Mouse suit. What a thoroughbred mouse horse looks like. Mouse color of horses: features, description

One of the rare shades of horse skin is mouse color. This color is found in less than 1% of all horses in the world. Rarity makes wearers of this shade attractive and intriguing. Let's figure out what the peculiarity of the color is, why it exists, and what breeds it occurs in.

Specifics of color

Before analyzing the features of a particular suit, you need to decide on the exact formulation of the concept itself. In horse breeding, color is understood as a specific combination of skin color, body hair, mane and tail.

It is a key distinguishing feature of horses, which is why such close attention is paid to the accuracy of its definition. In British equestrian terminology, the specificity of color is indicated by the word color (American color).

The suit is tied to genetic characteristics. For this reason, to maintain the purity of the breed, attention is paid to the specific distribution and combination of colors.

Within the same color, horses may have certain differences in details (light or dark shades, shine, lightening of different parts of the body), for the accuracy of such characteristics the term coloring was introduced.

The mousey horse looks impressive and beautiful: the ash-gray shade of the skin of the body, shining silver in the sun, contrasts unusually with the black mane and tail. Several strands of his mane turn white with frost.

On the legs, the gray color gives way to a darker shade on the joints and a black brush at the hooves. A small “star” on the forehead contrasts with the darkening around the eyes and nose. Such a horse will invariably attract astonished attention.

Classification

There is no uniform classification of horse shades. Various experts put forward schemes that have their own specifics. Regardless of differences of opinion regarding classification, there are 2-4 main suits and up to 10 derivatives. The main color and most derivatives have several colors.

A special place is occupied by “wild”, “zone” suits - the ancestors of modern shades. These specific color combinations are characterized by the presence of markings:

• “belt” - a black-brown stripe along the ridge with clear outlines of the boundaries;
• “zebra” - transverse stripes on the legs, stripes, occasionally with mace and nightingale;
• “wings” - a dark, fuzzy transverse stripe on the shoulders;
• “frost” - whitish strands in the mane and tail;
• ear edging.

The mouse color of a horse belongs to the group of “wild” horse color combinations. She is the progenitor of the gray.

Mouseness is the Russian designation for a combination of shades. It can be assumed that the name comes from the word mouse. In the British classification of suits, this combination is designated as blue.

Designs, varieties and alternative designations of the mouse suit depend on the location on the body.

1. Blue, blue - designation of mouse color in British terminology.
2. Grulla, gruya (male), grullo (female) is the American name for mouseiness. The word is of Spanish origin.
3. Mousey with an olive tint, olive grullo, dove grullo, lodo grullo.
4. Chagravaya is a popular name.
5. Winged - mousey with dark mantle.
6. Dark-mushy brush, black dun - in the English classification.
7. Dark gray with a blue tint, blue silver.

What exactly is the color of a mousey stallion? The colors and combinations of the mousey horse are determined based on the specific combination of shades.

The mouse horse has the following distinctive features:

• wool - gray, ash-smoky color;
• sometimes the coat color has a brownish tint;
• mane, tail and legs are black;
• the body has an uneven color;
• the presence of a “belt” and “zebra” is allowed;
• “frost” - black and white strands along the edges of the black mane and tail.

In English-language descriptions, the mousey color of a horse’s skin is understood to mean shades of “mouse” gray, silver, and sometimes brown-gray. The base color is black, but modified by the “wild” dun gene.

Differences from pure gray suit

Unlike the gray color, which is determined by another gene, the musciness in question appears in horses from birth and does not change as they grow up. This happens due to the gray color of all hairs in mouse species.

Gray horses have two colors of hair on their skin - black and white. The combination gives a gray color. The different ratio of black and white hairs determines the specific shade, as well as changes in color during life. In a bearer of mouseness, slight changes in shades can only occur when the season changes.

There are cases when a foal combines two color genes - dun and “gray”. In this case, at birth the individual will have a “mouse” color with a yellow-brown tint. As they mature, the color will lighten and become white in adulthood.

Breeds

For many breeds, color plays an important breeding role. Some groups of horses have a single color; a number of breeds have a very rich set of specific combinations. Heterogeneity is typical for native breeds.

The mouse color is present in the following breeds:

• Arabian purebred;
• Icelandic. In this breed, the mouseiness is designated by the term gray dun - gray;
• mountain pony (highland). It is called mouse dun - “mouse”;
• Norwegian fjord. The color in question is designated gra or grablakk, which means gray in Norwegian;
• Mongolian;
• Polish Konik;
• Hutsul or Hutsul;
• Heck's horse.

