Patterns of White Hairs

True Roan     Sabino     Rabicano     Combinations     Gray     Appaloosa Roaning

Have you ever seen a horse that had a lot of white hairs mixed into its coat that didn't look like your friend's roan, but that you couldn't just call a plain sorrel or bay or black because of all those hairs?  Or, have you ever seen a horse that had a huge white patch at the top of its tail that wasn't a Paint? 

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Confusing Vocabulary

There are some horses that are close in looks to roans, but who are not roans.  Breeders and owners can be confused, correct, and incorrect on those colors.  And it sure IS confusing!  The terminology from breed to breed varies, which makes it even worse to speak a common language in the horse community.  For example, in the Arabian breed, sabino and rabicano horses can be registered as "roans," although they do not carry a roan gene.  And the American Quarter Horse Association allows sabinos and rabicanos with enough ticking to be registered as roans, as they don't offer a color option for those patterns.

Roan vs Roan-ing.  The sabino gene causes roan-ing, which is not the same as a roan horse that carries the 'R' gene.  Rabicano also causes roan-ing but is not caused by the Roan gene.  A true roan carries the 'R' gene, and has roaning to a further extent from the flanks than those with sabino or rabicano patterns do in general.

While I am not an expert in this area, hopefully the photos that will be posted here over time will help you determine what your horse's color should best be described as.  My "comfort zone" is in identifying roan horses.  It is generally pretty easy to tell a roan from a sabino or rabicano.  My expertise is not in identifying sabinos and rabicanos, though I'll try to help you if you need assistance identifying a horse's white patterns.

Also, note the Combinations category.  Many horses are BOTH roan and sabino, or other combinations.  These genes do not exclude each other, and can occur and be passed along in combination.

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True Roan

People often mistake other white patterns for roan, but other than the Appaloosa roaning pattern, we feel it is "usually" very easy to distinguish between true roan and the other patterns.  Roans have an even sprinkling or distribution of roaning everywhere except the head, lower legs, mane, and tail.  In the winter, roans are usually much less roaned, while in the summer they reach their fullest extent of roaning. Where a roan has been injured in a roaned area, the hair usually grows back non-roaned.  That is why roans that have age on them look like they have dark spots on their bodies...those spots are where a previous injury caused a "corn" spot. 

True roans tend to have characteristics such as the following:

 

An example (red roan) of complete roaning everywhere except points, mane, and tail	Upside down "V" above knees with dark lower legs, generally found on roans but not sabinos.	A very frosty red roan	Minimally-roaned true blue roan, showing dark lower legs and the faint upside down "V" where roaning meets non-roaned legs.
Blue Roan.  Note the dark head and lower legs.	A dun roan showing the "corn" spots where he has been scuffed or injured in years past.	A dun roan showing the upside-down "V" of black above knees and "corn" spots.	A blue roan, showing the even distribution of white hairs all the way up the neck to the head.

A great article hilighting roan, rabicano, and general white-pattern topics.

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Sabino White Pattern

The University of California (Davis) offers a DNA test for the sabino pattern. Characteristics that Sabino horses "might" have include:

Note the light head color

Sabino leg stockings, with the sharp points on the fronts of the legs.

Showing mostly Sabino, (but possible Rabicano pattern also). Note the chin, stockings with points, and ticking between front legs and at flanks.

A sabino Curly

http://www.painthorsejournal.com/archives/pdfs/TheScienceofSabinoAug07.pdf
Excellent reference about Sabinos, with photos and explanations
(let me know if this link goes again)

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Rabicano White Pattern

Rabicano is a pattern of white hairs that's similar to roan, but which does not cover as large of an area as the true roan gene causes. It consists of white hairs that center from/concentrate on the flanks of the horse and at the top of the tail, as well as under the belly. The white hairs on the flanks often go as far as onto the rib area, where they may even appear to make a vertical striping pattern.  The neck is usually not affected, or not affected to a great degree.  The back/topline is also mostly unaffected, though some rabicanos have roan-ing up to the backbone.  

Rabicano is caused by a dominant gene, so half of a rabicano's offspring will receive the trait.

