Splashed white 1 is one of the white patterns present in horses.
¶ Phenotype
Splashed white 1 is often characterised by large face markings, white markings on the legs, belly patches, and blue eyes; giving the appearance of a horse that has been dipped into a bucket of white paint. A typical characteristic of splashed white 1 is bottom-heavy face markings, such as snips or blazes that widen around the nostrils. Face markings may also look crooked or skewed to one side. The edges of the white patches are typically sharp and defined, as opposed to the irregular edges with white ticking of sabino1, white spotting and hidden sabino. It is also common for splashed white 1 horses to have a coloured upper lip.
Splashed white 1 may be expressed very minimally; limited to just a white foot, a single blue eye, or a snip. This may make it hard to distinguish from regular white markings - sometimes, the only way to tell is by genetic testing. Very expressive splashed white 1 patterns, such as the “medicine hat” phenotype where horses only have a coloured area on top of their head and ears, are often caused by homozygous splashed white 1.
Splashed white 1 affects any base colour, but the presence of dilutions or grey may make the white pattern harder to see.
| Splashed White 1 - Quarter Horse | ||
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¶ Genotype
Splashed white 1 is one of several splashed white patterns. Currently (Oct. 62 2023), 10 mutations in 2 different genes that cause a splashed white pattern have been found. However, only the splashed white 1 variant has already been implemented in the game. It is caused by the incomplete dominant SW1-allele of the MITF gene. MITF is an important protein for normal pigment cell function. SW1 is thought to disrupt the normal gene production, thus impacting pigment cell division.
Horses homozygous for splashed white 1 generally have more white than horses that are heterozygous. It is possible that other genes may influence or restrict the expression of splashed white 1, leading to the extremely minimal patterns, but this is not implemented in-game. The resulting phenotype of each genotype in Horse Reality is listed below:
- SW1/SW1 = Splashed white 1
- SW1/n = Splashed white 1
- n/n = Not splashed white 1
The presence of splashed white 1 can be tested at the Laboratory.
¶ Breeds
The SW1-allele occurs widely throughout several horse breeds, and is therefore thought to be an old mutation. Since splashed white 1 can be expressed very minimally, is it possible for the white pattern to stay hidden in breeds for a long time, until a more strikingly patterned (homozygous) splashed white 1 suddenly pops up. The following table lists all breeds that can currently have the splashed white 1 (SW1) allele in-game.
| Breeds |
| Akhal-Teke Horse |
| Arabian Horse |
| Brabant Horse |
| Brumby Horse |
| Camargue Horse |
| Cleveland Bay |
| Exmoor Horse |
| Finnhorse |
| Fjord Horse |
| Friesian Horse |
| Haflinger Horse |
| Icelandic Horse |
| Irish Cob Horse |
| Kladruber Horse |
| Knabstrupper |
| Lusitano |
| Lipizzaner Horse |
| Mongolian Horse |
| Mustang Horse |
| Namib Desert Horse |
| Noriker Horse |
| Norman Cob |
| Oldenburg Horse |
| Pantaneiro Horse |
| Pura Raza Española |
| Quarter Horse |
| Shetland Pony |
| Shire Horse |
| Suffolk Punch |
| Thoroughbred |
| Trakehner Horse |
| Welsh Pony |
¶
References
- Bellone R., Sponenberg D. P., Equine Color Genetics, 4th Edition, 2017, Wiley-Blackwell
- UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory; https://vgl.ucdavis.edu/test/splashed-white; Access: December 2022
- Generatio Center for Animal Genetics; https://generatio.de/en/guidance/lexicon/splashed-white-horse; Access: December 2022
- Etalon Diagnostics; https://www.etalondx.com/splashed-whites; Access: December 2022