I just helped a friend buy a horse and she is worried about the white around his eye. Is it true
that the more white a horse has around its eye the more crazy and dangerous the horse is?
My little experience with this horse is that he has energy but is sweet with a "soft" eye. Could someone please explain the "white around the eyes means crazy horse" thing?
Thanks!
Hi Joy
I dont think that white around the eye has anything to do with the way the horse will act.
By the description you have given of the horse, it sounds like a wonderfuly natured horse.
Hope it helps
HorseCrazy
Hi Joy,
Appalloosas usually have white around the eye, I'm told. It's part of their breed appearance. It doesn't appear to make any difference to their temperaments. It seems that the main thing that makes a horse quiet or crazy is whether or not they've been handled correctly.
I've found it easier to observe the horse's eye movements when they have white around the eye. And when the horse is frightened or 'staring' the whites are very noticeable, giving it a 'crazier' look, but not necessarily meaning the horse is any crazier than any other. :)
Hi Joy,
Just to confirm what K:D is syaing. The color gentic makeup of an Appaloosa (as in *any* horse with that kind of color)contains white around the eye. It can also be seen in horses that has a lot of white on their heads.
A cremello or perlino (a creamy white horse with pink skin) has gray or blueish eyes because the "creme gene" dilutes the color of the cornea.
Simply put, it's a lack of pigmentation and it has absolutely nothing to do with their temper.
.
I think whoever told you this has it confused with the fact that a horse that is terribly frightened or upset can be seen rolling his eyes back into his head a bit, and then the white that generally isn't visible can be seen.
But it something that is caused by stress - not the other way around.
Thank you for explain that! It didn't make sense to me when my friend said that but I didn't
have anyone else's option to agree or disagree. I may not be able to change my friends mind but now I can be more confident in my option that white around the eye has little to do with a horses temperament!
Thank you for explain that! It didn't make sense to me when my friend said that but I didn't
have anyone else's option to agree or disagree. I may not be able to change my friends mind but now I can be more confident in my option that white around the eye has little to do with a horses temperament!
Hi Joy!
When I was younger I was told that horses with a white coat around their eyes will become white horses in their future. So if you want to buy a black horse and do not attend to it to be white around the eyes, you will get a white horse in some years and your black one is away!
But I have never heard about horses beeing crazy just because they are white around their eyes. I think this is just a fairy tale!
Jasmin
"horses with a white coat around their eyes will become white horses in their future"
Just need to put that right.
That is another kind of white. The first place where a foal going gray is graying out, is usually around the eyes when it sheds its foal coat. But that means the actual hair on its head, not on the eye-ball.
Mind you, some appaloosa-colored horses will gray out too, and they often have white around the eyes on the eye-ball, so in that aspect it could be a sign.