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Roan VS Gray
 
Roan (left), Gray (right)
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I've seen or heard it so many times...a young gray horse
being called a roan. An experienced horse person who has been active
in training many competitive young 4-H and FFA horse contest teams even told
me once, "You call it by the color it is on THAT day of the contest.
Maybe it will be gray some day, but if it is a mixture of colored and white
hairs on contest day, it's a roan."
No wonder those kids didn't win the contest.
If you want to call a horse a roan, make sure the horse has
a dark head that isn't turning gray. If you want to call a horse a
gray, make sure it isn't a roan to be most correct. Both grays and
roans can have a mixture of light and dark hairs in their bodies, but they
have some VERY different characteristics that set them apart as totally
different colors. Gray and roan colors are caused by two totally different
genes. This article will hopefully help you easily determine the
difference between the two genes.
Gray
Horses carrying one or two copies of the dominant form of
the gray gene (G for gray, g for non-gray) may be born any color, but will
eventually become white or fleabitten grays. The pattern of white/gray
hairs in their coats may be obvious soon after birth, or may even take a few
years to become apparent. I have seen a couple gray grand-get of
Jackie Bee that didn't have a gray hair on them until they were several
years old, and then slowly turned white over years. Most grays turn
obviously gray by age 3 to 5, however. Their first couple years might
be described as "beautiful" or "ugly," depending upon the eye of the
beholder and the base color.
|
AREA OF NOTE |
DESCRIPTION |
| SKIN |
Black/dark skin.* |
| EYES |
Normal eye color (usually brown, unless another color
gene causes them to be hazel/light). |
| FOAL COAT |
Can be born any color...they are NOT always born
black! |
| LEGS |
Often, the legs on a gray foal are brilliantly colored
at birth instead of "buff." For example, a bay foal that will
become a gray will often have shiny black legs right from the
beginning. A bay foal that is not going to become gray will
generally have tan legs at birth that later shed off black. |
| FACE, MANE, TAIL |
These will gray out early and will eventually become
white for the most part. If the face, mane, and tail remain dark
colored, the horse is probably a roan. |
| FIRST TO GRAY OUT |
The first part of a foal to begin to gray is "usually"
the head. Look for white hairs on young horses
 | Around the eyes |
| On the backs of the ears |
| Sometimes on lower legs |
On a horse that is a couple years old or older, look at the bottom
of the tail also. It will usually begin to lose color from the
bottom up. |
| PARENTAGE |
Since gray is produced by a dominant gene, at least
one parent of a gray horse must be gray. If a gray horse does not have
a gray parent, then it should be seriously considered that the
expected parentage is incorrect. |
For the most part, this description might help:
Gray foals are born any color (depending upon the genetics of the
sire and dam), changing slowly to a rose gray or dapple gray, and then to a
white coat or fleabitten gray coat. Dapple grays and rose grays are both
intermediate colors that a horse exhibits during it's life while graying
(beginning with the foal coat color and ending up white or flea bitten).
When the horse has finished the graying process, it will have a white coat
or a fleabitten gray coat (a white coat with tiny speckles of sorrel or
black dotted randomly on the body). Dapple gray and rose grays only occur in
the steps between "dark" and "white."
WARNING!
If you want a dapple gray horse, and you buy one,
don't expect it to stay that way its whole life.
It will most likely end up white or fleabitten gray.
Photos
| Gray foal at birth. Looks bay,
but became gray around eyes and eventually turned gray. |
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| Intermediate gray (will turn white or
flea bitten). Note the graying tail and light face/eye area. |
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| A young gray. Note the light head and
the graying at the bottom of the tail. |
 |
| Mature gray coat color. Note the
white/light face, dark skin, and dark eye color. |
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| Flea-bitten gray. Click photo to
see the "flea bites" on this gray horse. |
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Mistaking Grays and Roans
In their first couple years, grays are often mistaken for
roans. They shouldn't be, however. Grays have gray hairs on
their faces and heads very early on, and are usually lighter colored on
their heads than bodies. This is the opposite of roans, who have
darker heads than bodies.
Roan
Information coming soon...
Photos
Note the dark face, mane, tail, and legs of the roans
after shedding foal coats.
