Knowing about these patterns and their genetic causes can help the breeders and owners of Paint Horses in a number of ways. One way such knowledge is important is that an accurate description of horses is always an asset when equines are the subject of conversation. Accurate understanding of the causes and interactions of the patterns also helps breeders to increase the proportion of spotted horses in their foal crops.

Paint Horse breeding revolves around a few spotting patterns. These patterns are characterized by spots of white on the body. The spots occur in different patterns, and each type of pattern has a separate genetic cause. Manipulating these patterns in a breeding program is straightforward--if the breeder understands the patterns and their genetic control.

Defining the patterns

A good place to start a discussion of Paint genetics is with the basic definitions of the various patterns. With that as a point of departure, it is then possible to focus on each pattern and discuss the genetics of its cause and its appearance on horses.

The term "Paint" lumps together different types of spotting, and at least four major spotting patterns included within the Paint breed. Each pattern can occur separately, or they can occur in all the different possible combinations. Understanding that each of these patterns is separate is the important key to understanding Paint Horse color.