:lol:
My favorite color is red, I’m an eventer, and so (of course) to replace my bay TB - who had to be euthanized at age 10 for neuro issues - I wound up with a chestnut WB/TB mare who “clashed” with red. sigh (Luckily for me I was NEVER tempted by pink or purple, yuk!)
I had a OTTB chestnut mare when I was much younger, but that was during my break from eventing - I did hunters with her and didn’t notice much of a bias, but only did smaller shows. I LOVE chestnuts, think they’re beautiful and don’t understand the bias against the color. That said, both of my redheaded mares have been very sensitive critters and have had very fine summer coats; they would be partially bare when shed out! And tiny little tufts where their forelocks should be! Neither mare was “easy” because of that sensitivity (though in spite of their color and their chrome, they didn’t suffer from skin issues.)
My other favorite horse color is black.
My second pony was a true black, and quite a pistol - but he was that wonderful non-fading non-bleaching black, and looked dark and shiny all year long.
I had always planned to breed my above-mentioned chestnut mare after her eventing career wound down, so in 2011 (after doing my stallion research), I bred her to the Hanoverian jumper sire Escudo 2; black, but not homozygous. I was not so secretly hoping for a black foal, but my chances for black were 25%: 50% chance of chestnut (fine by me other than the issue with my love for red accessories), 25% chance of bay.
I got the black filly I wanted, and I adore her. In the summer (before she UGH!! bleaches) she is spectacular. There is just something about a beautiful black horse (she has a lovely head and neck and a presence about her); they are stunning.
She has two small hind ankle socks and alas - no face markings - and when it’s overcast she does NOT show up well in photos and videos - but when the sun comes out…:love-struck: I love looking through her black ears - the same shape as her dam’s ears (though that’s one of the few things she inherited from mom), and every day I look at her and fall in love again.
I have read many sale ads (and stallion ads) that trumpet “dark coat” as though that’s a desirable thing, so I think it’s definitely a trend in dressage; my own observations have been that there are more black (and chestnut) among Hanoverians.
Unfortunately, my girl is a bleaching black despite being on night turnout year round. Oh well.
And because a true black horse is a relatively uncommon color (according to color experts, true black is “unusual, but not rare”), dressage scribes are reluctant to “credit” the color to my mare. When I get my test sheets back they say “dark bay” more often than not, or “dark bay or black”. I think there has only been ONE test sheet where “black” was listed as her color - though this may be due to her bleaching tendencies.
But! I can now finally use my beloved red!, and splurged on a red body protector and red saddle pad (and red tape for her white boots) and she looks wonderful with the color, so am I finally able to indulge my whimsical side at the ripe old age of 62.
