Your Rats: Colours & Markings

[aquaman38]

He is a beautiful looking boy. He's currently my favourite rat. I'm keeping a very close eye on his health and temperament, hopefully all going well I will be able to breed from him when he's around 12 months old. Until then I will be keeping a look out for any suitable future mates.
Dave

[Kim]

If you find the perfect mate for him and do breed him, I would love to adopt a baby from you, no matter what colour.



As all the BEW's I've met, including the boy I had, have all had the greatest temperaments.

Unfortunately my BEW boy seemed to have come from a line that wasnt good healthwise, as he was found in a pet shop with 2 others who its assumed were his brothers. One boy died before I picked up my boy and then the other boy died not that long after I took my boy home. My boy NEO lived the longest.

But I havent really heard anything else happening like that, so maybe those 3 boys were just unlucky.

[aquaman38]

Remus has a wonderful temperament. He's very playful and extremely cheeky, he gives my older boy, Dudley hell lol.
If his health stays good and I find the right mate for him you will be more than welcome to one of his babies, but that is still at least 10 months away yet.
Dave

[Kim]

LOL.. I'm not in any rush

I have a couple of my own litters planed over the next 10 months and will be keeping babies from those litters.

I also have my name on a waiting list for a couple of babies from at least 2 other breeders.

So a 10 month or more wait is actually the perfect time frame for me.

Its also why if you decide not to breed him, it isnt a problem. I just wanted to let you know that if you did breed him. I would be interested.

[wulfyskingdom]

Do you have any photos of your BEW's to share? I've only seen one picture before, I'd love to see some more

[aquaman38]

I dont have any pics of him as yet, my camera is at my mothers place on the central coast, she will be coming to visit me late next week so will get some pics and post for you then.
Dave

[sdaji]

I have a rat with three different colours of grey, as well as white (she is a hooded dove). I thought it was a moulting thing, but she is at least a couple of months old now (and pregnant!). I've had her for about three weeks and the colours haven't changed. If anything the difference between the colours has increased.

[Australian Rat Forum]

Do you have a photo of her that you can share as I'm really curious to see what you mean.

[sdaji]

I don't have a photograph handy, but it's easy to explain. She is a hooded, at the start of the narrow part of the pattern she is darker than the head, the dark grey goes down about half way down the back and sharply contrasts with a lighter shade of grey for the rest of the stripe down to the base of the tail. If you saw it you'd swear it was just a moulting thing, and most likely that's what it is. I expect that she is just taking longer than usual to go through the moulting process. If she looks the same in another couple of months I'll get excited.

I had some rats last year with raccoon masks on their faces. I was so excited! I was told that it was just a moulting thing, and sure enough, at about two or three months of age the colours became monotone.

[kaligneyrats]

These are my three boys, and I'm pretty sure about the colouring of two of them:

Left: Lucky (Black/burnt chocolate hooded)
Right: Toy Boy (Topaz Hooded)


It's the boy in the centre, my 17 week old boy Hughie that I'm not sure of. He's just started to go through his moult and is darkening up, he started as a Topaz, but I think he may be changing to cinnamon agouti? but I'm not sure.

His mother is a Blue Ticked Dove Self, and his father is Toy Boy. I have kept one of his sisters who has the same colouring as well. Anyone have any idea's?

[Kim]

Aug 23, 2008 21:26:44 GMT 10 @kaligneyrats said:

These are my three boys, and I'm pretty sure about the colouring of two of them:

Left: Lucky (Black/burnt chocolate hooded)
Right: Toy Boy (Topaz Hooded)


It's the boy in the centre, my 17 week old boy Hughie that I'm not sure of. He's just started to go through his moult and is darkening up, he started as a Topaz, but I think he may be changing to cinnamon agouti? but I'm not sure.

His mother is a Blue Ticked Dove Self, and his father is Toy Boy. I have kept one of his sisters who has the same colouring as well. Anyone have any idea's?

Hi Kaligney,

Lucky is definitely a Black Hooded and Toy Boy looks like a Topaz Hooded.

Hughie looks like he may be a Cinnamon. As far as I know we dont have Cinnamon Agouti in Australia, the same as we dont have Blue Ticked Dove in Australia.

We are going to be having a forum get together on Sunday October 5th is Cheltenham, if you could stop by even for just a few minutes and bring Hughie we could take a look at him in person.

I find that sometimes with photos they can look totally different. I mean I have some doves who when I recently took their photos they looked more like a dirty pale milk tea colour.



When you get into the members area we have a section on colours within Australia which might help.

Of course who knows maybe you have a new colour there in Hughie, his sister and his mother as well.

[littleraton]

Hi everyone, I'm loving all these rat pictures and talk of rat babies



Just wanting confirmation of the colours of my rats:

Tama: Standard Cinnamon Berkshire/Self (not sure how to distinguish whether it's white on his belly or just lighter colour due to the short hairs there?)
Pop: Standard Dove Hooded

Here is one of both of them, Tama at the top and Pop at the bottom.


Tama I'm uncertain of - Ticked (with cinnamon) Mink? (if that exists) or just Cinnamon?

Here are some more of T:



Here is one of Tama when he was much younger, as you can see he was much lighter in colour, almost white. Everyone thinks it's Pop... but I've seen other cinnamons that were this pale when they were young too, so I think it's common?

[Kim]

Aug 25, 2008 17:32:50 GMT 10 littleraton said:

Just wanting confirmation of the colours of my rats:

Tama: Standard Cinnamon Berkshire/Self (not sure how to distinguish whether it's white on his belly or just lighter colour due to the short hairs there?)

Tama I'm uncertain of - Ticked (with cinnamon) Mink? (if that exists) or just Cinnamon?

Here are some more of T:



Here is one of Tama when he was much younger, as you can see he was much lighter in colour, almost white. Everyone thinks it's Pop... but I've seen other cinnamons that were this pale when they were young too, so I think it's common?

Tama is Cinnamon going by the 2 pictures of him on his own.

If he is a Berkshire you will be able to tell as the white will stand out as a Cinnamon Self has a greyish tummy.

Cinnamon has a dark grey base/undercoat which is why sometimes people think the colour is mink or ticked mink.

As for him having been so pale as a baby, I've had cinnamon's that looked like silver fawn or dove when they still had their baby coat colour.




I will post some pic's of a Cinnamon Self tummy as I should have at least one on my computer.

[littleraton]

Thanks Kim! The bottom third of his hairs are a dark grey colour like you said Cinnamon is such a gorgeous colour, I'm so proud of him

Looking forward to the pictures

[kaligneyrats]

Thanks for that. Hughie looks a bit like Tama, but with less of the orange in his coat and a little more of the pale brown, and the blue is on 3/4 of the bottom of his hairs.
I haven't been able to get a clearer photo of him yet, although I am still trying.
I had an american friend say he was a Cinnamon Agouti about a month ago, but he's turned slightly more grey/brown over the past two weeks.
His mother is a stormy grey with blue tips on her guard hairs with a slightly peach-like tinge to the grey on the back of her head and in a 'cape' down her back.
His father is Toy Boy, so thats where he gets his cinnamon colouring from.