Zebra dun or red dun?

[duvers]

This is Ibiza, my Sulpur mare (not trying to hijack the Kiger board...there's just a lot more of you yhan Sulphur folks, so your board is more lively). Lots of discussion in the "dun or bay?" thread, so I thought I'd throw this into the mix. I'd really love your opinions.

Ibiza *definitely* has dun factor, so my question is whether it's acting on a bay base color (zebra dun) or chestnut base color (red dun). She's clearly not the typical coloration of either. I've also seen discussion of "sooty," but I really don't know what that means.

Anyway, as you can see, her coat color is pretty red (making me think she's a really dark red dun), but her mane, tail & tips generally look black. In some lighting (especially as the sun sets, her mane & tail look mahoganey colored).

Happy to hear your opinions!

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[gotkiger]

her legs appear black so she would be zebra. With Red dun the legs are darker red then the coat as well as the stripe down the back. Zebra dun changes a bay coat so the legs points and dorsal will be black or dark brown. you can have her tested through UC Davis and they will tell you if she is red or bay and then you will know for sure. Hope this helps

[kimk]

Zebra dun, and by the way, she is gorgeous!

[Michelle Clarke]

Nice looking mare...zebra dun. I've had enough red duns around here - lord knows!

[sbutter]

Nice looking mare! I would have to say 100% zebra dun.

[grullagirl]

I totally agree with zebra dun.

[DianneC]

Guess I didn't hit the right button to send my post. Anyone else hitting enter like on FB? The picture here does look zebra dun but she's in the shadow. Your description of her mane and tail being mahogany makes me wonder if we shouldn't see a picture in the light. Are her legs black or dark brown?

[duvers]

Here's a photo (excuse the quality...taken with phone) of her when the sun is setting. Lights her up & makes me think red dun. Her barring still doesn't look red in this light, though, but the light can't shine through it like it does with her mane or tail.

Also, Rowland Cheney, who some of you might know, saw her & thought red dun.

This is why I sometimes think she's red dun.

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[duvers]

This is a photo of her in full, midday sun. In this light, her mane, tail, & points look black even though she's not in shadow. Here she looks more like a zebra dun. Most folks seem to categorize her as a zebra dun when they see her or photos of her.

I've run her coat combos through one of those dun coat color calculators & she come up nearly 50% probability of being zebra dun & about 10% probability of being red dun. Mom was grulla, dad was zebra dun, paternal grandpa zebra dun, and paternal grandma about the same color as her. Other lineage wild/unknown.

These factors make me think she's a zebra dun.

I also think she might be sooty b/c she's darker than either zebra or red dun & has some light dappling.

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[DianneC]

Nice! Rowland's pretty savy, but she looks zebra dun in this last picture. To know for sure you could pull some hair with roots and send it to UC Davis for a red test. I think its $50 for the test. Dappling is usually from good health, but she does look sooty I agree.

[duvers]

Dappling from good health? That's good to hear. We really try to keep the horses in great condition. One of the links explaining sooty associated dappling with the sooty gene.

Regarding the color test through UCD, I've thought about it but don't really think it makes much difference to me in the big scheme of things. Honestly, I'm kind of amused by how her color changes in different lighting. I'll probably just leave it at being amazed by my little chameleon. Knowing for sure might take some of the fun out of it. :-)

I'm interested in thoughts & opinions about it, though.

[Michelle Clarke]

Seeing the black line down her back is a give away that she is a zebra dun; also looks to have the sooty gene.