Silver Meadow Gypsies, DNA

We have decided here at Silver Meadow Gypsies to provide DNA results on all our horses. We pride ourselves in being completely up front and honest about our horses and the foals we breed and sell. We strive to breed Top Quality Gypsies, with Good Conformation, Sweet Dispositions and Loving Temperaments.

Some information I would like to provide is how the PSSM1 mutation effects the Gypsy breed. There has been a lot of talk about PSSM1 with in the Gypsy breed lately. There is little known about how it effects the Gypsy breed, so research is on going thanks to Desert Jewels. As of Febuary 2015 this is what they have found out.

"TODAY (2/8/2015) out of 154 Gypsy Horses we have tested, 60% are negative for the GSY1 gene mutation and 40% are positive. 0 (zero) horses out of 37 examined have clinical signs significant to PSSM1. 0 (zero) horses out of 7 medically challenged have failed challenge. We will continue to update our statistics as information is presented."

- Desert Jewels Gypsy Horses

What reseach has been done by Geneticists has been done on Quarter Horses, Paints, Appoloosas and other related breeds. What we has seen is that PSSM effects the draft breeds differently than the lighter breeds. The only cases where we have seen documented problems with PSSM with a gyspy is when the horse is Homozygous for the PSSM1 mutation (P1/P1). So far there have been no cases documented where a heterozygous (n/P1) horse is effected by the PSSM1 mutation.

So all our horses are going to be tested for PSSM1 and many other disorders. In our breeding program we personally would like to see PSSM bred out of this wonderful breed without losing any of the wonderful and legendery bloodlines. In order to do this, all colts that are born here with the PSSM1 mutation will be gelded. We won't be breeding positive to positive, or breeding any mare or stallion that is Homozygous (P1/P1) for the PSSM1 mutation. This is just our way of doing things, as is letting it be known up front who is negative or positive. We want to be open and honest to all buyers or potential buyers as well as to anyone who wishes to breed to our stallion. While we are making our horses publicly known others are not, for that reason we will not be disclosing any information on any other horse, as we do feel it is up to the owners to disclose that inforation on their own.

All our horse are geneticly tested by Animal Genetics. This link has been provided to you so you can look up and learn more about each genetic marker.

Every horse has a base color, which can be black, bay, or red. This is controlled by the Extension (Red/Black Factor) and Agouti genes. The Extension gene controls the production of black or red pigment throughout the coat. The allele for black color (E) is dominant over the red allele (e), so a horse only needs one copy of the black allele to appear black-based.

The Agouti gene can then modify black pigment by pushing it the the points of the horse, creating a bay. The Agouti gene is dominant, so a black pigmented horse only needs one copy of the Agouti gene (A) to appear bay. Agouti does not have any effect on red pigment.

There may be some variation in the intensity of the base colors, for example, dark bays compared to light bays or liver chestnuts to sorrels. This could be caused by a variation in the expression of the genes or interaction of other genetic factors.

Homozygous means that the horse will pass on that gene 100% of the time.
Heterozygous means that the horse has a 50% chance of passing on the gene.

For example:

Black/Red
E/E - The horse tested homozygous for black pigment. It cannot have red foals regardless of the color of the mate.

E/e - The horse tested heterozygous for the red factor. It can transmit either E or e to its offspring. The basic color of the horse will be black

e/e - The horse tested homozygous for red pigment. The basic color is chestnut or sorrel, and all offspring will get

Agouti (bay)
A/A - The horse tested homozygous for Agouti (bay), The horse cannot have black foals regardless of the color of the mate.

A/a - The horse tested heterozygous for Agouti (bay,) The offspring have a 50% change of getting the Agouti gene

a/a - The horse is negitave for the Agouti (bay), no offspring from this horse will be bay.

Dilutions
The rest of the color genes act as modifiers on the base coat of the horse. There are several genes that dilute the color of the horse, including Cream, Pearl, Champagne, Silver, and Dun. While these genes all function to dilute pigment, they are not all expressed in the same manner. The Dun and Champagne genes are dominant, as is Silver, although Silver does not affected red pigment. The Cream gene is incompletely dominant, meaning you will see different effects with the number of Cream genes present, and the Pearl Gene is recessive. The Cream and Pearl genes do have additive effects, so color testing can be an important tool to determine the correct color of a horse and what it may be able to pass on. The Grey gene causes a horse to 'grey out' over time, and is dominant, although homozygous horses tend to grey out faster. It is thought that there are other color modifiers, such as Flaxen or Sooty, but the genetic basis to these colors have not yet been determined.

Cream
CR/CR - The horse is tested homozygous for the cream gene, all offspring will inherit 1 copy of the cream gene

n/CR - The horse tested heterozygous for the cream gene, only 50% of offspring will inherit a copy of this gene.

n/n - The horse was tested negitave for the cream gene, No offspring will carry this gene
This is a Incomplete Dominant gene.

Silver
Z/Z - The horse is tested homozygous for Silver, all offspring will inherit 1 copy of the cream gene

n/Z - The horse tested heterozygous for Silver, only 50% of offspring will inherit a copy of this gene.

n/n - The horse was tested negitave for Silver, No offspring will carry this gene
This is a Dominant gene, however has No effect on red pigment.

Dun
D/D - The horse is tested homozygous for Dun, all offspring will carry the dun gene

D/d - The horse tested heterozygous for Dun, Only 50% of offspring will inherit this gene

d/d - The horse tested negative for Dun, No offspring will inherit this gene
This is a Dominant gene, and will be seen on any color.

This is a quick run through of just of the fun color you see in horses. Patterns are about the same. Homozygous all foals will get that gene, Heterozygou only 50% of the foals will get it, if negative then no foal will get get it. Feel free to email me at info@silvermeadowgypsies.com if you have any questions about DNA or you can go to Animal Genetics (Link listed above) to learn more.

Thanks for Visiting and I hope this has help you learn a little about Color Genetics.