I purchased Boogie from George and Mary Ronek of GMR Acres, Maquoketa, Iowa. He is a wonderfully talented, easygoing, bright, sturdy, and easy-to-train horse. It takes very little pressure to receive a response and he catches on to verbal commands and hand signals very quickly. He loves attention, and is the epitome of well-behaved when it comes to grooming and hoof trimming. My farrier says that Boogie has the best hooves of any horse he has ever seen — full size or minature. Boogie is a strong, athletic little horse that amazingly has the short-burst speed of a Quarter horse but the stamina of a thoroughbred. His refined and kind good looks are sure to produce well-balanced, sound offspring. His black buckskin points are very symmetrical and his buckskin color is the color of deep gold with subtle dappling. He’s drop-dead gorgeous!
Studies are now showing that the DNA contribution by the stallion is far more reaching than previous thought. Having a good, solid, sound brood mare is a must, but the stallion also plays an essential role in the breeding process. If you are interested in any of my stallions or mares, please feel free to study their bloodlines. I have attached a multi-generational lineage chart at the end of each horse’s section. I will be happy to provide references from those who have purchased their offspring. Boogie’s DNA tests reveal the following:
Disease Profile
Boogie tests negative for HYPP and HERDA. ACAN Dwarfism Mutations in the Miniature Horse
Boogie tests negative for all four mutations in the ACAN gene. The normal copy of the gene is designated as N; therefore, Boogie is N/N.Anyone interested in obtaining dwarfism testing should contact the University of Kentucky. Here is a link to their website:
http://www2.ca.uky.edu/gluck/AGTRL.asp#Dwarfism
Base Color — Boogie is Black Based but carries a recessive copy of the Red gene; therefore he is Heterozygous
Every horse has a base color, which can be black, bay, or red. This is controlled by the Extension (Red/Black Factor) and Agouti genes. The Extension gene controls the production of black or red pigment throughout the coat. The allele for black color (E) is dominant over the red allele (e), so a horse only needs one copy of the black allele to appear black-based. The Agouti gene can then modify black pigment by pushing it the the points of the horse, creating a buckskin. The Agouti gene is dominant, so a black-pigmented horse only needs one copy of the Agouti gene (A) to appear buckskin. Agouti does not have any effect on red pigment.
Boogie is a buckskin horse that carries the Agouti gene (A/a) which means that he is a Heterozygous (Aa) horse and will have a 50% chance of passing on the gene to his offspring. He is also Heterozygous for the *Red/Black Factor. (E/e).
*Horses that are bay, black, grullo, buckskin, black/blue roan, etc. are black-pigmented horses that carry at least one copy of the Black Factor (E) allele. The black (E) allele of the Extension gene is dominant and causes a black pigmented base both in the Heterozygous (Ee) and Homozygous (EE) state. Because Boogie is Heterozygous for the Red/Black Factor, it means that it carries one copy of the black allele (E) and one copy of the red allele (e). Since he is Heterozygous for the red/black factor, hecan pass on either red or black pigment to his foals. The basic color of the horse will be black, bay, or brown, unless modified by other color-modifying genes.
Dilutions
The rest of the color genes act as modifiers on the base coat of the horse. There are several genes that dilute the color of the horse, including Cream, Pearl, Champagne, Silver, and Dun. While these genes all function to dilute pigment, they are not all expressed in the same manner. The Dun and Champagne genes are dominant, as is Silver, although Silver does not affected red pigment.
Boogie also carries one copy of the Cream gene. The cream dilution gene affects both red and black pigment and is responsible for “diluting” the carrying horse to lighter coat shades and colors. In many breeds this is often considered a highly desirable trait. Cream dilution is the gene responsible for palominos, buckskins, cremellos and many more. Horses which carry one copy of the cream gene are identified as single dilutes; therefore, Boogie is heterozygous for the cream dilution gene. In the simplest case, a bay horse with a single copy of cream is known as a buckskin, a single dilute black horse is known as a smoky black, and a single dilute chestnut or sorrel horse is known as a palomino. Single dilute horses have a 50% chance on passing the cream gene on to their offspring. Horses which carry two copies of the cream gene are referred to as double dilutes; they are homozygous for the cream dilution gene. A bay horse with two copies of cream is known as a perlino. A black horse with two copies of cream is known as a smoky cream, and a chestnut or sorrel horse that carries two copies of cream is known as a cremello. Double-dilute horses will always pass on a copy of the cream gene to its foals.
Patterns and Depigmentations
Boogie does not carry the following genes: Sabino (nSb1); Appaloosa PATN1 (leopard complex spotting [LP]), SW1, SW2, and SW3 mutations (Splashed White Overo); Lethal White Overo (LWO [nO]); Dun (d/d); Silver (n/n); Champagne (n/n); Pearl (n/n); or Tobiano (n/n).
If you are interested in testing any of your horses for color, coat pattern, and depigmentations, I suggest contacting Animal Genetics. Their fees are reasonable and they have a very quick turnaround time. Their website is: http://www.animalgenetics.us/Equine/Equine_Index.asp
I realize there is a lot of “technical” DNA information provided, but I want any potential owners of mares to understand what Boogie is capable of genetically. My hopes are to eventually collect and ship semen to mare owners who would like to breed to Boogie without the need of physical transportation.
This will be the first year that I will be breeding Boogie, so it will be exciting to see what his offspring look like when Spring of 2017 rolls around.