Snowcap or Fewcap?

[ohmt]

Now I posted this filly's picture a while ago on a different appaloosa thread and was told she is a snowcap and not a fewcap like I had thought. I didn't have updated pictures to show at the time, but just got a few so thought I'd share and see if everyone still thinks she is snowcap-I know she has varnish so snowcap with varnish?

Here is her cuteness as a foal:

And here is she is now:

Her lower legs are white-she was running through mud puddles (can't escape them here. While others are having droughts, we have been flooded since spring, can't even use our new barn)

Thanks in advance!

ETA: Filly's sire is a true few spot and dam is a varnish

 

[Lucky-C-Acres-Minis]

She's a varnished snowcap

 

[ohmt]

Thanks Diane! I was hoping you'd pipe in. I was thinking snowcap as well, but was just curious. I've had many snowcaps, but none that have looked quite like this filly. She retained almost no color (just a little bit on her face but none on her neck or legs) at all and then has actual spots on her rump. Just a few, but I have not had a snowcap with definite spots like her, just one or two that will come and go as the seasons change. Now the few spot filly you have pictured, from the information I have gathered on the appaloosa project she looks like a fewcap. See the fewcap is what is throwing me off sometimes-from what I have read it is like an in between of snowcap and few spot (like your filly), which sounds simple enough, but with the darn varnish gene I have a hard time deciphering.

Appaloosas

 

[ohmt]

Thanks again Diane. I am also just learning about the fewcap pattern so was just making sure that I was getting it right-i haven't seen very many examples of them. Yes, homozygous for appy any way so not a big deal! It was just my curiousity getting the best of me

Snowcap with varnish it is and I have a leopard stallion without varnish that she will be 'dating' next year. I am not crazy about appy x appy crosses and am not a fan of my filly's head, but I like the rest of her and think she'll make a nice cross with the leopard. We'll see!

 

[Lucky-C-Acres-Minis]

I truly believe that the appy colt Pam and Larry of PALS miniatures bought off of me is a fewcap. His sire is Iles Apache Appy Ace (a fewspot) and is dam I believe to be also a fewspot (she was all white with the mottling/sclera but did not have the roany areas like a varnish).. They've had some outstanding spotted babies by him this year

 

[shelia]

ohmt, I would test both your mare and filly for gray. that looks like an awfull lot of roaning to me.gray appy seem to retain their color a little longer than other colors or patterns, but they eventually loose most of it.

I personally don't like the term fewcap.

You can have a leopard, near leopard, blanket, or roan. Why can't it just be called fewspot, near fewspot, snowcap, or roan. It is just the appearance of the appy you are seeing. the more white the foal has at birth, the more likely it can produce foals with a lot of white at birth. if both parents had a lot of white at birth that can increase your chances. Some roan a little, some roan a lot, but at different times of the year they can darken up again, (unless they are gray)

 

[ohmt]

Lucky C-i love the foals they have gotten from your Ace son! He has done a great job.

Shelia-they are not grey, but i suppose it could look that way. The dam is classic varnish and her sire is black blanketed and her dam is chestnut. The mare is 15 now and still has a lot of color on her face, knees, and throughout her body. I am actually one that hates the term near few spot as it doesn't quite make sense to me. It sounds like your saying the horse is 'near homozygous'. I like fewcap as it is indeed a combination of fewspot and snow cap. It's descriptive whereas near fewspot just doesn't make sense to me. Maybe it's just me though. I also don't like when people just call it roan either instead of varnish or varnish roan. It confuses people with actual roan and they are different. I have not heard that the more white the more chances of producing a lot of white at birth....and have not experienced that all either. I have had few spots and snowcaps and leopards and blankets. They all produce the same amount of color on their appaloosa foals. My varnish mare (dam to this filly) has had all solid foals bred to appaloosa stallions up until this one. Her sister is solid with just some characteristics and she has produced loud appy bred to non appy stallions. It's why I love appaloosas though. I have had them for many many years and there are no rules with them. Even my homozygous black few spot stallion gives me surprises

 

[ohmt]

You are wonderful.

Thanks to everyone for your input. I think Diane figured her out!

Shelia, I will take back what I said about the term near few spot. It is on the appaloosa project (which I must admit I need to catch up on) and so I will accept it

I am no expert by any means so i'll leave it to them.

 

[shelia]

My thoughts on fewcap are in the minority so you want want to go ahead and call it a fewcap like most people do. Someone came up with the term and it just stuck. many places use fewcap. It just sounds silly to me. What ever it is called, the most important part is what will it produce? (To me, anyway). Untill we can get a test for these things, it is all just theory right now anyway. We just have to go by what has each pattern produced most of the time.

She is a cute filly.

Whoops! Just saw the post where you saw your mare and filly are not gray. that is great! i am always afraid that gray will sneak into my breeding program so I guess I am a little paranoid of that. Now that their is a test for it, I shouldn't worry so much.

i also spent years reading the appaloosa project and checking all appaloosa web sites I could find to study the pedigres and see what was being produced. Not many clearcut answers, but I have seen some strong probabilities. It has not been that many years ago that people even knew what a homozygous appy looked like.

 

[Genie]

May I sabotage this thread to get an opinion on this colt?

sire looks like a leopard appie now but he was a grey blanket at birth.

dam is a black and white pinto.

I was told "pintaloosa" but wondered about the few cap description.

 

[shelia]

The colt does not look pintoloosa. He looks to have a small blanket. He has some large spots. he also looks like he may have some lacing on his back. he doesn't seem to have started the varnish roaning yet.

To be what people call fewcap, he would need to have both appy parents and and have white on about 75% of his body. The homozygous appys may have only a few very small spots. they do not have large spots. and they only one or two around the hip area.

 

[palsminihorses]

I truly believe that the appy colt Pam and Larry of PALS miniatures bought off of me is a fewcap. His sire is Iles Apache Appy Ace (a fewspot) and is dam I believe to be also a fewspot (she was all white with the mottling/sclera but did not have the roany areas like a varnish).. They've had some outstanding spotted babies by him this year

Thanks Cristina! I was reading this thread and was thinking that Smokey is, indeed a fewcap!!

 

 

Pam

 

[palsminihorses]

Lucky C-i love the foals they have gotten from your Ace son! He has done a great job.

Thank you for the nice compliment!

 

Pam

 

 

 

 

 

[HGFarm]

She is a snowcap, with roaning- which seems common in the Minis. You can tell the pattern at birth, or when they are young- depends on how much white is there. It's been my understanding that a fewcap has more white pattern than a snowcap, but not enough white (pretty much totally) for a fewspot. Still homozygous though!