SynchroGait is a diagnostic DNA test for a genetic variant (A) that has a major impact on the gait and coordination of horses. The discovery by researchers in Sweden showed that the mutation “facilitates lateral gaits, ambling and pace, and inhibits the transition from trot or pace to gallop”. The gait A variant has been identified as a major genetic factor for performance in trotting horses and ability to perform the additional “flying pace” in Icelandic horses.
The silver dilution dilutes black/brown pigment to lighten the manes and tails of black and bay horses to a flaxen or silver gray. The silver dilution is also associated with an inherited ocular syndrome known as Multiple Congenital Ocular Anomalies (MCOA).
Sabino is a white spotting pattern that is characterized by white markings on legs often accompanied by white ticking or roaning of the midsection and a blaze on the face.
Roan is a white patterning coat color trait characterized by intermixed white and colored hairs in the body while the head, lower legs, mane, and tail remain colored.
The gray gene causes progressive depigmentation of the hair, often resulting in a color that is almost completely white by 6-8 years of age. The individual gray test will determine the number of copies of the gray allele (zygosity). The coat color panel tests detect presence or absence of the gray allele.
Dominant white is a variable white spotting pattern caused by many different mutations in the KIT gene. The VGL tests for the five most common mutations known as W5, W10, W13, W20, and W22. Homozygosity for W5, W10, W13 or W22 is thought to be non-viable.
