Design Guide

Genetics: nLp patnpatn
Locus: Lp | Modified by patn​
nLp = Snowflake Appaloosa, nLp patn = Blanket Appaloosa, nLp patnpatn = Leopard Appaloosa
LpLp patn = Snowcap Appaloosa, LpLp = Varnish Roan, LpLp patnpatn = Fewspot Appaloosa

Overview:

• Makes the coat white, with spots of the base color all over the body.
• Size of spots should generally be around eye to hoof sized, and should not be too sparse.
• Spots should generally be somewhat oblong. Can range in amount of spots, from light to very heavy.
• Spots should be present on all parts of the body, including head and legs.
• Mane/Tail: ​Mane will be white with streaks where spots touch. White or optionally streaked tail.
• Skin: Pink skin beneath white markings, optional pink mottling on unaffected skin.
• Hooves: Optional tan/shell striping.
• Eyes: No effect
  
  

Blue Roan Leopard Appaloosa

Black Pearl Leopard Appaloosa

Bay Leopard Appaloosa Rapunzel

Genetics: LpLp patnpatn
Locus: Lp | Modified by patn​
nLp = Snowflake Appaloosa, nLp patn = Blanket Appaloosa, nLp patnpatn = Leopard Appaloosa
LpLp patn = Snowcap Appaloosa, LpLp = Varnish Roan, LpLp patnpatn = Fewspot Appaloosa

Overview:

• Makes the coat white, with patches of color at the armpit/groin (required) and optionally the knee/hock, eyes, and muzzle.
• A few small spots of base color are strewn across the coat, around eye-sized or smaller. Spots should be sparse.
• Mane/Tail: ​White, with optional streaks (must be minimal/few).
• Skin: Pink skin beneath white markings, optional pink mottling on unaffected skin.
• Hooves: Optional tan/shell striping.
• Eyes: No effect
  
  

Sooty Chestnut Fewspot Appaloosa

Chestnut Fewspot Appaloosa

Black Fewspot Appaloosa

Face Markings:

• Fairly smooth in appearance, and should not have overly jagged/irregular edges. Will have variance and tapering, but not excessively.
• Should be oriented vertically, not horizontally. Markings should not be wider than they are tall.
• Widest points tend to be at forehead and muzzle - markings on bridge of nose are typically thinner.
• Will not be split into more than 2-3 segments. Will not split into side-by-side pieces.
• The images below only represent a few examples and are not exhaustive!
  
  

Leg Markings:

• Must start from the hoof/coronet, filling upward. Will not originate from a different point on the leg.
• May have 1-2 small spots on the coronet band that cause striping on the hoof (must match where white covers).
• Should not be overly irregular/jagged, but may have one side reach slightly higher than the other.
• Small markings (i.e. on the heel) may hug one side, but shouldn't exceed the fetlock in height.
• Each leg is independent of the others; may be anywhere from none to max on each one.
• The images below only represent a few examples and are not exhaustive!

Genetics: rp_
* Must be homozygous to show; otherwise carried
Locus: rp

Overview:

• This mutation does not affect the coat, only the tailbone length.
• For more details, please see our Tail Tutorial page!
  
  

Sooty Pangare Chestnut Dutch Lapin Rapunzel

 

 

Genetics: Sf_
Locus: Sf

Overview:

• Causes speckling as if snow has collected on the topline and/or around white markings. You may choose one or both when designing!
  • Topline: Concentrated on the withers/back, as if snow has been sprinkled on the horse.
  • Marking: Concentrated on the border of the markings, and sprinkled slightly outward.
• Spots can vary in density and size, but should be smaller than the eye. Bigger patches are caused by dense spotting that merges.
• Spots should become sparser the further they are from the main concentration area, so that there is noticeable taper in density.

Range:

• Minimum: Must cover the withers or attach to at least one white marking - it cannot be completely hidden.
• Maximum: Snowfall along the topline and all markings. Topline concentration should only cover about 1/4 of the barrel vertically.
  
