Tennessee Walking Horse

Horse Embryo Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis

Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is a procedure used to screen embryos recovered after uterine flush to determine sex and genetic traits through DNA testing prior to implantation in the uterus.

SynchroGait (DMRT3)

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. 

Tobiano

Tobiano is a white spotting pattern characterized by white on the body that crosses the topline.

Splashed White Mutations – SW1, SW2, SW3, SW4, SW5, SW6, SW7 and SW8

Splashed white is a variable white spotting pattern characterized by a broad blaze, extended white markings on the legs, variable white spotting on the belly, and often one or both blue eyes. Eight mutations in two different genes have been shown to cause the splashed white pattern.

Sabino 1

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 Zygosity Test

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.

Red Factor

The extension gene, or red factor, determines whether a horse will have a chestnut base coat color or a black or bay base coat color.

Gray

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 Mutations – W5, W10, W13, W20, and W22

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.

Cream

Cream is a dilution that causes the palomino, buckskin, smoky black, cremello, perlino, and smoky cream coat colors.