Equine Color Genetics (Hardcover)

by D. Phillip Sponenberg (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Blacksburg. Reference on horse and donkey coloring. For veterinarians, breeders, and researchers. Covers variations in colors, from the least to the most common. Donkeys discussed separately. Color plates.

From the Back Cover
Equine Color Genetics, Second Edition presents the most recent advances in color genetics to horse, donkey, and mule breeders, enabling breeders to tailor their breeding programs to maximize desired color outcomes and minimize undesired color outcomes. The book’s format bridges the gap between the scientific and lay communities without ignoring the intricate and complex issues involved in horse and donkey color genetics.

Equine Color Genetics

Provides an explanation of genetic mechanisms that determine colors

Discusses colors in sequence from less common to more common

Explains each color through the interactions of genetic phenomena that build the colors step by step

Examines patterns of white hair that may be superimposed on colors

Touches on folklore associated with horse colors

Treats donkey color in a separate section

The second edition presents more explicit and detailed explanations than were previously possible, as well as recently documented colors and combinations. The section on donkey colors includes the results of recent studies into the genetic control of color in this species, which will greatly assist donkey breeders as they tailor breeding programs to their own goals.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 156 pages
• Publisher: Iowa State University Press; 1st edition (January 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813829054
• ISBN-13: 978-0813829050
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,933,763 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE best book on color genetics for horses, November 22, 1999

By	"valiantstables" (Gaylord, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews

If there was any one good book focusing on the genetics of horse color, this book is it! It's the best and most accurate book I have found on the subject, and it covers all equine colors from the basics to the more rare colors. A must have for anyone intersted in horse color research! It even includes donkey colors. HIGHLY RECCOMMENED!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sponenberg Makes Easy a Complex Topic, August 15, 2001

By	Lisa McDonald "[e-mail]" (College Station, Texas United States) - See all my reviews

The topic of horse coloration has confounded breeders for centuries. Phil Sponenberg has taken a very complex topic and has broken it down into easily understood parts. The pictures grab you by the eyes and inspire equine artists as well as breeders. The various modes of inheritance were well explained and easily understood. The photos allow the reader to distinguish even fine points of difference between two animals. This book is a must for the serious horse person.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stands out in morass of mis- and dysinformation and "lore", September 29, 1999

By	Rodney Bryant (Rural Tennessee) - See all my reviews

D. Phillip Sponenberg, DVM, PhD, is one of a mere handful of real authorities on the inheritance of horse coat color -- a topic fraught with inherent complexities and burdened down with massive amounts of "lore" that amounts all too often to nothing more than misinformation or dysinformation. Well illustrated with color plates. Covers latest trait linkage tests (as for lethal white foal) and results of the author's extensive and in some cases unprecedented studies of horse color genetics. Not a "popular" treatment (it's from Iowa State University Press, Ames, a place of high seriousness when it comes to livestock and creatures of any sort likely to be found around farms), it is, nonetheless, accessible and generally clear. A somewhat more recent book by Sponenberg and Beaver is shorter and perhaps less "academic" than Horse Color, which is a valuable book with few, if any (in its class), competitors.