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You get the lethal white from breeding two overos together.
The overo is a pattern in paints.They do not have the most white on them , usually its tobianos that have the most white, but in a frame overo you can get more white. The overo is like a solid horse with a pattern, the tobiano is like a white horse with color, but some patterns its hard to tell.
The foals when born do not have their insides right, they can't go to the bathroom or anything.
I am not a paint person but a few years ago when I was maybe 13 or 14 I remember reading up about this.
I really can't go as in depth on this one, its not my breed so i really haven't done much follow up on finding out more about it.
I'm glad you started this thread, maybe we can learn some stuff here, if I can think of anything else I will post it, but I think thats about all I know about it.
But you can't get one from breeding a solid to a loud paint, only two overos.I am almost positive you can't get it any other way.
I wish i could tell you more but I'm just hoping I have remembered this much correctly.
I'll see if i can find anything about it on the net.
Damn good topic BTW!

Ok, so far I have found alittle bit of info from the APHA website.
I can't figure out how to post a link to it so i just copied alittle bit from it so this is not my words, this is APHA's words------


There are some Paint Horses born completely white with blue eyes that survive. These are often termed "living lethals," a misnomer as they are not homozygous for the lethal allele.


Occasionally, solid white or nearly solid white foals are born to Paint Horses of overo lineage. Initially these foals appear normal, but after a short period of time show signs of colic due to an inability to pass feces.
This condition, referred to as Overo Lethal White Syndrome (OLWS) is always fatal, and results in both emotional and economic loss to breeders.

Don't Believe It

Following are nine common myths regarding lethal white syndrome. The correct information is provided by the University of Minnesota Equine Genetics Group.

Myth #1: All overo horses are carriers of the lethal allele.

Fact: There are many overos that do not carry the lethal allele.

Myth #2: Twenty-five percent of foals from two overo parents will be lethal whites.

Fact: Because there are overos that do not carry the allele, the incidence of lethal white syndrome is less than 25 percent in overo-to-overo matings.

Myth #3: Registered tobianos, Breeding Stock, or Paint crosses cannot carry the lethal allele.

Fact: There are tobianos that have overo bloodlines, and these horses can be carriers of the lethal allele. Breeding Stock and Paint crosses can carry the lethal allele.

Myth #4: Totally white Paints are not carriers of the lethal allele.

Fact: These white horses are often carriers of the lethal allele.

Myth #5: All totally white foals born to two overo parents are lethal whites.

Fact: There are totally white Paints that are not affected by the lethal white syndrome.

Myth #6: Mares cannot produce lethal foals in consecutive years.

Fact: The genetic make-up of one foal does not affect subsequent births.

Myth #7: Only one parent determines if a foal will be a lethal white.

Fact: Both sire and dam contribute a copy of the lethal allele.

Myth #8: Crop-out Quarter Horses cannot carry the lethal allele.

Fact: A small number of crop-outs have been tested and found to be carriers of the lethal allele.

Myth #9: You can reliably tell the carrier status of a Paint by their color pattern.

Fact: This is false.



-------OK, my words again,lmao,can anyone tell me how to post a link?
Thanks in advance!

"This overo mare has had three lethal white foals. The only way to know if her tobiano foal is a carrier of the lethal gene is to bloodtest it. "--------------

Alright I didn't know this, it says that a tobiano can carry the gene and apparently if that horse carries it and down the road has an overo descedant then when bred it has the chance to produce a lethal white if bred to another overo.
I was under the assumption just breeding two overos would result in a LW, but you can breed the same two overo's and get a LW , breed them again and have a chance of not getting one.
Hmmm, thanks CG for bringing this up.
BTW, you can go to http://www.APHA.com (American Paint Horse Assc.) and this info. is there, its an intresting read.

http://www.apha.com/breed/lethalwhites03.html

Hopefully this will post right, if not just copy and paste and it will take you directly to the article about LW's.

They have done alot more research since last time I read up on it.



--------------In 1996, the University of Minnesota Genetics Group sent a grant proposal to the American Paint Horse Association. We requested funds to study OLWS using newly developed techniques that allow scientists to decode genes. In September of that year, APHA gave the Group $7,500 to begin the investigation. ------------------------

I hope this helps, that article is intresting, you should check it out.
Do you have paints? Are you planning on breeding?

Thanks for this info. I have read and heard about it but not being inot the paint horse breed its not one I KNOW about. Its nice to know tho.

Cool, I had no idea rats had that problem.
Intresting!

A Dane site describing Double Merles compared it to this gene, let's see if I can find it. Here we go, cannot escape the dreaded "M" word!

In the APHA paint horses we have 3 standard patterns: overo, tobiano and tovero (combo of the first two)
Overo in its self has 3 patterns: frame, sabino and rabicano.
Now the frame overo is the one that causes the OLWS foals. Heres the "clear as mud" part.
Not all frame overos carry the OLW gene.
Any horse (with a paint background) can carry the OLW gene and not express it themselves.
Paints, TB's and QH's all have a possiblity of carrying this gene with paints being the highest of course.
You can have a tovero that is homozygous for the tobiano gene and STILL carry the OLW gene.
The ONLY way to detect the OLW in any of these horses is to have them tested for the gene and avoid breeding two carriers. Alone the gene does nothing but express color. Two carriers bred have a 25% chance of lethal white. Some are born and writhe in pain until dying or being put down.. some are believed to be reabsorbed before coming to term. OLW foals (born mostly to all white) are born with an incomplete intestinal tract, there fore need to be put down BUT not all mostly white to all white foals are OLW foals either. Its best to have the vet handy and wait and see. Some of us believe two carriers should not be bred to each other, as 25% of a chance is too high a risk to take to go thru the heartbreak of having to put down (or dying on their own) an otherwise beautiful creature.
Hug A Dobe
edited for spelling errors ..tho I am sure I still missed some LOL