We have really enjoyed sharing information about breeding, raising, training and racing thoroughbred horses through our How to Build a Racehorse blog series so far. As this series continues we will visit more complex subjects, but today we are covering the basic external anatomy of a horse.
The horse in the diagram is standing in the standard conformational pose; showing the left side of the horse with the front left leg placed in front of the right and rear left leg placed behind the right. Whether you are learning this for the first time or are brushing up on previous knowledge, familiarizing yourself with this terminology will be useful beyond the blog!
The colors of Thoroughbreds are various and used in race programs, sales catalogs, and horse profiles on websites like Equibase. Getting to know these terms will be helpful in identifying and describing a horse.
From the Jockey Club Registry:
Horse Colors
Bay: The entire coat of the horse may vary from a yellow-tan to a bright auburn. The mane, tail, and lower portion of the legs are always black unless white markings are present.
Black: The entire coat of the horse is black, including the muzzle, the flanks, the mane, tail, and legs.
Chestnut: The entire coat of the horse may vary from a red-yellow to a golden-yellow. The mane, tail, and legs are usually variations of coat color unless white markings are present.
Dark Bay/Brown: The entire coat of the horse will vary from a brown, with areas of tan on the shoulders, head, and flanks, to a dark brown, with tan areas seen only in the flanks and/or muzzle. The mane, tail, and lower portion of the legs are always black unless white markings are present.
Gray/Roan: In order to reduce the number of corrections involving the colors gray and roan, The Jockey Club has combined these colors into one color category. This does not change the individual definitions of the colors for gray and roan and in no way impacts on the two-coat inheritance principle.
- Gray: The majority of the coat of the horse is a mixture of black and white hairs. The mane, tail, and legs may be either black or gray, unless white markings are present.
- Roan: The majority of the coat of the horse is a mixture of red and white hairs or brown and white hairs. The mane, tail, and legs may be black, chestnut or roan, unless white markings are present.
Two less common thoroughbred horse colors that are still recognized by The Jockey Club include:
Palomino: The entire coat of the horse is a golden-yellow, unless white markings are present. The mane and tail are usually flaxen.
White: The entire coat, including the mane, tail, and legs, is predominately white.