What color is my hamster?

[Bailey-Benji]

This is Bailey my petshop ham and I was wondering if you knew what colour she was?

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e336/Bailey2510/itsbailey002cropped.jpg

She has faint black ticking on her back and faint cheek flashes. I think she has some sort of "band" that went wrong :P Or possibly dom spot? Her belly is white, her paws are white.

She has self markings?

I thought she might have been yellow but that is Agouti?

Or a copper?

She's confused me!! :P

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e336/Bailey2510/baileyincage_cropped.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e336/Bailey2510/bailback.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e336/Bailey2510/PICT0054.jpg

Her eyes are pure black and her black ears are mottled with pink.

If you know what colour she is I could provide some better photos for you :)

I also have a long haired cream male if you need any pictures of him :)

[souffle]

I think she is a yellow banded. The mottled ears are common in a banded hamster and she has the ticking. Is the base fur an ivory colour? She is not copper as coppers do not have ticking. The cheek flashes in yellows are concentrated ticking and she has a chest band too and she appears to be agouti as she has the paler belly. Sometimes you cannot pin a colour down exactly if you do not know the background. She is lovely.

[Bailey-Benji]

Thanks

I was speaking to another breeder and she said that she thought she was umbrous (faint cheekflashes) and that she was a copper banded but did not think she was a yellow because of the self markings.

Her under colour is creamy.

:D

[Christine Yule]

Thanks

I was speaking to another breeder and she said that she thought she was umbrous (faint cheekflashes) and that she was a copper banded but did not think she was a yellow because of the self markings.

Her under colour is creamy.

:D

I agree with Souffle on the Yellow color. She cannot be Copper because Copper is the same color to the base of the fur. She cannot be Umbrous because there are not cheek flashes on Umbrous and the Umbrous gene affects the belly fur color and I can see from the picture that she has an ivory like belly. Umbrous also causes light coloured eye rings and I don't see any.

I wouldn't say that she has self markings because she does have cheek flashes. I think she is better described as just not having strong agouti markings. But that is normal in agouti colours.

The Yellow gene does have black ticking and since she doesn't have red eyes, I think Yellow is a probable conclusion but like Souffle said, we can't be conclusive. But, if she was mine, I would call her Yellow. And most likely a Banded Yellow. The banded gene seldom shows as a straight line. Dominant spot puts white on the head and your hamster doesn't have any.

All though she is very pretty, I think that since we can't be certain she is Yellow, I will have to use a photo of a hamster that I am sure is Yellow.

But, at least you know what color she likely is now! :)

Thanks a lot.

Hamstermama

[Rach]

No matter what colour she is, she looks ever so pretty! I wis I could hold my little girl hamster... I really should become better at taming. :? Love her name!

[Bailey-Benji]

Thank you very much for the information and your time :)

Rach, keep on trying - perseverance is the key, and yummy, healthy treats!

[souffle]

Rach have a peep at this artcle. It may help :lol:
http://www.hamstercentral.com/user.php? ... ticle&a=44 (http://www.hamstercentral.com/user.php?action=viewArticle&a=44)