Horses of mouse color are rare. Every year, only 0.7% of foals are registered with this color.

In individual breeds, the frequency of occurrence of mouseiness can vary up or down.

A number of scientists are inclined to the theory that the dun gene was received by modern individuals from the tarpan, an extinct ancestor of the horse. This animal, which existed in the wild until the 19th century, was predominantly grayish-brown in color.

They have long fascinated us with their grace and majesty: black, dapple... All these horse colors have “wild” ancestors. The mouse color of the horse is no exception.

A little history and legends

Let's figure out what color the mouse horse is. A horse of this color has an ash-colored coat with a brown tint and is the ancestor of the gray.

The “wildness” of the coloring is indicated by a darkened ridge and faintly outlined transverse stripes, as well as black legs and tail. Zoologists believe that mouse horses originated from forest and steppe tarpans.

Previously, these were popular among representatives of high society, because they were rare and had indescribable beauty: they were called “blue”; in the sun, the wool acquired a blue tint.

It is not without reason that, in order to show Cinderella in the best light at the ball, the fairy godmother harnessed just such horses to her carriage.

Varieties of suit

The mousey horse is a substitute, since there are only four main colors - red, bay, black and gray. Horsemen, explaining what color such a horse has, indicate that it is a savras color based on black. The shades of this undercoat come in three varieties:

Important! The fur color of a mouse horse does not change shade depending on age. There is only a slight change in color depending on the time of year.

Other distinctive features

Unlike the gray color of horses, where there is a mixture of white and black hair, the hair of a mouse horse is precisely gray. Also, only this horse has a dark belt along the ridge, which indicates the wild origin of the animal.

Although the color has a slight contrast on certain parts of the horse’s body, it still belongs to the same color suit.

Mouse horses in modern times

Today it is difficult to find a mousey horse of a truly “wild” color. The thing is that this color of horses is determined by the “wild gene”: previously, a horse of this color, no matter what age it was, did not change color, nor was it affected by weather conditions, but in modern times such a color is only an excuse that can have a horse of any breed.

And this can be easily explained, because such a suit cannot leave anyone indifferent.

19.07.2016

The first thing that makes mousey individuals stand out from a herd of horses is their unique and completely atypical color. Truly, such animals look fabulous; in many fairy tales, stories and novels, horses with silver-colored fur were praised and described. For example, in the fairy tale about Cinderella by Charles Perrault, it was silver horses that were described. And to this day no one will argue that mouse horses are unique mysteries of nature. But few people know that in addition to their mesmerizing color, such horses have many skills, abilities, talents and characteristics.

History and legends of the suit

The mouse color of horses is found, as a rule, in those individuals who are direct or indirect descendants of aboriginal breeds. Its main characteristic is that the hair has a pure ash-ash tint, in turn, the limbs of such individuals have a dark tone of this color, like the tail and mane. The main thing that all experienced horsemen know is that the color of the coat does not in any way affect the activity and performance indicators of horses. There are only some subtle patterns, for example, horses with a gray color do not like buckwheat straw, to which they often develop a rash and other signs similar to allergies.

Today, mousehorses can be seen among many horse breeds, but, as a rule, such individuals must possess the “wild gene” that the Tarpan horses possessed. In addition, the color was artificially bred with the participation of the Polish horseman. If horses do not have such a gene from wild ancestors, then the mouse color is more reminiscent of a black color, without any signs of “wildness”. And, despite the fact that any shades die over time and lose their original color, mousey horses can only slightly change the shade of mouseiness. In winter, an individual may have silver-colored fur with a tint of blue; by summer, a barely noticeable yellow will predominate in the color.

It is difficult to study the history of the origin of horses of the mouse color, but one thing can be said for sure - the ancestors of such horses were individuals from the Tarpan breed. Modern factory horses rarely have such a unique color; rather, it can be found in local breeds, Napmongolian horses.

What color is a mouse horse?

The first thing that distinguishes a mouse horse is its gray hair, as well as the black tint of its mane and tail. If you look carefully, the head of the individual has a dark shade, compared to the color of the body. Less common are animals of this color with a completely black head. A horse of a mouse color has the same dark shade and limbs; it is either a black tint or a natural black color. A characteristic feature of such a horse is a black stripe along the ridge, which is called a belt. Very rarely, mouse horses have zebroid pigment on their legs.

