The Appaloosa Project

Your questions about appaloosa spotting and genetics answered. 

We help breeders, owners and enthusiasts of Appaloosas, Knabstruppers (and other appaloosa spotted horses and ponies) to breed their desired coat patterns by understanding the LP gene and how it interacts with other genes to cause appaloosa coat patterns. And, we do it in plain English aimed at breeders, so you don’t need a degree in genetics to understand!

The science behind the spots 

The Appaloosa Project is the ultimate source for information on appaloosa spotting. Our research team investigates the LP gene, the PATN1 gene and other major coat pattern modifiers, as well as LP-associated traits such as Congenital Stationary Night Blindness and Equine Recurrent Uveitis.

The Appaloosa Project - making sense of appaloosa spotted patterns in Appaloosas, Knabstruppers and other appaloosa spotted horses for breeders and enthusiasts

Maximize your breeding program

Subscribe to the Appaloosa Project's electronic classroom, where you can ask questions about the genetics of spotted horse breeding, or sign up for our private service - a comprehensive, personalized assessment of your program.

The Appaloosa Project - making sense of appaloosa spotted patterns in Appaloosas, Knabstruppers and other appaloosa spotted horses for breeders and enthusiasts

Research in action

Your subscription fee goes directly towards Appaloosa Project research initiatives. In return, we help you with the practical application of our findings.  Accept nothing less than the best information, straight from the scientists who discovered it!

The Appaloosa Project - making sense of appaloosa spotted patterns in Appaloosas, Knabstruppers and other appaloosa spotted horses for breeders and enthusiasts

Join the Appaloosa Project

→ Learn how to consistently produce horses with marketable appaloosa coat patterns.

Find out about genes that enhance or interfere with appaloosa spotting.

Get straight answers on appaloosa genetics, backed by solid research.

Help our research happen. Subscribers have helped create the DNA tests for the 'appaloosa' gene LP as well as for the leopard-causing PATN1 gene.

Share knowledge with breeders from around the world.

 

Join us

Essential reading

A breeder's guide to the Leopard Complex gene (LP) 4>
Public articles

The vast array of coat patterns and interesting pigmentation variations exhibited by horses that...

→ Read on

Night blindness in the Appaloosa (CSNB) 4>
Public articles

CSNB stands for “congenital stationary night blindness”. More commonly referred to as night...

→ Read on

PATN2 is Not the Blanket Gene - How Small Effect PATN Modifiers Really Work

PATN2 is Not the Blanket Gene - How Small Effect PATN Modifiers Really Work 4>
Public articles

Search online and you'll find some websites promoting a gene called PATN2 as the blanket...

→ Read on

A Breeder’s Guide to Appaloosa Pattern Identification 4>
Subscriber articles

Appaloosas, Knabstruppers and all other breeds of horses with the LP mutation display a wide...

→ Read on

Breeding for Blankets – Case Study #1

Breeding for Blankets – Case Study #1 4>
Subscriber articles

One of the best ways to learn about the complex topic of appaloosa coat pattern inheritance is to...

→ Read on

Breeding for Blankets – Case Study #2 4>
Subscriber articles

As there is no single pattern-causing gene that governs the highly desirable blanketed pattern,...

→ Read on