Mistaking Grays and Roans
In their first couple years, grays are often mistaken for
roans. They shouldn't be, however. Grays have gray hairs on
their faces and heads very early on, and are usually lighter colored on
their heads than bodies. This is the opposite of roans, who have
darker heads than bodies.
Gray AND Roan Both...Yes, it can happen!
The horse that inherits both a roan and a gray gene from
its parents
may look roan for its first few years,
but it will look gray for the rest of its life.
Crossing a mare and stallion who carry gray and roan genes
is just fine, but
can cause a lot of confusion. Foals may be born looking like they'll
be roan, but after a couple years, they may turn gray. Some breeders
believe that the gray and roan genes compliment each other, making for a
more roaned roan. But in actuality, the gray gene will completely mask
the roan gene within a few years, leaving only a gray-looking horse.
This is great for those who love grays.
But... If a breeder crosses horses that could result in a
roan foal that could carry a gray gene as well, we sure hope they will
inform the buyer of the foal to avoid potential hard feelings. If the
buyer likes and expects a gray, they will be pleased. However...If
they wanted (and specifically bought and paid the price for) a roan and end up with a gray, they could have very bad feelings
about the seller!
| Born bay, but carries both a gray gene and a roan
gene. Will turn totally gray at maturity of color, and will NOT
show roaning due to the graying. |
Foal, weanling, 2 y/o (same horse), above
Same horse at 4 years of age. Note that "so far,"
the legs are fairly dark. The rest of her is turning gray, and
her legs will be gray in a few more years.
Mature Color |
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Roan+Gray+Probable Dun genes
Note the upside-down "V" above the knees, which is a
good indication of roaning. This horse throws roans and grays
from sorrel and bay mares. |
"Flying X 6"
Photo used with permission.
Intermediate color phase. Eventually turned totally gray,
including the legs. |
|
Gray+Dun with possible Roan and Cream genes |
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Compare Gray and Roan Side By Side
| GRAY Light face, light
tail, light lower legs |
ROAN
Dark face, dark mane and tail, dark lower legs |
Light tail |
Dark Tail |
Light head |
Dark head |
|
|
 |
At maturity, light legs |
At maturity, dark legs |
Gray heads. Notice the white/gray hairs all the way to the eyes. |
An extremely roaned head. Notice that the face is roaned, but
the eye area is NOT. |
A young gray horse that will turn white-gray/fleabitten. |
|
A gray weanling. Note the even distribution of gray hairs on the face,
which is typical of grays. |
|
| GRAY Light face, light
tail, light lower legs |
ROAN
Dark face, dark mane and tail, dark lower legs |
*If the skin is pinkish,
the horse is probably a cremello or perlino (having two dominant forms of
the creme gene). It can also carry a gray gene if a parent was gray, but you
might not be able to tell easily due to the double dilution.
Request help determining your horse or foal's
color |
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References
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http://www.unicornerfarm.com/greyhoss.htm
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http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Gray-(horse)
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http://www.vgl.ucdavis.edu/~lvmillon/coatcolor/coatclr3.html#fig1a
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Color Testing Labs
There are many laboratories in the US and around the
world that do horse color testing, disease testing, etc. When you choose a
lab, make sure it is a reputable one! There are several university-related
labs, which I recommend, and many private labs (some of which can NOT be
recommended!). Here are a few
I'm familiar with:
University Laboratories:
Private Laboratories:
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Animal Genetics, Inc.
http://www.horsetesting.com/Equine.asp
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Pet DNA of Arizona:
http://www.petdnaservicesaz.com/Equine.html ONLY tests for Brown in horses
(1/2010)
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PROCEED WITH CAUTION IF YOU CHOOSE TO
USE THIS LAB, BELOW, in my opinion:
DNA Diagnostics (aka Shelterwood Labs, and also affiliated somehow with
Catgenes.Org)
http://www.dnadiagnostics.com/ DNA
Diagnostics/Shelterwood Labs offers a test for multiple
characteristics at one price.
I had seen a fair bit of chatter online about how they cash the checks and
don't give the results of the test. So, I tested them by paying for three
horse tests. Guess what...they sent back two of my horses' test results and
after 4 1/2 months, the third was still missing in action! Repeated phone calls and
e-mails were ignored by the lab. Finally, five months after the test, someone
gave me the results. If you choose to use this lab, my opinion is to only send
them as much money as you are willing to lose, in case you don't receive your
results.
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