  

Perlino Splash Snowfall

Black Snowfall

Black Pearl Snowfall

Genetics: Co_
Locus: Co​

Overview:

• Causes a white band around the barrel.
• Should not be perfectly smooth; edges should have some degree of variance.
• Thickness can vary slightly, but should be fairly consistent from top to bottom.
• Must begin at some point on the first 1/3 of the back (measured from start of withers to point of hip).
• Cannot start further up than the start of the withers, nor end further back than the hip.
• Mane/Tail: No effect
• Skin: Pink where covering
• Eyes: No effect

Range:

• Minimum: Should be at least as wide as the withers.
• Maximum: May cover the entire barrel from withers to hip.
  
  

Almond Corset

Pangare Sakura Corset Orchid

Grullo Corset

Genetics: St_
Locus: St​

Overview:

• Stained may present in two different forms. You may freely choose either form when designing, but not both.
• Causes parts of the coat to be darkened - area/amount is dependent on the version chosen.
• Darkening should be medium/low-opacity, keeping underlying variance intact (dapples, countershading, etc).
• May exhibit darker or lighter mapping around the stained markings.
• Version A:
  • Causes 1-3 random independent patches of the coat to be darker.
  • ​Patches should have edges with cutouts, similar to the shape/edges of Overo.
• Version B:
  • Darkens some or all of the white markings on the horse. Adheres to all rules/bounds for the marking, just makes them dark.
  • If a marking is darkened, it must affect all white that physically touches it, even if caused by two different genes.
  • Natural white may be applied on top after staining if desired (this is the only exception to the "all white that touches" rule above).
  • Affects everything listed under "White Markings" on the Visual Hierarchy page.

Interactions:

• Halo: Mapping on Version B can be affected by Halo, darkening the Halo as well if the main marking is Stained.

Range:

• Minimum:
  • Version A: At least one marking as large as the head.
  • Version B: At least one marking affected.
• Maximum:
  • Version A: Up to three different markings, not exceeding more than 1/3 of the body total on each side.
  • Version B: All white markings are affected.
    
    

Version A Examples:

Stained Smoky Cream

Stained Silver Abyss Husky Dun Tobiano Rapunzel + Wulf

Stained Grey on Chestnut Splash

Version B Examples:

Stained Bay Roan Splash

Stained Dominant White on Liver Chestnut

Stained Grullo Tobiano

Genetics: Bl_
Locus: Bl

Overview:

• Creates numerous holes in white patterns.
• Holes can vary in distribution/amount but should be somewhat oval in shape.
• Size of the holes should generally mirror Appaloosa spots, but can be a bit smaller (should not resemble fleabites).
• Can affect some or all white markings on the body, including natural white (face/leg markings).
• Affects everything listed under "White Markings" on the Visual Hierarchy page.

Range:

• Minimum: May be fully hidden.
• Maximum: May affect all white markings on the body. Must be clearly identifiable as spots/holes, not large patches.
  
  

Blotted Smoky Cream Overo

Blotted Bay Pearl Splash

Blotted Bay Roan Overo

Genetics: Dt_
Locus: B | Ty | Cv | Dt | D​
CvDt = Civet, TyDt = Tabby, BDt = Bengal, DtD = Primitive Dun, nDt/DtDt = Primitive Dun

Overview:

• Dilutes the body, leaving the legs and head alone (may reach the cheek slightly).
• A modified form of Dun. Causes an exaggerated expression of primitive markings.
  • Leg barring and dorsal stripe are required, while shoulder barring and facial cobwebbing are optional.
  • Will extend, thicken, and overall exaggerate the stripes in these areas.
• Stripes must clearly radiate from normal dun markings, and should taper at the edges. 
• Stripes on the front half of the body should be vertical, may not cross the throat/underside of the neck, and should stop just after the withers.
• Stripes on the back half of the body should be horizontal, stop at the dock of the tail (not continue on to the back), and should not pass the hip.
• Stripes on the front legs will gradually transition to become more vertical as they meet the markings coming from the topline.
• Primitive markings should be a few shades darker than the points, or black if points are already black.
• Mane/Tail: May exhibit light "frosting" blended at the roots of the hair.
• Skin: No effect
• Eyes: No effect

Interactions:

• Civet, Bengal, and Tabby: When paired with these genes, Primitive Dun will be hidden and have no effect.
• On renamed Dun combos, "Primitive" will be written before the color rather than after (Primitive Grullo, Primitive Red Dun, Primitive Dunalino, etc).

