Tim answered me: > I don't know... there are a lot of things (traits) (chromosomes) that would all have > to come together for a perfect race horse... not just one gene for *fast*. <G>
No, it's a combination of muscle strength in many places, lung capacity, bone structure, and to some degree, intelligence for trainability. I remember reading that race horses have essentially reached the limit of equine performance because they have reached the point where they are physiologically limited by lung capacity. Human athletes have not yet reached that point. > I do not pretend to be a genetics expert, but I would tend to believe that superior > sires such as Northern Dancer were dominant for many factors that predispose a > horse to be an extraordinary runner. How else could you explain the higher incidence > of quality runners when compared to the norm for the breed? Wouldn't a > "recessive" trait be less likely to be passed on? If a genetic trait is recessive, then that horse has to possess that recessive gene in both copies or it would not be expressed. It will therefore be passed to all of its descendants. However, whether or not it is expressed in them will be determined by the mate. Best wishes and God bless, Lowell _______________________________________________ Sndbox mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://a8.mewebdns-a8.com/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net
