Buckskin Question

[WSR's_Judy]

I am looking at two stallion to lease for my mares, both have excellent pedigrees and conformation but one is a palomino and the other is a perlino. Both stallions have blue eyes.

I am wanting to breed for buckskins. The palomino has mostly palominos on his pedigree.

The Perlino is from a palomino pinto and perlino sire.

In your options which would be more likely to produce buckskins.

I am breeding them to 4- bay mares and a sorrel mare.

 

[Jill]

Perlino.

If the palomino is truly palomino (blue eyes make me wonder if he could be cremello?), he only has 1 dilute gene which he may or may not pass on. It is completely irrelevant how many dilutes are in his background.

The perlino has 2 dilute genes and will produce only dilute foals regardless of what color he is bred to.

 

[WSR's_Judy]

Thank you Jill,

I know that one had more of the dilute gene than the other I just did not know which one.

 

[chandab]

I sure you will get lots of information on color, but I'll give it my best shot for you.

What you get will depend on the genetic color of the horses involved. The four bay mares carry at least one black gene and one agouti gene, but may also carry one red gene. The sorrel mare only has red genes.

The palomino stallion has two red and one creme. So can only give red to his offspring and may or may not pass on his creme to the foals. [so bred to your mares, you can get black, bay, buckskin, palomino, sorrel].

The perlino has at least one black gene, one agouti gene and two creme (perlino is double dilute), and he may carry one red. (depending on his genetics; you can get palomino, buckskin and smoky black).

So, your best bet for buckskin foals would probably be the perlino stallion, as he will always give one creme for the dilute foals you desire. [He has a good chance of passing his black and agouti genes to the foal when crossed with the sorrel mare, so that you could still get a buckskin from that crossing - whereas the palomino stallion when bred to the sorrel will only produce sorrels and palominos].

I hope that wasn't too confusing. I'm sure someone will come along that can say it more clearly than I probably did.

 

[WSR's_Judy]

Thank you Chanda

My sorrel mare is the one I was most worried about, because I did not want to bred her and get another sorrel. A friend of mine has a palomino filly that is from a sorrel mare and a perlino pinto stallion.

In my area, there is so many sorrels, in horses and mules that there is just not much of a demand for that color.

Thanks

 

[Meavey]

What you also need to do is make sure the perlino is a perlino.

So is he color tested? If not you cannot guarantee he is, he could be a smokey cream or cremello too.

A double dilute does guarantee a cream gene all of the time, a palomino only 50%.

And what color are you mares?

 

[WSR's_Judy]

Meavey,

My mares are bays and 1- sorrel mare. My bay mare are out of bay parents. My sorrel mare is out of sorrel mare.

I will have to find out if he is color tested.

Thanks