Shades of mousey horses:

1. Dark- a black tint is visible on the tail and mane, as well as on the limbs of the individual and along the ridge line, the rest of the body has a light gray tone.
2. Light- horses have a light gray body, sometimes this tone even gives off a dull white color, and the head has a completely or partially dark color. Moreover, the tail and mane of such individuals can be radically different, either black or completely white, and the belt along the ridge will be of a dark gray tone.
3. Mukhorty- the rarest color of individuals in which certain markings stand out in the area of ​​​​the eyes, mouth, less often in the groin area, on the horse’s hips, as a rule, with a slightly yellowish or even reddish tint.

With their variety of colors, mousey horses leave no one indifferent to the spectators or those around them.

Distinctive features of the suit

If any gray horse creates its color by mixing white and black hairs on the body, then mousey horses can boast of single-colored ash or golden hairs. And regardless of age, such horses do not change their color and shade, demonstrating amazing color stability. In addition, such horses are classified as one-color horses, but you can notice that their heads are most often several tones darker in color, as are the limbs, tail and mane of the animals.

A special feature that sets mouse horses apart from other colors is a unique black belt that runs along the entire ridge line of the animal. This difference between animals reminds humanity of the wild origin of mousey horses, whose ancestors were the most ancient breeds of tarpans. It is also interesting that in purebred pedigrees and among half-breeds there is no mouse breed.

Modern mouse horses

If earlier the true mousey colors of horses came from the wild ancestors of the tarpans, who had approximately the same chromosome set, today's mousey individuals have different characteristics. The “wild” gene of the previous mousey horses made their color stable and unchanged, no matter how old the horse was and no matter what weather changes and living conditions affected it, its color always remained stable.

Modern factory mouse horses can change their color according to the time of year, much less often due to age. First, a stallion is born with the same suit and color; during the onset of puberty, he will change the texture of his hairs, but the ash color will forever remain stable. According to historians and horse experts, if there were no wild horses in the world, the world would never have been able to enjoy the fairy-tale mousey horses.

The main distinguishing feature of the mouse color of horses is their unique color, which cannot be attributed to the very usual colors of horses. The mousey horse truly looks fabulous. In many literary works, silver horses were praised, for example, in the fairy tale “Cinderella”.

At present, too, few would argue that the mouse color is a very unusual color for horses. However, besides its amazing color, horses of this color are distinguished by many skills, skills and talents.

A little history

The mouse color of horses is found, as a rule, in those horses that are direct or indirect descendants of aboriginal horse breeds. A distinctive feature of this suit is the hair of a pure ash color. Representatives of this species have darker, ash-colored fur on their legs, mane, and tail. Despite this, experts say that the color of the coat does not affect the level of activity and working capacity of animals. However, there are a few notable patterns, e.g. mousey horses They do not like to eat buckwheat straw, since animals often have an allergic reaction to it in the form of a rash and other signs of allergy.

Currently mouse color of horses can often be found among horses of a wide variety of breeds, however, they must have the “wild gene” that was present in the Tarpans. It is also worth noting that the mouse color was bred artificially by Polish horsemen. If the horse does not have such a gene, then the color can most likely be classified as black without any “wild” characteristics.

As a rule, any color loses its original hair color over time, so mousey horses can slightly change their shade. IN winter time Mouse horses have a silvery coat color with a blue tint, but in summer the shade can change to yellowish.

The story has not been fully explored the appearance of mouse color, but we can say with confidence that the ancestors of this species were individuals of the Tarpan breed. Breeding horses now rarely have this coat color. Most often they can be found among the local breeds of Napmongolian horses.

Gallery: mousey horse (25 photos)

Mouse horse: basic shades

As mentioned earlier, the main distinguishing feature of the mouse color is the predominance of gray color, as well as a black tint on the mane, tail and limbs. If you look closely, you will notice that the horses' heads also have a darker color compared to the rest of the body. There is also a distinctive feature - a black stripe along the entire ridge, which is called a belt. Less commonly, you can find individuals of a mouse color with zebroid pigment.

Basic shades of mousey horses:

• Dark shade. Black color is present on the horse's tail and mane, on the limbs and on the ridge. On the remaining parts of the body, a light gray color predominates.
• Light shade. The animals have a light gray body. Sometimes this color can even give off a dull white color. The horses' heads are completely or partially dark in color. The tail and mane can be either black or white. The belt on the ridge is most often dark gray in color.
• Mukhort shade. This color is one of the rarest. Animals with it have marks near the eyes, mouth, and on the hips of a yellow or red hue.

Other distinctive features of an unusual suit

As you know, gray color is obtained by mixing white and black hairs, but this is not true at all to mouse representatives. They boast a single-colored ash or golden coat. The color of the animal will not change depending on its age, demonstrating its amazing feature of stability. In addition, such horses are usually classified as monochromatic, but the head of the animals is still slightly darker than the limbs, mane and tail.

