Silver
modifier
Genetics
Genotype options:
Silver only appears on black-based coats (genos starting with EE or Ee); horses with chestnut-based coats (ee) can carry silver but will not show it.
Appearance
Silver affects the mane and tail, lightening it anywhere from just slightly lighter to pure white.
Can be darker at the roots, or a solid color throughout.
Minimum requirement:
- Lighten mane and tail from its natural colour, must be visibly lighter than its natural colour. The natural hair colour is allowed to optionally be visible at the roots.
Minimum requirements can be reduced or completely removed by the [LINK] occlusion trait.
Allowed:
- Can be just slightly lighter.
- Can be as light as pure white.
- Can be a solid light colour throughout.
- Can have a subtle ombre effect where the hair tips are lighter than the roots.
Not allowed:
- Can not be darker than the natural hair colour
- Can not have lighter roots than hair tips.
Eye colour:
Doesn't affect eye colour.
Skin colour:
Doesn't affect skin colour.
Horn/hoof colour:
Doesn't affect horn or hoof colour.
Examples
Body silvering
Body silvering is an optional effect of Silver
The minimum requirements of Silver must still be met regardless if Body silvering is shown or not.
Body silvering is not listed in the phenotype, a Silver with Body silvering is still only written as Silver.
Appearance
Silver can optionally fully or partially lighten the body coat as well, generally affecting the black-pigment areas and lightening them into a soft brown or grey.
Eye colour:
Doesn't affect eye colour.
Skin colour:
Doesn't affect skin colour.
Horn/hoof colour:
Doesn't affect horn or hoof colour.
Examples
Merle
Merle is an optional effect of Silver
The minimum requirements of Silver must still be met regardless if Merle is shown or not.
Merle is not listed in the phenotype, a Silver with Merle is still only written as Silver.
Appearance
Merle is a variation of body-silvering effect filled with holes where the horse's base coat shows through. Body silvering from merle can optionally affect the entire body, or just the black points.
The mane and tail can take on a 'streaked' appearance where the merle's holes touch, otherwise they should remain a uniform silver (lighter or white). Any streak created by a merle patch must still look like a normal silver mane/tail color, and body-silvering streaks should simply lighten the hair closer to the roots so the mane and tail still transition into roughly the same light shade toward the tips.
Lighter streaks in the mane/tail on silver bays are allowed even if the merle isn't affecting the red-pigmented area, as seen on the bay example below.
Merle 'spots' should never darken the coat or cause darker streaking in the mane/tail, it's simply an absence of body-silvering, showing the coat underneath.
Eye colour:
Doesn't affect eye colour.
Skin colour:
Doesn't affect skin colour.
Horn/hoof colour:
Doesn't affect horn or hoof colour.
