Horses have a very ancient lineage spanning millions of years and many different terrains. So it’s not so surprising to learn that horses come in a variety of colors and patterns, with a plethora of different markings. As you become familiar with the names of horse colors, patterns, and markings, the two lists below will help you intelligently spot, name, and discuss discus horses among your peers. For beginning riders, it will be comforting to know that when your trainer asks you to saddle the buff fire, you will never have a quizzical look on your face, or wonder if you should ‘fess up’ that you don’t know what she means.
brands
The terms to describe the markings on a horse can be divided into facial and leg areas. People who are around horses often describe these white markings as “chrome,” a rather amusing use of the word to refer to variations seen as attractive additions to a horse’s appearance.
Here are some descriptions of face chrome features:
IN star it is a white spot on the horse’s forehead.
IN stripe it is a narrow white stripe that runs down the center of the horse’s face, from the forehead to the bridge of the nose.
IN cutoutIt is, I suppose, part of a longer strip. It is a white patch on the muzzle, on or just below the area between the horse’s nostrils.
IN radiance The marking is a broad white area beginning at the horse’s forehead and ending along the bridge of the horse’s nose.
Bald refers to a horse with a large amount of white on the face beginning above the forehead, running down the front of the face to the muzzle, and extending past the bridge of the nose to the sides of the face.
The main types of chrome on the legs include:
Tea crown band it is a small white band just above the helmet.
half pastern means a white marking beginning at the edge of the hoof and extending to the middle of the pastern. Think of the horse’s pastern equivalent to the top of a human foot, and the white marking on the horse would be equivalent to a human footed white sock.
IN socks it is a larger white marking that starts at the edge of the hoof and extends about a third of the way down the leg.
IN halfthen, it is a white mark that extends from the horse’s hoof to the knee, or hock if the stocking is on the horse’s hind legs.
half barrel it is a white marking that starts at the edge of the hoof and extends to the middle of the leg. Consider it between the length of a horse sock and a horse stocking.
colors
Gray: A gray can be almost white to dark gray or anything in between. Many gray horses will have specks, which are circular, indistinct spots. In those cases, these horses are called ‘dapple greys’. Most gray horses are born dark and develop their gray color as they age.
Bay: Bay is a deep brown body color with a black mane, tail, and legs. The bays can be dark brown to reddish brown.
Brown: In the horse world, the color brown describes an animal that is very dark brown in color, often with lighter brown around the muzzle, flank, or inside of the upper legs. The mane and tail of these brown horses are black.
Spotted – Spotted horses feature one of several different coat patterns often consisting of oval, egg-shaped spots. These spots may be distributed throughout the body or limited to the horse’s hindquarters and hips.
Black – For a horse to be considered truly black, it must be jet black with no light areas anywhere on the body, including the mane and tail. A beautiful black horse in a sunny pasture is truly a poetic sight.
Dwarf: A dun horse has a golden, reddish or tan body color and a black or brown mane and tail. All browns have a dark stripe down the back. Roan colored horses are believed to exist within the dun family. A subset among the roans are the cranes described as a mouse-gray brown.
Buckskin: A buckskin looks a lot like a brown but without the dark stripe down the back. Color can be from light to dark tan, always with black under legs, a black mane and tail.
Roan: This term describes a horse that has a dark ground color interspersed with white hairs. The roan’s head and lower legs are usually darker than the rest of the body. Roans come in different color patterns, most often red (white hairs mixed with brown or red hairs) and blue (white hairs mixed with black hairs). Many Quarter Horses fit this description.
Palomino: A golden yellow body with a white mane and tail is characteristic of palomino coloration. This colored horse comes in different patterns, depending on its breed.
Chestnut: Chestnut is a distinctive reddish color that covers the entire body. The mane and tail are usually the same color, although some chestnuts have what is called a blonde or blonde mane and tail. Chestnuts come in different shades, from very light (called sorel) to very dark (called liver).
Pinto: A pinto horse is marked with irregularly shaped patches of dark color against white, or sometimes irregularly shaped white patches against a darker background color. Dark spots can be any color, including palomino, chestnut, bay, buff, or black.
None of us were born a veteran on the ranch, the rodeo, or the show arena. If you find the above information helpful at this stage of learning, please print a copy to keep close by. It will help you verbally understand what your teammates and coaches are saying.
