| Hamster Coat Patterns |
| Patterning refers to the white markings on the dorsal side of a hamster (its back). I work with the following coat pattern mutations: Ba (Banding), Ds (Dominant Spotting), and Wh (Roan/Imperial). A hamster devoid of all of these three dominant mutations is a Solid patterned hamster. This is not the same as "self" which is a color term (see glossary). Any two or all three of the pattern mutations I am working with could occur in a single hamster. I am not combining Wh (Roan/Imperial) with the other two genes to minimize the possibility of accedentally creating Eyeless White (WhWh) hamsters. See more on this below. |
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| Name: Unnamed Birthday: 1/13/03 Type: Long Hair Satin Pattern: Banded Coloring: Sable Notes: This is a fairly good example of a "classic" or "standard" banded hamster. This even band of white consisting of about 1/3 the body length is the ideal for a show quality banded hamster. |
| Banded Baba or BaBa, this mutation is dominant with no difference between the heterozygous and the homozygous conditions. The effect of the mutation is variable, but the white nearly never extends outside of the 1/3 of the hamster between the shoulderblades and the hips. Classically, the stomach should be pure white. I have had many hamsters with colored sploches on the belly. A banded hamster nearly never has a blaze on the face. Banding may be combined with any color or type mutation with predictable results, and no extra dilution of either coat or eyes. |
| Name: Corona Birthday: 10/31/02 Type: Short Hair Pattern: Banded Coloring: Golden Notes: This is an example of an extremely convoluted banding pattern. I think this type of pattern is more attractive than the plain band and, therefore, select for it. Since I do not breed for show, this does not create problems. |
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| Name: Fivel Birthday: 1/13/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Solid Coloring: Golden Notes: This picture is included as an example of an agouti colored solid patterned hamster. Notice that although there is variation in the color of the coat this is still a "solid" hamster for two reasons: 1) he has no patterning genes, and 2) he has no white on his back. |
| Solid baba and whwh and dsds, all solid hamsters do not have any of these three dominant patterning genes. Solid genotype may be combined with any color or type mutation with predictable results, and no extra dilution of either coat or eyes. A solid white hamster may or may not be a genetically solid hamster. Often the combination of patterning gene(s) with colors (usually yellow or cream) will cause a pure white hamster. There is one single color mutation that can also cause a solid white hamster (cdcd or acromelanic white). This mutation covers up whatever else is on the coat so the hamster could be solid or not solid (genetically). See information on mutation combinations causing white in the mutations page. |
| Name: Manhatten Birthday: August '02 Type: Short Hair Pattern: Solid Coloring: Black Notes: This is an example of a self colored solid patterned hamster. Notice that there is not only no white on the back but there is also no variation in the color. |
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| Name: Goldie Birthday: 3/6/03 Type: Short Hair Pattern: Spotted Coloring: Yellow-Black Notes: This is the only picture of a spotted hamster that I have right now. Since dominant spotting dilutes the yellow color, this hamster looks mainly white. A plain yellow or a cream would be more likely to be pure white than this Yellow-Black. |
| Spotted Dsds, this mutation is dominant lethal, meaning that all hamsters showing spotting must be Dsds. Any DsDs babies die in the uterus of their mom by about 12 days after conception. The effect of the mutation is variable, but can usually be distinguished from a banded hamster because a spotted hamster nearly always has a blaze on the face. The most desireable spotted hamsters have even spotting over the entire back with an even dispersal of color and white. Some spotted hamsters will only have a white belly and will have no white on the back and others (especially yellow and cream spotted hamsters) may be completely white. Nearly all spotted hamsters have a completely white belly. Spotting often dilutes the coat color, and as mentioned above may cause a genetically cream or yellow hamster to appear completely white. There is no dilution of the eyes. |
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| More to come! By Christmastime 2003 I should have lots more pictures of spotted hamsters in golden, sable, black and others. A spotted Sable should resemble a sable roan. |
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| Name: Gypsy Birthday: 7/2/03 Type: Short Hair Pattern: Spotted-Banded Coloring: Golden Calico Notes: This is a rather sparcely marked spotted banded. The reason for more than usual amount of white is that Gypsy is also a calico, and spotted-banded yellow appears white. So the only color that can be seen is the golden, roughly half of what should be there. |
| Spotted-Banded Ba_ and Dsds, the banding mutation and the dominant spot mutation combined create a new phenotype The effect of the combination is variable, ranging from a normal-looking banded hamster to a pure white hamster. A spotted-banded hamster nearly always has a blaze on the face. A normal spotted-banded has a patch of color at the rump and a patch of color at the head and is white nearly everywhere else. Spotted-banded when combined with coat colors follows the same guidelines as spotted alone, except spotted-banded hamsters usually have even more dilution of cream and yellow than spotting alone. |