Range:

• Minimum: Dilution (lightening) of the body, as well as leg barring and dorsal stripe. May look like normal Dun at minimum.
• Maximum: Extension of all primitive markings (leg barring, shoulder barring, facial cobwebbing) to the bounds described above.
  
  

Bay Pearl Primitive Dun Tobiano + Wulf

Dawn Primitive Dun Splash

Primtiive Grullo + Birdcatcher spots

Genetics: B_
Locus: B | Ty | Cv | Dt | D​
BCv = Bengal, BTy = Bengal, BD = Dun Bengal, BDt = Bengal, nB/BB = Bengal

Overview:

• Vertical stripes should cover the entirety of the neck and body, becoming horizontal on the legs and stopping at the knee/hock.
• Stripes should always be darker than whatever is below them, either in one solid color that is darker than all other points or darkened to follow the body gradients.
• Stripes should vary in thickness, have tapered ends, and should not be perfectly straight nor overly wavy. They should follow the flow/curves of the body, striping vertically from topline to underside. Stripes may merge but not cross.
• If present on the face (optional), stripes should be smaller and focused around the eye/forehead/cheek area rather than the entire head. Head markings should look fairly cat-like (similar to tiger or tabby face markings), rather than radiating out like Dun cobwebbing.
• May optionally cause subtle/medium lightening beneath the stripes on the underside, inner legs, muzzle, and cheeks.
• May optionally cause a white spot within the stripe pigment color on the back of the ears, similar to false eye markings on real tigers.
• Mane/Tail: Neck stripes may continue into the mane. Tail may be striped, following the direction of the hair.
• Skin: No effect
• Eyes: No effect

Interactions:

• Dun Bengal: When Dun and Bengal are present on the same horse, both will co-exist.
  • Causes body dilution under the Bengal markings.
  • Also causes dorsal stripe and leg barring, but not shoulder barring.
  • Dorsal stripe will be underneath Bengal markings.
  • Only applies to normal Dun, not Primitive Dun.
• Primitive Dun, Tabby, and Civet: Does not interact with these genes. Will display as normal Bengal, hiding the other gene.

Range:

• Minimum: Exhibits striping on the entire body, excluding the head.
• Maximum: Exhibits striping on the entire body, including the head.
  
  

Ginger Bengal Sabino

Palomino Bengal Splash Rapunzel + Birdcatcher Spots

Silver Buckskin Bengal Splash + Wulf

Genetics: Hk
Locus:​ Hk | P
HkP = Husky, nHk/HkHk = Husky

Overview:

• Husky is a dramatic lightening pattern that mirrors the appearance of the dog breed that shares its name.
• Lightening should be very pale and visible, sometimes near-white. It should be blended, but should generally be a little sharper than Pangare.
• Lightening must affect the face, neck/throat, chest, armpit, and belly, and may also affect the hindquarters and legs.
• Areas of lightening should follow/hug the curves of the body, coming up highest at the sides of each curved section.
• Face lightening should be a mask centering around the eye and muzzle, often filling in to connect the two and lighten the chin/cheek as well.
  • May lighten the brow spot above the eyes as well, as long as the edge is still blended rather than solid.
  • May also cause a softly-blended star or stripe marking down the center of the face (example).
• Leg lightening should hug the back side of the legs, leaving the most color on the knee/hock and coronets/pasterns.
• Optional darkening may be present along the topline, similar to Sooty, but this is not a requirement.
• Mane/Tail: ​Optional; blended lightening from the ends of the hair, up to halfway
• Skin: No effect
• Eyes: Optional; Blue | Detail Guide

Range:

• Minimum: Lightening present on the eyes, muzzle, neck/throat, chest, armpit, and groin.
• Maximum: Lightening present on the face (eyes/muzzle/brows/forehead), muzzle, neck/throat, chest, armpit, groin, legs, and hindquarters. Darkening along the topline. Light gradient from the tips of the hair.
  
  

Black Husky

Chestnut Husky Splash

Black Pearl Husky