Summerwind tests all our horses with Etalon Diagnostics. This includes Color, Genetic Diseases, and Traits like Curiosity, Gait and more. For more information on genetic research, testing and results, visit their website. https://www.etalondx.com/
Coat Color: Azehna de Maripa has one Red allele and one Black, indicating her base coat color appears Black. Two copies of the Dominant Agouti allele were detected; it pushes/restricts Black out to points; legs, ear tips, etc. appearing Bay. As a result of the allele count in each of the following, she has a minimum 50% chance of passing Red or Black and 100% Dominant Agouti to any offspring.
Preliminary results indicate she is heterozygous for non-Dun Primitive Markings and may pass it to 50% of any offspring.
Alleles: AA, Ee, nd1/nd2, GG, CT (Mid-distance Type), Gaited/n
Traits: Azehna de Maripa has not tested positive for any recessive disease alleles on this panel.
- Lordosis* – None
- Curiosity/Vigilance* – GG – Two Curiosity alleles detected; likely more curious than vigilant.
- Myostatin/Speed – CT (Mid-distance Type) – One Sprint and one Endurance allele detected; likely Mid-distance ability.
- Gait – One DMRT3 alleles detected.
Her testing has indicated the presence of one DMRT3 (Gaited) allele, and she may, therefore, pass it to 50% of any offspring.
More Information about Traits:
Curiosity and Vigilance
Temperament is a complex trait influenced by multiple genetic and environmental factors. Individual components of temperament are potentially under different controls. Curiosity in the horse has been defined as an interest in novel objects and a willingness to approach them. Vigilance refers to the tendency of a horse to examine its surroundings. For this particular SNP, horses homozygous for the G allele (G/G) displayed both higher curiosity and lower vigilance scores, whereas horses with one or two A alleles (A/A and G/A) had lower curiosity and higher vigilance scores.
More about Temperament…
Gaited: Loss of Canter
Horses display a wide variation in locomotion, with “gaited” breeds displaying a range of unique footfall patterns at intermediate speeds. Even amongst the non-gaited (trotting) breeds, some individuals are capable of lateral movements. Also, while most horses will shift into the three beat canter at higher speeds, some horses are able to remain in their intermediate gaits (for example, harness racing breeds). The A/A genotype for this test is associated with the ability to remain in the intermediate gait at higher speeds.