black-eyed whites

[Mike Cavanaugh]

cut the crap connie! Why haven't you produced some of these for us yet???!!! BACK TO WORK!

[littleindiangirl]

cut the crap connie! Why haven't you produced some of these for us yet???!!! BACK TO WORK!

Last I knew, YOU were breeding for less and less color in your caped ones, not me.

[susi´s trainer]

here are some for 1€!
i don't want them to be shipped in the winter, but i'll definitely get some!

i read that if you crossed them with "normal" ones you would get babies with less patterns. and you can see some small grey spots on this one...
http://profile.deine-tierwelt.de/rat...098/p-1103089/
...that's why i think that they are actually pieds.

[mainbutter]

the different-colored ears are totally what make this the cutest ever.

[Mike Cavanaugh]

I will have to renew my efforts on that project. For a While I was breeding the caped specificly for the smallest possible patch of color on the back. While it did get smaller and smaller, I seemed to hit a wall where I couldn't get that patch smaller then a nickle. I will try again....


Mike

[RandyRemington]

Could we get them imported to the US? I remember the Monkey Pox scare a few years back and a ban on some (all?) African rodents. Would be a real shame if the US government didn't distinguish between cb in another country and wild caught in Africa and banned at the species or even broader level.

I'm thinking this looks a lot like the Acromelanic/Himalayan recessive mutation seen in a fair number of species. Only the cooler parts of the body (ears and sometimes feet depending on species) get color. Maybe the spotted one is genetically the same and was born into a cooler room allowing a few extra spots of color.

Would be a blast to get some over to work with and find out if it could be outbred to pick up better reproduction while keeping the nice temperament and full white body. If it can be done legally should we start a co-op to bring some in? I don't have a ton of money to pitch in but could put up some and patiently wait for someone else to get them established here.

[Mike Cavanaugh]

Don't know the answers to any of your questions... I would assume it is either impossible or extremely expensive to get them.

[susi´s trainer]

I contacted the breeder:

This really seems to be a new mutation!!
Until they are about 5 month old, they have a small dark dot on their neck that then disappears! Their coat is much softer than that of normal ASFs. They are very gentle and can be handled. The production rate is normal. And this coat color seems to be dominant over all others...

Sounds quite interesting, doesn't it?

[RandyRemington]

Dominant is surprising. I know the similar looking mutation in Syrian hamsters is recessive (not sure about rats, rabbits, and the others).

Anyone have any connections to find out if they could be imported into the US and if so how expensive?

[RandyRemington]

Or maybe by "dominant over all others" the breeder means epistatic. Like leucistic would cover piebald because you couldn't see the piebald color under the white.