colour but may also be blonde or flaxen. In fact, a CHESTNUT with a blonde or flaxen mane and tail may closely resemble (and is often confused with) a dark or 'chocolate' PALOMINO. The mane and tail may be so dark that they appear BLACK, but a CHESTNUT will never have true black points. Like the SORREL, a CHESTNUT may also have a dorsal stripe.

IF A CHESTNUT HORSE HAS A DORSAL STRIPE, DOESN'T THAT MAKE IT A DUN?

A CHESTNUT with a dorsal stripe is not related to DUN. Remember, a CHESTNUT is a non-diluted horse. A dorsal stripe can be inherited ftom a non-DUN diluted parent. Foals that will be CHESTNUT are often born with light red hair colouration as well as having a distinct dorsal stripe. This characteristic is often confused with and mistaken as RED DUN. Quite often, a CHESTNUT foal will lose the dorsal stripe upon shedding its first coat. Even if the CHESTNUT retains the dorsal stripe, it still is not due to rhe DUN DILUTION gene. One may notice that a mature CHESTNUT does not have zebra stripes on the legs.

IF A RED OR CHESTNUT colourED HORSE HAS A BLACK MANE AND TAIL, DOESN'T THAT MAKE IT A BAY?

A BAY must have black on ALL points. Not only are the mane and tail black but also the tips of the eats and the lower legs from the coronet up. Oftentimes, a horse with a RED or SORREL body colour will also have a very dark mane and tail that is often confused with black. However, the mane and tail are dark due to concentrated amounts of the RED pigment, giving them the appearance of black against the brighter RED coat colour. One may notice that these horses do nor have BLACK tips on the ears nor is there true black on the lower legs. The CHESTNUT or SORREL coloured horse with a very dark mane and tail is registered as CHESTNUT.

WHAT ARE SOME OTHER ASPECTS WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CHESTNUT?

It is possible for CHESTNUT to express the roan gene. AQHA recognizes this colour as RED ROAN. (See RED ROAN).

A CHESTNUT may have white hair scattered throughout the body or have white hair concentrated in specific areas These areas are usually the flanks, between the fore legs, the root of the tail and sometimes over the barrel, usually in vertical patterns directly over each rib. It is most often confused with ROAN but is neither the result of the ROAN nor GRAY genes. This distinct pattern of white is sometimes called rabicano (pronounced rab ih CON oh), a word of Spanish origin meaning "brush tail," referring to the bands of white hair at the root of the tail. It is also referred to sometimes as "ticking." One way to determine the difference between the 'classic' RED ROAN and a CHESTNUT with white hair due to the rabicano or ticking trait is to notice the colour of hair once the 'roan' areas have been scraped or rubbed off. On a 'classic' ROAN, the ROAN hair does not grow back once scraped off-only the base colour will grow back, in this case, CHESNUT. On the rabicano affected horse, the hair that is scraped off will usually grow back solid white, the same that would happen if the horse were a solid CHESTNUT.

Some GRAY horses may have started out as CHESTNUT. They may keep their CHESTNUT points (or a variation) and much of their CHESTNUT Coat (or a variation) for an extended period of time. These horses still retain the RED gene and may produce CHESTNUT horses.

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