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[mikasauntie]

I've been looking at JoAnn's article (and photos) about the chincilla show.  Nice! and have a couple of questions as I compared that to our Ari, a standard grey girl.  She is strictly a pet, but I'm curious...

One of my kids looked at her in kind of bad light one evening and said he saw red in her fur.  I think I'm reading that is bad.  I don't see the red myself.  Is it something that just shows up at the tips, wouldn't be apparent unless you were really looking for it?  Can a standard grey chinchilla have the red?

I saw something else that mentioned the belly should be white with that solid demarcation line down the side.  Our girl has a grey belly - a light dove-grey kind of color.  Would that make her something other than a standard grey? 

Show quality or not, she's the family tyrant...I mean darling...and we love her along with all her crazy stubborn qualities.

KB

[Jo Ann]

 

One of my kids looked at her in kind of bad light one evening and said he saw red in her fur.  I think I'm reading that is bad.  I don't see the red myself.  Is it something that just shows up at the tips, wouldn't be apparent unless you were really looking for it?  Can a standard grey chinchilla have the red?

To be able to see the red hue, you would have to look at her under a bright,strong natural lighting or the sun.  You want to look at them against all white ... including your clothing and any clothing the person has on that is holding her.  In some lights things can reflect colors close to them.

I saw something else that mentioned the belly should be white with that solid demarcation line down the side.  Our girl has a grey belly - a light dove-grey kind of color.  Would that make her something other than a standard grey? 

Again, the same lighting and surroundings would be best to be able to see the belly color properly.
It is hard to find very many now-a-days that has a pure white belly (which is very desirable). 
But, one that is obviously not a pure white may have other colors in it's background. 
I would not think it is a pure standard gray, but probably a standard gray born to at least one or more mutation parents ... or their probably would be mutations in the background. 
Without the pedigree, it would be impossible to know what color mutations for sure.

She would still be considered a standard gray, but not a pure standard gray (having nothing but standard gray in it's background).  She could be a possible carrier of one or more other colors, but, unless you mate her with a chinchilla that is carrying the same hidden color, you would probably only produce standard grays, if you are mating her with a standard gray.

Example: I have two standard gray parents that just recently produced a hetro ebony kit.  Both standard grays have to be carrying the ebony trait to do this.  I now have this listed on their history.  It was an unknown factor before this kit was born.   

Chinchillas, to me, are never 'just a pet', they are a member of you family that can be around for 20+ years, if properly cared for and is healthy, having no hidden health problems.

Chins don't have to be show quality to love and be love ... they all have that quality about them.     BUT, the closeser to "show quality" you can get, usually, the healthier the chin is and stronger the genes are.

Hope this answers your questions ... others may have more to add.

   Jo Ann

[ChinchillAZ]

Just to add to what Jo Ann was saying, Standards with a belly that isn't pure white are often referred to as being "dirty-bellied."

[mikasauntie]

Thanks! 

Jo Ann, you're right, she's not "just a pet", she is the "baby" of the family and we all enjoy her company - even when she's being a scalawag.  But there is definitely no "man" in her future and no plans to show her, either. 

I do have the pedigree, or access to it.  I'll have to check just to satisfy my curiosity.  We love her coloring just as it is, and her narrow shoulders are quite fine with us.

Now if I could just get her stop yelling at me when I tell her no!   

KB

[Jo Ann]

   When she starts "yelling" at you ... try just talking softly to her.

  It may take several tries, but sometimes, they want to "talk" with you.  We have one that will carry on a conversation with you, being very careful and polite not to interrupt when we are speaking and we do the same for her ... sometimes it can go on for 15 to 30 minutes.  I sure wish I understood what she is saying.     

Then sometimes I may be lucky I do not understand one of the other ones ... Fuss-budget ... he fusses at anyone that goes by his cage door.  The only time he will take a break from fussing at you, is if you are combing him and for about 2 hours after that.     

