Ah, yes. The dun rabbithole. Hang on to your hat, sir. Keep your hands and feet inside the conveyance.
Thanks for your confidence. Your paycheck's safe. (:>)
Very little difference between a dun and a buckskin - at least to the casual observer.
The easy way to remember is that a dun has a dorsal stripe. "D" for dun and dorsal.
I've
never really cared for dun horses - I've always imagined them to look a
little coarse. Not just the colorway, but a lot of times their body is
too short. (Shoulder to butt - I like to see a little more stretch)
They're built a little more like a zebra than a racehorse. They have a
reputation as a sturdy horse -capable of handling themselves - less
likely to damage their feet and legs - but, they're just not my deal.
A purebred Arabian can never be dun - no dorsal stripe.
Nor can a purebred Thoroughbred have a dorsal stripe.
........
Quarter Horses can be registered with a true dun = dorsal stripe.
.............
In
the movie "Dances with Wolves" Costner rides a dun or buckskin - can't
remember which. But, that's a huge error in any event. That horse was
(fake) branded with "US" on his shoulder to make it look like Costner
had kept on riding his Arny horse. Impossible. The cavalry horses were
one of two colors 1. Sorrel (red) or 2, Bay (brown). The Army only
mounted their troops on geldings on one of those two colors. If they
were using horses to pull a load (cannon or casket), they would buy a
gray gelding, but if it wasn't a horse in a harness it was either sorrel
or bay.
So, right away, I knew that the movie was just as Hollywood as most westerns are - so aggravating.
And, don't get me started on the horses in "Man from Snowy River"
...............
Most
folks equate "dun" with that yellowy-beige body color. However, what
distinguishes dun is that dorsal stripe. There are some less common dun
colors - much less common than that yellow dun:
There
are red dun horses that almost look sorrel - and their stripe isn't
black, so it's easily missed on a saddled horse (e.g.parade, rodeo).
I've actually seen a couple red dun horses that I liked - and a couple
dark blue duns that I liked, but I've never liked one of the yellow dun
horses - and I've seen a bunch of them
There are blue dun horses that are actually sort of a bluish gray color - their dorsal stripe is black
There are claybank duns - dorsal stripe is dark, but their mane and tail are nearly white
One
of my Iowa cousins raised grullas. They're really a dun horse with a
coat the color of used dishwater. (You can tell I don't like duns -
ha!) He had a beautiful farm and could have picked anything to putter
with - but that color was rather unusual, so he got into it. Really a
nice guy. They have visited me several times.
|
That
baby pictured above is a red dun. That fringy "Mohawk" mane is common
in colts - it'll grow into something long and shiny, and drape down like
it should. Babies look like they're growing out a bad barbershop
crewcut.
........................
And,
we've returned to our station. Please check your seat and surrounding
area for any personal belongings. Thanks for visiting "Rabbit Hole
Express".
................
Good grief - corporate trust and dorsal stripes. But, you haven't kicked me off the island, yet (;>)
L.
No comments:
Post a Comment