Dwarf Hamsters
In Russian Campbell dwarf hamsters there exists a similar diluting mutation where the normal colour is diluted to a light grey, the colour is known as Opal. Although its heredity hasn't been published yet, it is thought by breeding results to be the common diluting gene from other species, known as dilute (d) The coat colour is now quite well established. In 1994 it was imported from the USA to the Netherlands. There have been several reports that the Opal mutation in Europe wasn't the true mutation that occurred in pure Campbells dwarfs, but instead were feared to be hybridised Sapphire Winter Whites, and it is true that there have been a prevalence of hybrids floating around Europe. However the true origin of the Opal mutation was in the lab animals of Dr. Katherine E. Wynne-Edwards, a Professor of Biology and hamster behaviourist at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada. The mutation occurred in a colony of captive bred, but wild caught Campbells hamsters. In the USA today there are still many pure Opals, and breeders have never noticed health problems associated with this mutation. Even when Opal breeding began over a decade ago, breeders detected no health problems. The animals were of a good size and of good health and bred as readily as the Normal colour types of that time.
The main problem that breeders face with "dd" breeding in Campbells, is a gene combination which will also mask the ruby eyed mottled* gene in Campbells hamsters. It is known that some colours can mask other colours or patterns. A common example of this is Albino Campbells. The Albino lacks all pigment. So, if one parent of the Albino was a Mottled but carried Albino while the other parent was an Albino, you would expect to get some babies who appeared to be Albino but were genetically also Mottled. This effectively means that you cannot positively identify which Albinos were also Mottled by appearance alone. Thus, you would never want to breed an Albino from one of these litters to a Mottled as you would really be breeding a Mottled to a Mottled. As a result of this cross you can expect 25% of the babies to be eyeless, toothless whites who would die prematurely. So any pairings that create such a situation should be avoided. Another one of these gene combinations is the Dilute Platinum, which in most cases creates an entirely white hamster which will mask the Mottled gene. Therefore it is deemed very risky and unethical by breeders, to combine Platinum with the lethal Mottled gene. If Dilute Platinums appear, you need to treat them exactly as you would treat albino Campbells, i.e. never breed them to a Mottled and warn all potential owners/breeders of the situation.
*Genetically in Campbells hamsters the two Mottled genes are represented by the symbols Mo and Mi. Both genes were found in 1991 in the UK, and both genes are also dominant and give the same outward appearance. At present the Mo gene isn't available in the USA. This gene is the much safer non-lethal Mottled gene. The other gene, Mi, is the lethal Mottled gene and is also referred to as the Ruby-eyed Mottled Gene. This gene when bred correctly and responsibly produces healthy babies. When bred irresponsibly or through ignorance, deaths and physical deformities will arise as it is regarded as a lethal gene when homozygous. So in a double dose, this gene will produce a baby which is believed to be eyeless and toothless. Such babies will be snow white, will be smaller in size than its normal siblings, and will typically die at the age of 2-3 weeks. The Ruby-eyed Mottled gene in Campbells does not necessarily produce hamsters that have red/ruby eyes. You can have a Ruby-eyed Mottled Black hamster, and it will appear to have black eyes. The eyes will only appear ruby or red coloured when a light (torch) is shined on them.
SOURCE:
http://www.egerbil.com/dilution.html#dilute_dwarf_hamsters
In Russian Campbell dwarf hamsters there exists a similar diluting mutation where the normal colour is diluted to a light grey, the colour is known as Opal. Although its heredity hasn't been published yet, it is thought by breeding results to be the common diluting gene from other species, known as dilute (d) The coat colour is now quite well established. In 1994 it was imported from the USA to the Netherlands. There have been several reports that the Opal mutation in Europe wasn't the true mutation that occurred in pure Campbells dwarfs, but instead were feared to be hybridised Sapphire Winter Whites, and it is true that there have been a prevalence of hybrids floating around Europe. However the true origin of the Opal mutation was in the lab animals of Dr. Katherine E. Wynne-Edwards, a Professor of Biology and hamster behaviourist at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada. The mutation occurred in a colony of captive bred, but wild caught Campbells hamsters. In the USA today there are still many pure Opals, and breeders have never noticed health problems associated with this mutation. Even when Opal breeding began over a decade ago, breeders detected no health problems. The animals were of a good size and of good health and bred as readily as the Normal colour types of that time.
The main problem that breeders face with "dd" breeding in Campbells, is a gene combination which will also mask the ruby eyed mottled* gene in Campbells hamsters. It is known that some colours can mask other colours or patterns. A common example of this is Albino Campbells. The Albino lacks all pigment. So, if one parent of the Albino was a Mottled but carried Albino while the other parent was an Albino, you would expect to get some babies who appeared to be Albino but were genetically also Mottled. This effectively means that you cannot positively identify which Albinos were also Mottled by appearance alone. Thus, you would never want to breed an Albino from one of these litters to a Mottled as you would really be breeding a Mottled to a Mottled. As a result of this cross you can expect 25% of the babies to be eyeless, toothless whites who would die prematurely. So any pairings that create such a situation should be avoided. Another one of these gene combinations is the Dilute Platinum, which in most cases creates an entirely white hamster which will mask the Mottled gene. Therefore it is deemed very risky and unethical by breeders, to combine Platinum with the lethal Mottled gene. If Dilute Platinums appear, you need to treat them exactly as you would treat albino Campbells, i.e. never breed them to a Mottled and warn all potential owners/breeders of the situation.
*Genetically in Campbells hamsters the two Mottled genes are represented by the symbols Mo and Mi. Both genes were found in 1991 in the UK, and both genes are also dominant and give the same outward appearance. At present the Mo gene isn't available in the USA. This gene is the much safer non-lethal Mottled gene. The other gene, Mi, is the lethal Mottled gene and is also referred to as the Ruby-eyed Mottled Gene. This gene when bred correctly and responsibly produces healthy babies. When bred irresponsibly or through ignorance, deaths and physical deformities will arise as it is regarded as a lethal gene when homozygous. So in a double dose, this gene will produce a baby which is believed to be eyeless and toothless. Such babies will be snow white, will be smaller in size than its normal siblings, and will typically die at the age of 2-3 weeks. The Ruby-eyed Mottled gene in Campbells does not necessarily produce hamsters that have red/ruby eyes. You can have a Ruby-eyed Mottled Black hamster, and it will appear to have black eyes. The eyes will only appear ruby or red coloured when a light (torch) is shined on them.
SOURCE:
http://www.egerbil.com/dilution.html#dilute_dwarf_hamsters
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