Gerbils: Spotted Coats Explained

Gerbils have two types of coat patterns: spotted and non-spotted. The spotted pattern can be further classified into three types: spotted, pied, and mottled. Spotted gerbils have a small diamond on their forehead and sometimes a small amount of white on their neck. Pied gerbils have white markings on their forehead and neck, with the white on their neck extending down to their shoulders and front paws. Mottled gerbils have more white markings than pied gerbils, with markings on their lower back and hindquarters.

Spotted gerbils are the second most common pattern after solid colours. Gerbils with spotted patterns can have any coat colour but will have small white circles on their head, nose, ears, and nape. The white markings on their body will dilute the basic colour of their fur.

Gerbils have two pigment colours in their fur: black and yellow

Gerbils produce two colours of pigment in their fur: black (eumelanin) and yellow (phaeomelanin). The black pigment can also appear as grey or brown, and the yellow pigment can also appear as red. All gerbil colours are produced with these two pigments or by the absence of pigment. The wild colour of the gerbil, known as Golden Agouti, is caused by the hairs on the upper surface being basically black with a yellow band, and the hairs on the belly being black but with little pigment along most of the length of the hair.

The Agouti locus (A) controls the white belly and ticking. The colour locus or the albino locus (C) controls the overall level of colour produced. The dilute locus (D) controls the depth of colour. The extension locus (E) controls the balance between black and yellow pigment in the coat. The grey locus (G) controls the intensity of yellow and black in the coat.

The dominant colours of gerbils are black, agouti, grey, and cream, while the recessive colours are white, dove, and nutmeg. The combination of two dominant or two recessive genes leads to colour mutations. Gerbils can also have different patterns, like spotting and piebald, which are the result of genetic changes and selective breeding.

The dominant and recessive genes in a gerbil's DNA determine the coat colour

Gerbils have two types of pigment in their fur: black (eumelanin) and yellow (phaeomelanin). The black pigment can also appear grey or brown, while the yellow can appear red. All gerbil colours are produced with these two pigments or by the absence of pigment. The original colour of wild gerbils is agouti, which is brown with black ticking and a white belly. Agouti gerbils have all dominant genes.

When gerbils were brought to the United States, breeders mated them until new colours appeared due to recessive genes. The first recessive gene discovered was aa, which produces a black gerbil.

The dominant and recessive genes in gerbils' DNA determine the coat colour. There are seven genes that control gerbil coat colour, and their combinations are well understood. Capital letters represent dominant genes, while lowercase letters represent recessive genes. Gerbil babies receive a coat colour gene from each parent, which can be either dominant or recessive.

Dominant colours include black, agouti, grey, and cream, while recessive colours include white, dove, and nutmeg. The combination of two dominant or two recessive genes can lead to colour mutations. For example, the combination of two dominant agouti genes (A) will result in an agouti gerbil, while two recessive black genes (aa) will result in a black gerbil.

The Agouti Locus (A) controls the white belly and ticking. The Albino Locus (C) controls the overall level of colour produced. The Dilute Locus (D) manages the depth of colour. The Extension Locus (E) controls the balance between black and yellow pigment in the coat. The Grey Locus (G) controls the intensity of yellow and black in the coat. The Pink-Eye Dilution Locus (P) controls eye colour and whether the coat is lightened. The Spotting Locus (Sp) controls white spotting, with the basic colour also being diluted.

Gerbils can have different patterns in their coats, with the most common being the spotted coat, followed by the pied and mottled patterns. Spotted gerbils can have any coat colour but have small white circles on their head, nose, ears, and nape. They can also have a diamond marking on their forehead. The pied pattern refers to different-coloured lines on the gerbil's body, while the mottled pattern has small markings on the hindquarters and lower back.

While it is difficult to predict the exact coat colour of a baby gerbil due to mutations from crossbreeding, understanding the dominant and recessive genes in a gerbil's DNA can provide insight into the potential coat colours.

Gerbils can change colour as they age

Nutmeg gerbils are a great example of this phenomenon. They start with slightly orange fur when they are young, and as they age, they develop darker flecks in their fur to create a slight pattern.

Gerbils also change colour as they progress from adulthood to old age. When a gerbil gets old, its fur will look 'diluted', meaning it will be less bright than it once was. This is a natural part of the ageing process and nothing to worry about.

While gerbils can change colour as they age, they will not completely change colour. For example, an agouti will not turn into a lilac, and a white gerbil will not become black.

Gerbils can have a variegated pattern, which is a standard coat colour (e.g. agouti or black) interrupted by small white patches

The variegated pattern is one of several types of gerbil coat patterns. The most common pattern is the spotted coat, which is characterised by small white circles on the gerbil's head, nose, ears, and nape. Gerbils with spotted coats may also have a diamond marking on their forehead. The pied pattern is another type, in which the gerbil has different-coloured lines running from its torso to its tail or from its neck down its back. The third type is the mottled pattern, in which the gerbil has small markings on its hindquarters and lower back.

The colour of a gerbil's coat is determined by the dominant and recessive genes in its DNA. The dominant colours include black, agouti, gray, and cream, while the recessive colours include white, dove, and nutmeg. The combination of two dominant or two recessive genes can lead to colour mutations.

The most common gerbil colour is golden agouti

Gerbils are adorable, small yet highly energetic creatures. The most common gerbil colour is golden agouti, which is the colour of the Mongolian gerbil, the most common species of gerbil found in the wild.

The golden agouti is a wild gerbil colour, characterised by dark brown or tan fur on top, with a white or cream-coloured underbelly and legs. The term 'agouti' refers to a different kind of rodent, but its fur colour is similar to that of the golden agouti gerbil. This is the most common gerbil colour and pattern, and it's the kind you'll find in every pet store.

The colour is caused by the hairs on the upper surface being basically black with a yellow band, and the hairs on the belly being black but with little pigment along most of the length of the hair. If you part the hair on a gerbil's back, you will see the hairs are black at the base and tip, but yellow along the shaft. On the belly, you will see black bases and white or grey shafts and tips. The eyes of the golden agouti are black.

The golden agouti colour is the result of the Agouti Locus (A), which controls the white belly and ticking. The wild colour is also influenced by the Extension Locus (E), which controls the balance between black and yellow pigment in the coat.

The golden agouti is one of three shades of ginger-coloured gerbils available, along with Argente Fawn and Argente Cream. The gene that creates the ginger colour is the Pink Eye gene, which dilutes the pigment-forming cells in a growing embryo, stopping all the black colours from forming. An Agouti gerbil hair is made up of three sections: the third closest to the body is grey/silver, the middle section is ginger, and the tip of the hair is black. The Pink Eye gene removes the black tips from the Agouti hairs, leaving the gerbil's hair two-thirds ginger.

The golden agouti is the darkest of the three shades, followed by Argente Fawn and then Argente Cream, which is the palest. The reason Argente Cream is the least common is that the gene to create it is usually found in specifically colourpoint lines, where pink eyes are not desirable.

The golden agouti is a common colour in litters, after Agouti and Black. It is one of the most common gerbil colours in litters due to the prevalence of the dominant genes needed to create it.

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