RED CHOCOLATE (SILVER DAPPLE)

A red chocolate horse is a bay horse with a silver dapple gene modifying the bay body to some lighter shade of brown or red with a slate, flaxen, white, or silver mane & tail.   Occasionally, there will be very little to no lightening of the mane & tail.  The lower legs will be darker than the body, and will often show some signs of dappling.  Shades of the body can be anywhere from a dark red/brown to a light sorrel color.  These horses are often confused with chestnut or sorrel horses.  A genetic test for the red gene can determine which is correct.  If the horse has 2 red genes, it is a chestnut or sorrel, rather than a red chocolate.  A red chocolate must have at least one Agouti gene.

It is particularly difficult to determine whether a foal is sorrel, red chocolate, or chocolate.  Sometimes a good picture in good light will show the darker legs of a chocolate or red chocolate (as opposed to the sorrel) peaking through the foal fuzz.  Of course, to be really accurate, a DNA test for the various color genes is needed.