Everything you wanted to know about about coloured horses and the terminology used.
Coloured Tobiano - Breeding and Genetics Information from Angrove Stud
Angrove Stud in Great Ayton, North Yorkshire, is set in beautiful park land in the North East of England. Leafy with enclosed woodland and meadows; secure stock fencing, and green pastures: Angrove Stud is the ideal setting to relax a mare ready for stud. Our facilities are safe and comprehensive. Our visiting mares receive the highest standard of attention and care.
Coloured Tobiano
In horse genetics, a Tobiano is a type of coloured horse. A coloured horse is given this type when there is a greater or equal amount of white on black or brown.
In horse genetics, Tobiano and Sabino are known as "dominant" genes, meaning they have two different allele - see our page on homozygous horses for more information.
A Tobiano coloured has clean-cut, rounded coloured markings, with white legs and white across the withers. A Tobiano head will typically be dark coloured and may have white facial markings. A Tobiano appears to have less black or brown than white, but in fact a 1/1 ratio is preferential – there should equal amounts of colour and white.
The Tobiano is by far the most prevalent type of coloured horse. Our coloured stallion Ricco is Tobiano. Our colt, Angrove Spotted Dick, is homozygous for Tobiano.
This is what the Wikipedia page on Tobiano states are general Tobiano traits:
- White legs from the hocks and knees down
- White crossing the back between the withers and the dock of the tail
- White is arranged in a vertical pattern
- Facial markings like that of a solid-coloured horse. i.e. star, snip, strip, or blaze
- White patches which are usually rounded or oval in shape, rather than jagged
- Dark colour extending down the neck, giving the appearance of a shield
Read more about the other coloured horse types: Overo and Sabino.