MadAboutHamsters.

Agouti colour mutation

Cinnamon The Cinnamon hamster has a bright ginger coat with a blue undercolour, ivory belly, brown cheekflashes, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Dark Grey The Dark Grey hamster has a grey coat with a dark grey undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears. The Dark Grey is prone to spinal deformities which show in the form of a kinked or curled tail and any such hamster should not be bred from.

Golden The original agouti hamster colour. The hamster has a rich mahogany brown coat, with dark grey undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears. Light Goldens are golden brown in colour with dark grey undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Light Grey The Light Grey hamster has a light grey coat with a dark grey undercolour, ivory belly, dark grey cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears. It is easily distinguished from the Dark Grey by the creamy appearance of its face and muzzle. The Light Grey is sometimes referred to as Lethal Grey.

Rust The Rust hamster has a gingerish brown coat with grey undercolour, ivory belly, brown cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Silver Grey The true Silver Grey (containing two Silver Grey genes) has a silver grey coat with a mid-grey undercolour, ivory face, grey cheekflashes, black eyes and dark grey ears. A Silver Grey containing only one Silver Grey gene, known as Heterozygous Silver Grey, is light grey with a mid grey undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears and is similar to the Light Grey in appearance.

Yellow The Yellow hamster has a yellow coat with a cream undercolour and the coat is ticked through with black hairs. It has an ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Self colour mutation

Black The Black has a jet black coat (although some have a brown or blueish tint to them), black eyes and ears. It has a white stripe under the chin and white around the feet. In some countries breeders misleading refer to the Black Syrian Hamster as the "European Black Bear" Hamster.

Black Eyed Cream The Black Eyed Cream is a self coloured hamster with a sandy cream coat, black eyes and dark grey ears..

Dark Eared White The Dark Eared White is a partial albino and has a pure white coat, red eyes and dark grey ears.

Umbrous The Umbrous gene places a grey 'wash' over any colour it is combined with, eg combined with Black Eyed Cream it produces the Sable and combined with Golden it produces the Umbrous Golden or Sooty Golden where the Golden is greyer and ivory areas are changed to grey.

Colour deprived from combing mutation

Beige The Beige is produced by the combination of Dark Grey and Rust. The Beige has a pale brownish-grey coat with grey roots, ivory belly, grey-brown cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Black Eyed Honey The Black Eyed Honey is produced by the combination of Rust and Yellow. The Honey has a dull honey coloured coat with a creamy undercolour, ivory belly, ginger cheekflashes, black eyes and dark grey coloured ears.


Black Eyed Blonde The Black Eyed Blonde is produced by the combination of Light Grey and Rust. The black eyed blonde has a dull blonde coat with grey undercolour, ivory belly, light grey cheekflashes, a distinct creamy yellow muzzle, black eyes and grey coloured ears.


Blonde The Blonde is produced by the combination of Light Grey and Cinnamon. The blonde has a blonde coat with grey undercolour, ivory belly, light grey cheekflashes, a distinct creamy yellow muzzle, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Honey The Honey is produced by the combination of Yellow and Cinnamon. The Honey has a rich honey coloured coat with a creamy undercolour, ivory belly, ginger cheekflashes, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Light Grey Pearl The Light Grey Pearl is produced by the combination of Light Grey and Yellow. The Light Grey Pearl has a pale dull cream coat ticked through with brown tips, cream undercolour, ivory belly, finely ticked brown cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Lilac The Lilac is produced by the combination of Dark Grey and Cinnamon. The Lilac has a pale lilac-grey coat with light-mid grey undercolour, ivory belly, grey cheekflashes, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Lilac Pearl The Lilac Pearl is produced by the combination of Dark Grey, Cinnamon and Yellow. The Lilac Pearl has a pale lilac-grey coat ticked through with black tips, cream undercolour, ivory belly, brown cheekflashes, red eyes and flesh ears.

Smoke Pearl The Smoke Pearl is produced by the combination of Dark Grey and Yellow. The Smoke Pearl has a pale grey coat ticked through with black tips, cream undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Silver Grey Pearl The Silver Grey Pearl is produced by the combination of Silver Grey and Yellow. The Silver Grey Pearl has a very light grey coat ticked through with black tips, cream undercolour, ivory belly, black cheekflashes, black eyes and grey ears.

Black Eyed Ivory The Black Eyed Ivory is a combination of Black Eyed Cream with either Light Grey, Dark Grey or Silver Grey. The Ivory has an ivory coat, black eyes and grey ears.

Black Eyed White A Black Eyed White Hamster can be produced by a number of combinations. It is not a "true" white but a synthetic white. Silver Grey and Black Eyed Cream produces a "Black Eyed Ivory" which is so pale in colour that it is white. Black Eyed Cream Roans, Black Eyed Cream Dominant Spots may also be so pale with little colour and may look white.

Blue Mink The Blue Mink is produced by combining Dark Grey, Cinnamon, Black Eyed Cream and Umbrous and has a brown coat with a purple tone and a cream undercolour, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Chocolate (Sable) The Chocolate (Sable) is produced by combining Sable, Black Eyed Cream and Rust and has a milk chocolate coloured coat with a cream undercolour, black eyes and grey ears.