Mouse horses are amazingly colored animals that cannot help but attract attention with their interesting exterior. This color does not in any way affect the physical performance and character of the horses, but makes them recognizable. Many breeders value breeds where individuals with exactly this color are found.

History of the appearance of the suit

It is believed that the mouse color of horses originated from ancient times. They became the ancestors native breeds, which gave rise to such coloring of animals. Mouse horses have a predominant ash-ash color to their hair. Typically, such individuals are characterized by dark limbs, a tail and a mane of dark shades.

It is difficult to accurately determine the time of appearance and the area of ​​​​origin of mouse horses, but one thing is known - the ancestors of horses with this color are Tarpana horses, which were once exterminated by people.

Historians and experienced breeders are convinced that if wild horses of the Tarpan breed had not once existed, then mouse horses would never have existed.

Description and characteristics

Mouse-colored animals are often called blue horses. More precisely, individuals are dominated by an ashen, more smoky hue. When the sun's rays hit the horse's hair, it shimmers blue. In the light, these noble animals look simply delightful and at the same time mysterious.

Usually, horses with this color have a characteristic black “strap” running along their spine. Many individuals are distinguished by a dark head. Sometimes the “wild” ancestral gene manifests itself in horses, as evidenced by the zebroid coloring on the limbs.

The peculiarity of horses is that their suit remains unchanged even with age. The reason still lies in a “special” gene passed on from our ancestors. If horses lack this gene, their color is more reminiscent of black.

Usually, any underlays die over time, causing the original shade to be lost. But this does not threaten mouse horses. The only thing to expect is darkening or lightening of the shade. Especially in winter period The color of the horses becomes slightly silver with tints of blue. In summer, a slight yellowish tint may appear on the hairs of animals, which only adds more mystery and makes the color unique of its kind.

Unusual mouse horses have become rare in recent times. The reason for this is its wild origin, and in the modern world it is a kind of exotic. Today, the mousy color is found in several breeds of horses, each of which contains “wild genes”.

The influence of color on horse health

According to many breeders, color does not have any effect on the physical endurance and character traits of a horse. Color has nothing to do with the animal’s ability to work and activity. But some patterns are still observed. For example, gray horses are not happy with buckwheat straw, because it often causes them to suffer from rashes and other allergic reactions.

Varieties of suit

With the onset of puberty, the mouse horse changes only the texture of its hair, but the ashen shade remains the same. Based on characteristics such as color, several varieties of horses have been identified in nature.

Dark

Dark-haired horses have black limbs, mane, tail and “belt”. The remaining parts of the body have a characteristic dark gray color.

Light

These animals have a light gray body. Occasionally, this color may have a slightly cloudy white tint. Horses have a completely or partially dark head. The mane and tail can be either black or white. The “belt” on the ridge is dark gray.

Mukhortaya

Fly horses are rare. This breed is characterized by reddish shades of hair in the eye, mouth, groin and buttocks areas. The combination of red and gray makes the breed not only recognizable, but also attractive. Even with age, this color does not change, which cannot be said about dark and light mouse horses.

Mouse breeds

Horses with a mousey (gray) color have an unusual appearance, which is why they stand out from the herd. Usually, local Yakut and Mongolian breeds predominate in this color. It was they who predominated in mouse color. This shade is also characteristic of the artificially bred breed – the Polish Konik.

The color of the skin, hair and iris depends on hereditary trait. There are horses whose mouse color is combined with additional colors:

• Forel suit. Considered a rare color. It appears in stallions after the first molt. It is formed only after three years - inclusions of a red-brown hue are formed on the gray wool. Such marks can be scattered in individual areas or throughout the animal’s body.
• Apple color. This color is characterized by light spots located on the hairline of the body. Often the appearance of spots is evidence that the animal has a hereditary gene that contributes to the transmission of such a pattern to born stallions. Horses often have a white mane and tail. A similar color is inherent in horses of the Oryol breed.
• Silver-damn suit. The silvery tint in stallions does not appear immediately, which is why initially this tint is simply called dun. Individuals have black forelegs and tail. Often there are horses that have spots on the withers that resemble butterflies.
• Ermine suit. The horses have a lead-colored body, and a dark tail and mane.

Polish Konik

Descended from wild ancestors. Small horses. Characterized by strength and endurance. The breed was obtained by crossing common peasant horses and wild Tarpans. A distinctive characteristic of the breed is that the animals are externally similar to their wild ancestor. They have a mousy gray coloration, a dark mane and tail, and a “strap” along the ridge of a dark shade.