Foal Color Question
We have noticed that almost all of Rawhide Whiz's foals have
had either lighter blue eyes than most foals, or that the foals have even
had green eyes. So, we're trying to figure out why. My first thought is
Pangare', but someone also mentioned that rabicano affects foal eye color.
We have not seen white hair patterns in the young foals that indicate
rabicano, though, and the stallion's only white is a small area on a side of
a hip with about 20 hairs (in a 4x4 inch sized area).
Here's what we know:
His two red foals have had cream muzzles and a lot of
light hair in their tails and underbellies, possibly similar to a horse with Pangare'. Their eyes have been greenish.
The one that is old enough to shed foal hair is now chestnut with what
appears to be a flaxen mane.
His brown/dark bay foal has a cream muzzle and had blue
eyes.
The dun filly had blue eyes and cream around her muzzle.
The black and grullo foals have had either the normal dark
blue eyes, or have had lighter-than-normal blue eyes, but no noticeable
cream around the muzzle. Possibly the gene our stallion is passing does not
affect black-based horses that are aa.
Here are pictures of some of his offspring from this year,
and a link to his own web page:
Rawhide Whiz, the sire
His sire is a dunskin, and his dam is a dark red dun (with chestnut points,
rather than the lighter sorrel points).
We have not tested him for cream, but he has only thrown one obviously-cream
foal, and that colt's dam is a palomino.
Eve
Sorrel/Chestnut?, black dam.
Adam
Sorrel, black dam with cream spot on her hip.
Sierra
Dun, bay dam.
Monty
Bay or brown, sable champagne dam (brown based).
Jem
Black with black dam.
Andy
Black colt, grullo dam.
Chocolate palomino colt (dam is palomino brindle).
Unusually-light blue-green eyes (lighter than most cream carriers) at birth.
Grullo, dam is black.
Black filly, bay dam.
Red dun colt, bay dam.
This is my only picture, so I can't tell much for him.
Owner said his eyes were sky blue at birth.
