For Mare ~ Bald Face?

Mare from Simply Horse-Crazy did a blog post asking a question. The question is simple - does her horse Missy* (I'll write her name as Missy* for now so that we know Mare's Missy* apart from my Missy) have a bald face or just an abnormally white face? So, we're going to attempt to answer that without getting into genetics!

Bald Face: An particularly wide white blaze extending to or past the eyes; typically runs from the eyes down to the nostrils and usually includes the nostrils. Some but not all horses that have a bald face have at least one blue eye. Some may be deaf or blind, but that is not a commonality and not a requirement in order to call the marking a 'bald face'.

What do these horses look like? As with most definitions, this one doesn't give you very much of a visualization. I'll bet those of you who have read my blog before didn't realize that you've been seeing a bald faced horse all along! Exclusive Rascal "Rascal" is indeed a bald-faced horse. He isn't tobiano, he's a paint, but he does have a bald face and a blue eye.

This doesn't show his blue eye (his blue eye is the right one... which I have absolutely NO pictures of, lol), but you can see his bald face.

And then there's Rainmaker, who also has what I would classify as a bald face:

The white on rainmaker goes around his entire muzzle, most of both cheekbones, and over his left eye. His right eye, however, is covered in black. From his poll back is a 'paint' colored body.

Also, who remembers Spider, the paint gelding that was at Victory for a while? He has what I would almost call a bald face. Actually, it is a bald face. The white goes over his left eye - a blue eye - and over both nostrils.

Yes, that's Spider, and three bald faces.

Some bald faces are a lot easier to identify than others. For example, this one (image not mine):

This horse's bald face is extremely easy to identify. What is really iffy about this horse, though, is the fact that only one nostril is covered in white. However, both eyes are covered with white but rimmed in black. There are two blue eyes (according to the site) on this horse. This horse fits the requirements, to the book!

This is a bald face that is not easy to identify. The white covers both eyes, yes, but barely reaches the nostrils and does not go past the eyes. However, the white covers the cheekbones and even the underside of the face and bottom lip. This is a bald face, though, because the white covers both eyes, both nostrils, and the upper part of the cheekbones. This horse has a blue eye but that isn't a requirement.

This is not a bald face!! The white extends over both nostrils, yes, but does not cover both eyes. The white doesn't cover any cheekbone, and is closer to a blaze than a bald face.

In conclusion, I would say that Mare's Missy* does not have a bald face.

{Mare, if you're not confortable with having Missy*'s picture up here, I can remove it. Just ask.=)}

The white on Missy*'s face is quite abundant. The white covers both nostrils, but doesn't cover the eyes. Though it goes above the eyes; also, there is no white on Missy*'s cheekbones. The nostrils aren't even entirely white; the bottom half of both are black. 

Sorry, Mare! I do hope this post helped those of you who had questions or were wondering, though, about bald faces. If there are any other questions about specific markings or colorings, feel free to comment and I'd be happy to answer or even do a post. Hope I helped!