Horse Coat Colors:

Black: The horse's mane, tail, and body or black.

Chestnut: The horse's body is red, and the mane and tail may be red, or flaxen, or almost black. Very light chestnuts may be called "flaxen chestnut", and very dark ones may be called "liver chestnut".

See pictures of chestnuts here!

Bay: A bay horse has a brown or reddish brown body, and black mane and tail and legs:

See pictures of bay horses here!

Seal Brown:
Seal brown horses have a brown or black body and a lighter tan area in the muzzle and flank:

Palomino:
The body is a yellow, cream, or golden color, and the mane and tail are a light cream or white color. Some palominos are very dark chocolate color, called chocolate palomino.

Buckskin: The body is a tan or golden color, with a black mane, tail, and legs.

Cremello & Perlino:
The body is a cream color, the skin is pink, and the eyes are blue! Cremellos are almost white, while Perlinos have slighly darker legs, mane, and tails.

Champagne
Champagne is a rare color that makes horses have lighter eyes and skin... and their coats often have a metallic glow! The champagne gene has a different affect on different colors. Baby champagnes often have light eyes that change different colors, from blue to green to light brown!

Dun:
The dun gene makes a horse's body color lighter and adds a dorsal stripe down the back, and often striping on the legs too. A chestnut with dun is a "red dun", a black horse with dun is a "grulla", and bay with dun is often just called "dun".
A palomino with dun coloring is called a dunalino! Dun makes the body color lighter and often duns have a darker face and legs and ear tips. Some have a lighter "frosting" in the mane, where the outer layers of mane are lighter and the inner layers are darker.

Silver Dapple
Silver dapple horses are often a chocolate body color with a flaxen mane and tail. They can also have a red body, chocolate legs, and light mane/tail.

White Patterns:

Roan:
Roan is a pattern of white hair on the horse's body. It can happen on any color, from black to buckskin to pinto. It can make a horse look almost pink or blue-- which is why some horses are called "strawberry roan" or "blue roan"!

Gray
Gray horses are born another color then turn gray. Some gray horses are so light that they appear completely white! Many gray horses are dappled.

Pinto:
There are four different pinto genes in the horse that make white patches on the body: Tobiano, Overo, Sabino, & Splashed White.

• Tobiano - Large, smooth blotches that often cross over spine.
  
• Overo - Jagged edges that stay in the middle of the horse. Many overos have a blue eye or two!
  
• Sabino - Often has tall white socks and white on the face and chin, and white on the belly or sides. If the pinto coloration covers the whole body, the horse is pure-white.
  
• Splashed White - White starts at feet and muzzle and goes up, making the horse look like it was dipped in white paint.
  

Spotted:
Some breeds, such as the Appaloosa (known for its spots) and Knabstrupper, come in spotted patterns! They may have "blankets"-- a white rump with or without spots; or be "varnish roan", meaning they have a roan-like coloration that isn't related to regular roan. They can also be pure white with spots-- also known as "leopard".

Horse Face Markings:

Star A spot of white on the forehead.	Blaze A stripe that goes from the forehead down the faced.	Strip A narrow strip of white that is on the bridge of the nose.
Bald Face A fat blaze that extends over to the eyes; if it covers the eyes, they may be blue.	Snip A white patch or stripe on the upper lip.	Lip Marking
Elongated star and snip; star and large snip.	Disconnected star, strip, and snip.	Blaze with spot

Leg Markings:

Coronet The white is just above the hoof, around the coronet band of the horse.	Pastern The white extends to the fetlock joint.	Partial Pastern The white doesn't go all around the leg.
Sock The white goes above the fetlock.	Stocking The white goes near or up to the knee or hock.	Ermine Spots Dark spots on a white marking.

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