Absolute Investment Click his  photo to see the white ticking up close.	Rabicano pattern on a Quarter Horse	"Coon Tail" from rabicano	"Coon Tail" and flank roaning from rabicano
"Coon Tail" from rabicano			If you have a good photo that would help educate viewers, feel free to send it for possible inclusion on our page.

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Combinations of Two or More White Pattern Genes

These colors are not mutually exclusive...they can occur together.  Many roans are also rabicano carriers, but the roaning is the predominant color and so the horses are simply recognized as roans.  Below are examples of roans that are carrying a roan gene and ALSO a sabino or rabicano gene.

Note the mare in the top left photo, below.  She has coon tail, but is also a minimally-marked roan.  We struggled in identifying her as a roan, but could see that her roaning was evenly distributed throughout her body...neck, chest, ribs, buttocks, etc.  Therefore, we determined that she was a roan with a lower percentage of roaning than most.  Her rabicano markings are only evident around her tail, and not on her flanks. 

 

Mainly expressing rabicano, but also possible sabino.  However, this horse does NOT carry a roan gene.  Gorgeous, huh?  :-)

An intermediate-shade of gray in maturity, plus showing a possible sabino gene (see the white on face and high stockings).

A young horse showing rabicano roaning on the flanks/ribcage, and sabino high white socks, chest, and facial markings.

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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. 

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."

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 foal at birth.  Looks bay with rabicano, but became gray around eyes and eventually turned gray.	A young gray horse that will turn white-gray/fleabitten.	Intermediate gray (will turn white or flea bitten).  Note the graying tail and light face/eye area.	Flea-bitten gray.  Click photo to see the "flea bites" on this gray horse.
Mature gray coat color.  Note the white/light face, dark skin, and dark eye color.	A gray weanling. Note the even distribution of gray hairs on the face, which is typical of grays.	A young gray. Note the light head and the graying at the bottom of the tail.	If you have a good photo that would help educate viewers, feel free to send it for possible inclusion on our page.

For more information, visit www.grullablue.com/colors/gray_roan.htm

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Appaloosa Roaning

"These horses closely resemble roans and greys. The color develops similarly to grey, in that it gradually overtakes the previous color pattern and covers it up. It is called "varnish" because its action is much like that of brushing varnish over a still-wet painting. The colors will blur and blend into a new, mottled and non-distinct pattern of coloring. Varnish Roan is part of the appaloosa complex. " (Source:  http://www.mustangs4us.com/Horse%20Colors/roan-ish_variations.htm)

It differs from the usual pattern of roan in that the head has white hairs and the colored hairs are concentrated over the bony prominences (facial bones, withers, shoulders, knees, stifles, and pelvic bones). These darker areas are called "Varnish Marks". This pattern will likely change with the age of the horse, since many are born solid and develop this pattern later in life. (Source:  http://www.equiworld.net/uk/horsecare/colours/ )

 

A gorgeous varnished Appaloosa (note the dark bridge on the nose and lower legs).

Varnished POA mare.  Note face varnishing.

If you have a good photo that would help educate viewers, feel free to send it for possible inclusion on our page.

If you have a good photo that would help educate viewers, feel free to send it for possible inclusion on our page.

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References and Informative Links

A great article hilighting roan, rabicano, and general white-pattern topics.

http://www.painthorsejournal.com/archives/pdfs/SabinoDec98.pdf

• www.grullablue.com/gray_roan.htm

• http://www.mustangs4us.com/Horse%20Colors/sabino.htm

• http://www.mustangs4us.com/Horse%20Colors/rabicano.htm

• http://www.sabinohorseregistry.com/markings.htm

• http://greenfield.fortunecity.com/dreams/799/hc/rabicano.htm

• http://www.mustangs4us.com/Horse%20Colors/roan-ish_variations.htm

• http://www.pioneer-net.com/~tabasco/TBBlkGenes.htm

• http://www.equiworld.net/uk/horsecare/colours/

• http://colormorgans.tripod.com/othercolors.htm Excellent photos of rabicano characteristics

• http://www.mustangs4us.com/Horse%20Colors/roan.htm

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