# What are my chances of breeding a liver chestnut?



## arwenplusone (5 January 2008)

From a bay mare and a liver chestnut stallion? I would have thought very slim or perhaps impossible to predict

As I understand the genetic make-up of a liver chestnut is the same as a 'nomal chestnut' with more pigment. 

Soooo.. the red gene is recessive e  - (only two chestnuts ee will always breed a chestnut ) but if I breed with a bay (E) then I think I have 25% chance of getting a chestnut? (Ee +ee)

 But how does this chestnut become 'liver' or dark and is this also genetic?  

Does anyone know?  Cannot seem to find anything on it in my old notes/books?  Thanks!


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## MillionDollar (5 January 2008)

I don't know about liver chestnut, but I think you have around a 33% chance of breeding a 'normal' chestnut.


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## MillionDollar (5 January 2008)

If you're using a chestnut stallion that is


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## Fahrenheit (5 January 2008)

Ask Ashbank


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## ashbank (5 January 2008)

Do you know if the bay stallion is Ee - or could he be EE?

Obviously if EE then you won't get a chestnut foal of any shade!  If he does carry the red factor (so is Ee) then you have a 50% chance of getting a chestnut foal from bay x chestnut.

I don't know what produces the shade, but my very dark liver chestnut mare (chocolate coloured) seemed to throw liver foals rather than orange ones - so I would hazard a guess that it's likely your liver mare will also pass the darkness on.


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## volatis (5 January 2008)

My liver chestnut mare threw a liver filly the only time she had a chestnut foal


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## vicijp (6 January 2008)

We stood a liver chestnut stallion, all of his progeny were LC.


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## magic104 (6 January 2008)

My LC mare went to a drk brown stallion &amp; produced a bay.


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## cobden99 (6 January 2008)

Sorry to hijack the post, but just to clarify - if I put a chestnut mare to a bay stallion the offspring will always be bay if the stallion is E, but has a 50% chance of being chestnut if the stallion is Ee ? 

If one of the stallions parents is chestnut does that guarantee he will be Ee ?

Thanks v much


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## ashbank (6 January 2008)

[ QUOTE ]
Sorry to hijack the post, but just to clarify - if I put a chestnut mare to a bay stallion the offspring will always be bay if the stallion is E, but has a 50% chance of being chestnut if the stallion is Ee ? 

If one of the stallions parents is chestnut does that guarantee he will be Ee ? 

[/ QUOTE ]


Spot on on both counts.  
	
	
		
		
	


	





Ah - no, I've gone mad.  There is a possibility of black too, of course!


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## cobden99 (6 January 2008)

_If one of the stallions parents is chestnut does that guarantee he will be Ee ? 

[/ QUOTE ]_ 
Thanks very much  
	
	
		
		
	


	




 I will leave the questions about white markings and splodges for another time before my head starts to hurt  
	
	
		
		
	


	




 (Cobden trots off to look-up stallions breeding ..)


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## arwenplusone (6 January 2008)

[ QUOTE ]
Do you know if the bay stallion is Ee - or could he be EE?

Obviously if EE then you won't get a chestnut foal of any shade!  If he does carry the red factor (so is Ee) then you have a 50% chance of getting a chestnut foal from bay x chestnut.

I don't know what produces the shade, but my very dark liver chestnut mare (chocolate coloured) seemed to throw liver foals rather than orange ones - so I would hazard a guess that it's likely your liver mare will also pass the darkness on. 

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks Ashbank - but it is the stallion who would be liver chestnut not the mare - she's the bay and I don't know if she is Ee or EE.   WOuld have to get her tested (if poss?) as if she is EE there is no point using a LC stally as you say as she won't breed a chestnut.


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## volatis (6 January 2008)

Get a testing kit from avion in cornwall, cant think of the website link off the top of my head but they will test her to see if she is Ee or EE. I need to get two testing kits off them to, you've just reminded me


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## ashbank (7 January 2008)

http://www.avitronics.co.uk/EquineEN.htm

It's not much for a test - under £20.


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## pocomoto (7 January 2008)

Until recently many thought that liver chestnut was the ultimate recessive i.e. aa ee but a recent Appaloosa base coat colour survey carried out by Lynn Harrison proved that one wrong. 

Personally I believe coat shades are very closely related and are on a separate locus to that of the A series and the E series so in combination it would determine which shade of brown/bay or chestnut the offspring would be.

Jeanette Gower is I believe doing some research into the inheritance of shades of chestnut right now, so watch this space.

Personal experience of a repeat mating of a dark liver Ch stallion with flaxen gene to a rich chestnut mare with darker mane and tail = Colt light chestnut with lighter but not flaxen mane and tail and Filly dark liver with ginger mane and tail. Unfortunately don't know the back ped of either parents so unable to say what each could have carried, wasn't bothered in those days just a bit peeved that they wern't going to be a matching pair for driving!!!!!!!


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