Silver is a unique, dominant modifier which works by changing the hair over the entire goat to a silvery-grey color. This modifies any agouti pattern, although looks most drastic on black or darker colored goats. The color of goats depends mostly on the breed.
Most breeds have a few colors that are the most common. A few breeds are relatively colorful, but these are rarer than breeds with a set color. If you're looking for a goat that is a specific color, your best bet is to find a breed [].
The hidden color genes of extensively white goats can be just as useful in a breeding program as the more obviously expressed color genes of darker goats. The final color of the goat is due to the interaction of eumelanin (black/brown), pheomelanin (red brown/tan/cream/white), and white spotting (white). Color in goats is comprised of two basic choices, either black based or red/tan based.
These base colors are modified by several factors; the patterns that overlay them; and the white spotting and other white markings commonly seen. ND Suggested Colors & Patterns Suggested Standard Colors/Pattern Descriptions for Nigerian Dwarfs. Click on thumbnails for a closer look.
Basic Color Families. Goat Color Genetics 101 I'm going to start this section with the caveat that goat color genetics do not seem to be understood nearly as well as rabbit or even cavy color genetics. Want to know more about Nigerian Dwarf color genetics? Check out my ebook, available for purchase on Amazon.com! It covers each color and pattern in depth, including examples and information on how patterns interact with each other, how to determine what genes a goat carries, and how to predict the colors of your goat's offspring.
Click the image below! *For a limited time, you can also get. KGBA Color Chart All colors and markings are acceptable in the Kinder goat, this guide is to assist in their description for registration and identification. Particularly unique goats may not fit the common colors and patterns.
KGBA staff are happy to help describe a goat when needed. I always see people asking, What color is my goat? Or How should I describe his/her markings? So, I'm starting this thread in the interest of listing links to pages with good color descriptions of markings and colorings. I'll start.
You add to the list. You can use Word link above to. What factors make up a goat's "color"? Color in goats is expressed in their hair by a combination of Black/Brown (Eumelanin) and Tan (Phaeomelanin) Pigments, affected by certain degrees of Dilution, arranged in one or more Patterns and overlayed with white Spotting.