    Jo Ann

[mikasauntie]

I found this webpage that was helpful in explaining what the fur should look like (even had a reference to chinclub).  Maybe it will also answer questions someone else might have.

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/bri.pollard/Fur.htm

Jo Ann, I love your stories about your chins.   Yes, eveyone else's too.  I smile often reading htis board.

KB

[chinclub]

Here is the complete article I wrote that it referenced:  http://www.huggablepets.com/huggablepets/fur.shtml 

Hope it helps.    Here is anther one you might find useful:
http://www.huggablepets.com/huggablepets/0804pair2.shtml

[mikasauntie]

thanks, Jamie...those articles did help.

KB

[Jo Ann]

   I've been looking for those two articles and could not remember where they were ... now I have them marked!!!  I often have people asking about quality ... these two articles explain it thoroughly and with pictures so that it can be seen and not have to try to visualize it.  It is hard to get someone new to visualize something they have never seen.   

   Jo Ann

[mikasauntie]

As a person who has never seen, I can attest...Jo Ann you are SO Right!  Pictures really help.  I'm saving those articles, too.

Another question about what chinchillas look like...Mika's little feet were a light pink.  Ari has very dark pink feet.  And the cutest little black toes. In fact, when we first got her, I thought her little feet were irritated, the skin is that deep a pink.  I tried searching to find out about chinchilla skin, but as you can imagine, I got lots of things about fungus and itchiness and other topics I won't even bring up on this board.

Does the skin tone have any relation to the coat color?  For a breeder or show animal is lighter or darker skin a factor?

KB

[chinclub]

Yes the skin color is different in different mutation colors but it has nothing to do with their breeding or show quality.   

[Jo Ann]

   One that is a good example is the ones you would put under the "White" catigory ...

A white mosaic has dark (black/gray) on the pads of the feet and dark ears and dark eyes. 

Where as ...

A beige has pink pads, pink ears and pink to dark red eyes.

Now you breed those two together and you can get a pink white.
A pink white is actually a white/beige ... but ...
 
A pink white will get it's white fur from the white mosaic, but he will take the pink ears, pink pads of the feet and pink eyes from the beige.

   Jo Ann

[BrightEyed]

could you breed a beige that had a pink white sire and standard dam to a white mosaic? do the parents being white make it a lethal factor? could that white gene be passed through the beige and be lethal because of the white mosaic mate?

[Jo Ann]

  As I understand it (and practice myself) the white-to-white lethal factor refers only to the actual animals you are breeding, not the parents or grand parents. 

IF both are healthy, having good strong fur, being blocky and a good size, (ei. show quality) since there is standard in the grand parents, I would think it would be OK.  Make sure you keep a kit and raise it.  If you are happy with the results they produce, keep them together, if not, separate them.

You listed the parents of the beige as being a pink white and a standard.
What are the parents of the white mosaic???

BUT, in my opinion, the kits born to this union should all be in breeding with a pure standard gray mate. 

A note to all:
Standard Gray is the basis for all chinchillas and usually carries the best genes.  Putting a pure standard back with them is like a vitamin-b shot to a person who is weak and tired ... it works wonders.     A good pure standard added back to the line every 2nd or 3rd generations helps to keep your chinchillas healthy and happy.   

Never breed an animal that is pet quality ... it will carry those bad genes and give them to every kit born for generations to come.


   Jo Ann

[BrightEyed]

I was just wondering but I did give two of my animals as examples. The white mosaic had a standard dam and white mosaic sire.

I want to be breeding more true colors by keeping standards in the pedigree, like you are saying is vital to keep in mind. I am not seriously thinking about breeding the two I gave as example tho. There are just too many different colors for my liking. I want better quality and I feel like unless they are a very high quality pair I think it would just weaken the kits.

I would consider breeding that white mosaic with a dark ebony female that had a standard dam and white ebony sire (who was a color champion). But I want to stick more to standards.