White Hooves Versus Black

How come we don't see white racehorses?

There are a few, but they are very rare. True white in Thoroughbred horses occurs one of two ways: either via a mutation called Dominant White, or via a maximal expression of the Sabino gene. It’s hard to tell them apart visually; recently a family of white Thoroughbreds that had been believed to be Sabinos turned out to be Dominant White.Below is a picture of The White Fox, a Dominant White Thoroughbred stallion. He died in October 2010, but his line lives on.Many white TBs, even those sold as racing prospects, go on to careers in the show ring or Hollywood. So far, no American white TB has become a stakes winner (that is, they are not top race horses). People looking for race horses as opposed to show horses rarely care about color. The best pure white horse to race so far is Yukichan, a multiple graded stakes winner in Japan. During her career she was known as the most beautiful horse in Japan. Her dam Shirayukihime was the white daughter of a bay dam and the great Sunday Silence, who was registered dark brown but is widely believed to have been true black. Yukichan is pictured below.Interestingly, not all Dominant White horses are pure white. Yukichan’s half-sister Buchiko has an interesting pattern. Her handlers always wear a matching item of clothing, in this picture a shirt.Other white-appearing horses are actually gray, a fairly common color in Thoroughbreds. Gray horses lighten progressively as they age. Different horses gray out at different rates, and occasionally one will gray so rapidly that it looks white at a young age. One particular sire, Tapit, tends to throw grays that lighten early. Below is Tapit’s son Hansen at three years old. As you can see, he looks white except for the gray skin around his nose and eyes.Bonus cuteness: here he is as a foal—already nearly white except for his mane and ear fuzz.Dominant white also shows up in other breeds. Here is White Bliss, a Standardbred pacer, in action.

What is the difference between a white tie affair and a black tie affair?

Black tie is what most people think of as "formalwear" - tuxedos / dinner jackets for men, cocktail dresses or formal pantsuits for women. You typically find black tie at evening weddings, some sit-down dinners, proms (if you're lucky), balls, occasionally things like gallery openings.White tie is more formal, and is rarely seen these days (to my eternal sorrow). Mostly it's limited to royal affairs, presidential galas, and a couple events at certain universities. A few celebrities also hold white tie balls - I know Elton John and David Furnish have an annual one. (No, I haven't been!)White tie rules tend to be quite rigid, so you can read about them at the link at the end of this post. There are some variations between different western countries - for instance, in the U.S. I believe it's common to have a single stripe of braid on men's trousers rather than the double that you see in the UK, and in Italy I've seen jackets and trousers that are made of a silk-cashmere blend instead of the wool barathea that's more commonly seen. In some of the Scandinavian countries, they wear special hats. For women, tiaras are generally frowned upon in Britain unless they're family heirlooms, whereas in America you can probably get away with one.Link here - http://www.debretts.com/british-... .A couple other notes to add to what's on the list:On (very) rare occasions I've seen jackets and trousers in navy blue rather than black. Don't do this if you're not sure. Black is safest.Belts are a no-no, as they ruin the lines - men wear white braces (usually silk) that are hidden under the jacket.Military officers may wear dress uniform. But don't ask me the rules, I don't know them.National dress may be worn by visitors from other countries, as long as it is of comparable formality.Wristwatches are not generally worn. You won't get kicked out for wearing one, but it's frowned upon - pocketwatches are expected.Though the guide says that top hats, gentleman's gloves and canes have all been retired - and Debretts is usually spot-on about such things - I have seen them being used, as recently as five years ago. They're not common, though. (More's the pity. I love a man in a top hat and tailcoat.)For women, gloves aren't mandatory, but most women do still wear them except when in the powder room. I personally feel naked without them.

Why are the bottoms of hands and feet white on black people?

The texture of skin on the bottoms of everyone’s hands and feet, is different from the texture of the rest of their skin. And when you see a question like this, you might want to seriously consider whether it’s based on fact. The bottoms of black peoples feet and the palms of their hands, are NOT WHITE. It’s pretty much the same color as the rest of their skin. The different texture may make that skin look a little lighter, but it’s just a trick of light and texture.I’m white, but my late husband was black, and I guess I would have noticed if the palms of his hands were white. If you never are around black people, look at a photo of a black person’s hands. Look it up on the Internet, under Black People’s Hands. See any white in there? I didn’t think so. Black people who are very light-skinned, will have lighter skin on the insides of their hands, but a person who is medium to dark, will not have white skin, anywhere.

What type of horses have the largest hooves?

I’d say Clydesdaleor Belgian horse

Why are some leopards and jaguars black, and why are some lions and tigers white?

Jaguars, leopards and possibly cougars (even though there is no proof of the last one yet) can develope black furs due to a gene called menalism. The word melanism is derived from the greek: μελανός which means "black pigment" and express perfectly the effects. It is not too uncommon for leopards and jaguars, as they are perfectly capable of survive in the wild even with black furs, since they are better camouflaged, especially during the night hunting.White lions and tigers is, however, a completely different matter. White tigers occur when two Bengal tigers (because only Bengal tigers can carry this gene) that carry a recessive gene controlling coat color are bred together. In order to happen, both parents must carry this rare gene. There is only 1 possibility out of 10.000 for that to naturally happen. Which is why you don’t see many white tigers in the wild. The last white tiger in the wild was dated in 1951. How is it that you see so many captive white tigers? Because they are bred specifically. How so? Through inbreeding. The entire captive white tiger population originated from one single white tiger (the one captured in 1951 named Mohan) and has been inbred ever since. In order to retain this recessive gene, breeders must continually inbreed father to daughter and father to granddaughter and so on. This inbreeding has caused many genetic problems with tigers such as cleft palates, scoliosis of the spine, mental impairments and crossed eyes. Many of the cubs that are born either in zoos or by breeders have to be ‘disposed’ of because they are malformed at birth. White Bengal tigers have also been crossed with Siberian tigers to produce a larger specimen which in turn causes even more genetic problems. For years, breeders and exhibitors have been using the excuse that white tigers are an endangered species so they need to keep breeding them. This is completely false. Breeders of white tigers do not contribute to any species survival plan; they are breeding for money.You can read the June 2011 AZA White Paper declaring the practice of breeding white tigers as “not in adherence with AZA’s Board-approved Policy on the Presentation of Animals” HERE and here: The Truth About White Tigers - The Wildcat Sanctuary.