| Name: Panda Jr. Birthday: 3/6/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Spotted-Banded Coloring: Black Notes: This is a fairly normal looking spotted-banded hamster. Basically the band is bigger than normal and a blaze or "headspot" is obvious on the face. |
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| Name: Snowman Birthday: 3/6/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Spotted-Banded Coloring: Yellow-Black Notes: This is an example of a mock solid hamster. Genetically snow is spotted-banded yellow-black, but phenotypically he is solid white. |
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| Name: Unnamed Birthday: 5/12/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: ??? Coloring: Flesh Eared White Notes: This picture is included as an example of a phenotypically solid white hamster. It is known that he is genetically cdcd, but it is unknown if he is patterned or not. In order to know his patterning, he would need to be bred to a solid hamster. **NEVER BREED TO SOLID WHITE HAMSTERS TO EACH OTHER OR TO A ROAN/IMPERIAL...EYELESS BABIES MAY OCCURR!!!** |
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| Name: Roany Birthday: 1/13/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Roan Coloring: Sable Notes: This is a fairly good example of a roan hamster. This even distribution of colored an uncolored hairs creates an ideal smokey appearance. Note the dilution of the sable color. Sable roans often fade with age. |
| Name: Unnamed Birthday: 7/30/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Imperial/Solid Coloring: Umbrous Golden Notes: Although it may be hard to see in the picture, this is an imperial umbrous golden hamster with a pure white belly next to a solid umbrous golden. |
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| Roan/Imperial Whwh: the semi-dominant anopthalmic white gene causes a range of phenotypes when heterozygous and causes a pure white hamster with NO eyes when homozygous (WhWh). Whwh may cause a pure white coat, a roan, or an imperial (white bellied hamster) depending on on what coat colors it is combined with. When combined with cream and not umbrous, Whwh can cause a pure white coat or a "cream roan." When combined with cream and umbrous, Whwh causes a roan. Although others are possible (copper roan, sable-chocolate roan), I only breed for sable roans and caramel mink roans. When combined with non-cream-based colors, Whwh causes an imperial hamster. Whwh causes a slight dilution in eye color. To avoid getting eyeless hamsters, never breed two roans together, and do not breed a roan to a pure white hamster or any hamster with a white belly. To be on the safe side, you should also not breed together any two hamsters with white bellies. |
| Name: Latte' Birthday: 5/19/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Roan Coloring: Caramel Mink Notes: This is a fairly good example of a roan hamster. This even distribution of colored an uncolored hairs creates an ideal smokey appearance. Note the dilution of the mink color. Mink roans appear rather greyish until they reach five weeks old. They tend to darken with age. |
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| Roan/Imperial and other patterning mutations Whwh and Baba or Whwh and Dsds. Although I do not and will not ever breed for these combinations, I think it is important that they be addressed. The reason I do not breed for otherwise patterned Roans or Imperials is that extra patterning increases the already high variation in the roan/imperials, and because I do not want the Wh mutation to be masked by Ds or Ba. Since WhWh hamsters have no eyes, I think it is very important for my customers to know if their animal is whwh or Whwh. Keeping my roan lines free of Ds and Ba and my otherwise patterned lines free of Wh is the only way I can guarantee that my patterned or white animals are or are not also Wh. Whwh Ba_ causes a hamster that looks very similar to a Ba_ Dsds hamster (see Spotted-Banded above). The effects of the Whwh phenotype with specific coat colors is intensified by the presence of banding. I have seen a Whwh BaBa golden before, but do not have pictures and do not plan on ever having pictures to put up. I do not know for sure what Whwh Dsds would cause but I imagine it could cause a range of phenotypes from a regular spotted to a pure white hamster no matter what the background color is. Whwh Ba_ Dsds would probably cause a pure white hamster no matter what the background color is. Whwh causes a slight dilution in eye color. To avoid getting eyeless hamsters, never breed two roans together, and do not breed a roan to a pure white hamster or any hamster with a white belly. To be on the safe side, you should also not breed together any two hamsters with white bellies. |
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| Name: Unnamed Birthday: 7/30/03 Type: Long Hair Pattern: Imperial/Solid Coloring: Umbrous Cinnamon Notes: Although it may be hard to see in the picture, this is an imperial umbrous cinnamon hamster with a pure white belly next to a solid umbrous cinnamon. |
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