by Scottish9 » Sun Dec 03, 2017 9:00 am
Guess we're on our own again, Anh
Yep, still no requests. Bummer.
Anyways, today's deal is a guide! To what, you may ask? Horses!
After dogs and cats, horses might be the most popular species for an OC. And why not? They're gorgeous and iconic,
and more than a few of you have probably ridden one (or maybe even own one!)
So let's get to it!
1. Breed
There are so many horse breeds out there, from the minuscule Falabella to the towering Shire, from the dainty Arab to the versatile Quarter Horse. It can be very hard to choose just one (or a specific mix)!
But it would be to your benefit to choose what breed/mix your horse is from the start. This not only gives you an appropriate build, but it helps you choose accepted colors/markings. For example, Friesians mainly come in black, or rarely chestnut, and a small star is the only white mark.
2. Build
Once you've chosen a breed, choose a build that is accepted for the breed. If it's a mix, choose a mid-way build.
3. Colors
The most common colors will be black or some variant of chestnut or bay. Black is black all over, chestnut is a kind of red-brown all over, and bay is a darker red-brown with black lower legs, muzzle, mane, and tail. Gray genes make these colors gradually fade to white
The cream gene (which gives cremello, palomino, and the likes) the dun gene (which gives dun, buckskin, and the like) and the silver gene are all very rare. Don't really go here.
Horse genes are a huge mess, with dilutions, extensions, amber/pearl genes, and more. Feel free to do your own research!
4. Markings
Ahh, here we go. Markings!
Body markings:
White: If white is over the eyes, the eyes are blue
Tobiano is a common paint marking that flows from the top down.
Sabino is another paint mark that goes from the bottom up. Often less clear-cut than Tobiano
Overo is often called Frame Overo because the white is 'framed' by the base color.
Rabicano is whitish roan on the underbelly
Splash white is a touchy beast and can look like anything. Often produces mostly-white or medicine-cap horses. Often on legs and face
Appaloosa is also touchy. They can be blanket or snowcap (white centered around hips, can just be solid white or spotted) or just generally white-spotted. Not to be confused with birdcatcher
Birdcatcher is a few random white spots
Colored markings:
Leopard appaloosa has dark spots on a white base
Bend-Or has dark spots on a dark base. Softer than appaloosa
Brindle is very rare, and is faint striping of a lighter version of the base
Primitive markings show up in dun horses, and include eel/dorsal stripes, darker muzzle, and striping on upper legs
Piebald is essentially reverse splash white
Hoof/leg markings - these make the hooves paler than normal
Stockings are high white marks that go to about the knee/hock, sometimes higher or lower
Socks are white marks that go higher than the fetlock, but sometimes just to it.
Pastern is a mark that stops below the fetlock
Coronet goes just barely above the hoof (a thin white band)
Face markings - these can be altered by paint markings
Blaze is a wide white stripe on the face
Stripe is essentially a narrower blaze
Bald face is a wide blaze that goes to or past the eyes, making blue eyes.
Star is a white mark around between the eyes
Snip is a star between the nostrils
These can be connected, broken, skewed, or crooked
So, I am no longer really playing. I am sticking around to collect pets which I will exchange for art. Please only contact me about art or if you need some advice or a listening ear.