Copper The Copper is a combination of the Black Eyed Cream, Umbrous, Cinnamon and Rust genes and has a bright copper coat with a cream undercolour, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Dove The Dove is produced by combining Black with Cinnamon and has a dove brown coat to the roots, red eyes and flesh ears.

Flesh Eared White The Flesh Eared White is produced by combining Dark Eared White with Cinnamon and has a pure white coat, red eyes and flesh ears. It is often referred to as an Albino because of it's appearance but it is not genetically an Albino but what is known as a "synthetic Albino".

Mink The Mink is produced by combining Sable, Black Eyed Cream and Cinnamon and has an orangey brown coat, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Red Eyed Cream The Red Eyed Cream is a combination of Black Eyed Cream and Cinnamon and has a peachy cream coat to the roots, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Red Eyed Ivory The Red Eyed Ivory is a combination of Red Eyed Cream with either Light Grey, Dark Grey or Silver Grey. The Ivory has an ivory coat, red eyes and flesh coloured ears.

Sable The Sable was, until recently, regarded as the black hamster although not a true black. The Sable is a combination of the Umbrous gene with Black Eyed Cream. The Sable has a black coat with a cream undercolour, and has cream rings around the eyes, black eyes and dark grey ears.

Yellow Black The Yellow Black is produced by combining Yellow with Black and the coat is black on the tips with a distinct yellow undercolour which shows through the top coat, black eyes and grey ears.

Ruby Eyed: The Ruby Eyed gene is extremely rare, if not extinct. The Ruby Eyed gene can be combined with any colour to produce a Ruby Eyed variety of that colour. Ruby Eyed hamsters have bright ruby eyes and the coat colour is extremely diluted. For example a Ruby Eyed Golden would have bright ruby eyes and the dark brown coat is diluted to mid/pale brown, the Ruby Eyed Cream has a coat that is diluted to a creamy ivory. The Ruby Eyed varieties are not to be confused with the Red Eyed varieties which do not contain the Ruby Eyed gene but may have 'ruby' red eyes. Colours such as Cinnamon, Red Eyed Cream, etc although having red eyes which are 'ruby' in colour, are not due to the Ruby Eyed gene. One of the reasons that the Ruby Eyed Hamster is extremely rare is that males become sterile
as they reach 10 weeks of age.

Coat Types

Hairless This gene causes the hamster to have no fur although it may have curly whiskers.

Long Haired Female long haired hamsters have a longer coat than the normal short hair and may have tufts around their bottom. However it is the male long haired hamsters that have the true long coat. They may have long tufts around their hips, a long skirt around their lower body, or a thick long coat all over. The long haired Syrian Hamster is sometimes referred to as the Teddybear Hamster.

Rex This gene causes the coat to become wavy and the hairs to be lifted and a Short Haired Rex is plush in appearance with a velvet feel to the coat. The Long Haired Rex (particularly the males) can have a slightly scruffy look. Rex hamsters also have curly whiskers with a 'crimped' appearance.

Satin The Satin gene gives the coat a shiny appearance. This is sometimes very difficult to see on a White, Sable or Black hamster. Satins should not be bred together as this produces 'double satinised' hamsters who have an ultra shiny but thin coat.

Short Haired This is the normal coat of the wild Syrian Hamster and the coat is short and dense all over the body.

Coat Patterns

Banded The Banded hamster has a band of white over the middle of the back. This band may sometimes be incomplete, crooked or contain spots of colour. The belly of a Banded hamster is white.

Dominant Spot The Dominant Spot Hamster is a white hamster with coloured spots although sometimes there are so many spots of colour or the spots are so large that not much white shows. The Dominant Spot usually has a white blaze from the nose extending up the centre of the face. The belly of a Dominant Spot hamster is white.

Piebald The Piebald Hamster has long believed to be extinct as they have not been seen for several years. Similar in appearance to the Dominant Spot it is white with patches or spots of colour over the back but these spots or patches also occur one the stomach unlike the Dominant Spot that has a white belly.

Roan The Roan Hamster is a white hamster with coloured hairs ticked through the coat. Sometimes this ticking can be so intense that not much white is present, whilst on other hamsters there may only be coloured hairs evident on the head. The same gene can also produce a 'white bellied' hamster where the hamster has a pure white belly eg White Bellied Golden. Both the Roan and White Bellied hamsters are produced by the Anophthalmic gene and two hamsters containing this gene should not be bred together as this can produce eyeless white babies. Tortoiseshell A tortoiseshell is a bi-coloured animal which consists of a balanced pattern of coloured and yellow patches. Tortoiseshell and White A tortoiseshell is a sex-linked bi-coloured animal. The standard calls for a tricoloured animal which is produced by combining the tortoiseshell with a white pattern gene. The coat colour shall consist of a balanced pattern of coloured, yellow and white patches.

All of the above patterns when combined with a colour which has grey ears ie Golden, Dark Grey, etc can result in an animal with mottled ears. Patterns can be combined with any colour and coat type as well as with other patterns eg a Long Haired Golden Banded Dominant Spot hamster can be produced.

Agouti colour mutation

Self colour mutation

Colour deprived from combing mutation

Coat Types

Coat Patterns

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