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• Information on the blue eyed cream gene in connamara ponies and how you can get them tested for it.

 Blue eyed creams  

The Connemara pony is known world wide for their temperament, kind nature, ability to compete in many disciplines from dressage to show jumping. The main colours exhibited by the breed are greys, bays , whites and duns. Blue eyed creams are a particular colour that are produced by the Connemara breed. The most common theory is that it came through   Arabian breeds   into the Spanish horses imported into Ireland in the middle ages. The blue eyed cream has light cream to dark cream coat with blue eyes. It is different to an albino who has no pigmentation and red eyes while the blue eyed cream has reduced pigmentation. BEC ponies are healthy   active tough ponies that can be used for many equestrian persuits. There is an issue of eye sight in some BECs that have more pinkish coloured eyes. There is on going research on the topic.

         Coat colour is an inherited characteristic determined by the genetic makeup of both parents. There are 4 base coat colours, chestnut, bay ,brown and black., which are all controlled by 2 genes –extension (E) AND Agouti(A).Dilution of basic coat colours  occurs with cream, champagne , dun and silver with one copy of the gene giving a medium expression of coat colour and 2 copies giving a more extreme coat colour .For example, if the base coat is bay with one  copy of the cream dilution gene this gives a buckskin(known as dun in Connemara ponies)while 2 copies of the cream dilution gene gives a blue eyed cream.

Blue eyed cream ponies are eligible for registration with the CPBS, classified as class 2 if they fulfil the criteria.. Foals born to BEC mares are eligible for registration and may be classified as class 1 ponies if they are not BECs and are up to the breed standard. If you mate a BEC mare to a bay stallion there is a good chance of breeding a dun foal.

Testing for the blue eyed cream gene. 

It is   possible to test all Connemara ponies either fillies, mares  or stallions to see if they are carriers of the gene and could produce a BEC foal; at  reasonable cost. The test is carried out by Weatherbys Ireland.

Steps involved 

1. If your mare/stallion is already registered and has their book , you ring Weatherbys at 045875521 and ask for Laura Mc Weeney and give her the registered names of your animals asking for the blue eyed cream test. The test may be carried out when you are registering a foal for the first time. 
2. Weatherbys send you an invoice for 30 euro per mare/ stallion. 
3. Send on the money and they will do the test   which takes 2-3 weeks. You may be lucky and get a result within a week depending on the test run 
4. If the result is negative it means that there is no gene for BEC detected and the animal will be 99% sure not to throw blue eyed creams. This mare can go to a stallion positive for BEC and she is 99% proof not to have a BEC   foal. 
5. If the result is heterozygous (positive for one copy of the cream gene) it means the animal is a carrier and that on average 50% of the offspring will inherit the cream gene. You need to be careful in selecting a stallion to breed with   , ideally going to a stallion negative for the trait, especially if your mare is a carrier of the gene. However, if you are interested in breeding dun ponies these stallions would be more desirable. 

Using the information. 

This technology is becoming more and more accessible and mare and stallion owners should use it to make more informed breeding decisions to avoid breeding blue eyed cream ponies. Use the information   received along with the website dedicated to the avoidance of inbreeding (www.connemara-pony.com ) to make choices to breed better quality animals. 

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