Rabbit Genetics: A-E

Since geocities will be closing this month, that means the Genetics website I had up will be closing. So, I thought I'd paste most of the info here on the blog and then it'll still be available for folks to see.

The A Locus:

There are 3 genes in the A locus. The most dominant is “A”, the second dominant is “a(t)”, and the most recessive is “a”.

~ Agouti
“A” is called the Agouti gene. All agouti colors have to carry at least one of these genes. If they carry two of these genes then they are homozygous (pure) for the agouti gene. Meaning they can not produce any other color except an agouti color. The agouti gene creates different bands of color in the hairshaft. It also creates the agouti markings (such as the white bellies, white inside of the ears, white lacing around the nostrils, etc). For example, a chestnut agouti (castor) has a white belly. It also has 3 colors in the hair (top layer: black, intermediate layer: red/orange, and bottom layer [undercolor]: slate blue). The following colors are some of the colors that are agouti colors:

Chestnut Agouti, Castor, Sandy Gray, Copper, Gray, Opal, Chocolate Chestnut Agouti, Chocolate Agouti, Cinnamon, Lynx, Red, Fawn, Cream, Orange, Chinchilla (black, blue, chocolate, lilac, sable, and smoke pearl), Squirrel, Tri Color, Harlequin, and all Steels (silver tipped & gold tipped, black, blue, chocolate, lilac, sable, and smoke pearl).

*A correct tri color or harlequin are agouti colors. The orange/red, fawn/cream that is seen is created by the agouti gene. When the spots that the orange/red/fawn/cream color should be are a tort color it is a self tri color/harlequin (a non-agouti based color).

The Agouti gene can also carry tan pattern and non-agouti. When the agouti gene carries tan pattern or non-agouti it is heterozygous. Meaning it is not pure for the agouti gene.

~ Tan Pattern
“a(t)” is called the Tan Pattern gene. All Tan Pattern animals have to have at least one tan pattern gene. If it has two tan pattern genes then it is homozygous for the tan pattern. The tan pattern creates the gold ticking that is seen otters. It also creates the silver ticking that is seen in silver martens. It creates the silver ticking when it is paired with the chinchilla or shaded gene. The following colors are some of the colors that have the tan pattern gene:

Tan (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac), Otter (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac), Silver Marten (black, blue, chocolate, lilac, sable, and smoke pearl), Tortoise Marten (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac), Fox (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac).

The tan pattern gene can also carry non-agouti. When the tan pattern gene carries non-agouti it is heterozygous. Meaning it is not pure for the tan pattern gene.

~ Self (Non-Agouti)
“a” is called the Non-Agouti or Self gene. All self varieties have to carry two non-agouti genes. They are automatically homozygous for non-agouti. They have to be homozygous for non-agouti because it is the most recessive gene in the A Series and a recessive gene cannot carry a gene that is dominant to it. The self gene makes the animal look all the same (unless it is paired with another gene [I.e. the shaded gene creates shading]). They do not have agouti markings (white belly, etc) like agouti colors do. Their under color is a bit lighter. For example the undercolor on a black is slate blue and the undercolor on a chocolate is dove gray. The following colors are some of the non-agouti colors:

Black, Blue, Chocolate, Lilac, Tortoise (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac), Siamese Sable (Sable), Seal, Smoke Pearl, and Sable Point.

The B Locus:

There are two genes in the B Series. The dominant one is “B” and the recessive one is “b”.

~ Black
“B” is the Black gene. All colors that are not a chocolate based are black based colors and thus have this gene. They have to have at least one black gene in order to be a black based color. If they have two black genes then they are homozygous for black. Thus it could not produce any other color besides a black based color. The following colors are some of the colors that are black based colors:

Black, Blue, Chestnut Agouti, Castor, Sandy Gray, Gray, Copper, Opal, Black Chinchilla, Blue Chinchilla, Sable, Sable Point, Black Tortoise, Red, Orange, Smoke Pearl, Blue Tortoise, Sable Chinchilla, Smoke Pearl Chinchilla, Black Otter, Blue Otter, Black Silver Marten, Blue Silver Marten, Black/Orange Tri, Blue/Fawn Tri, Black Harlequin, and Blue Harlequin.

Black can also carry chocolate. When black carries chocolate it is heterozygous. Meaning it is not pure for the black gene.

~ Chocolate
“b” is the Chocolate gene. Any chocolate color must have two of these genes to be a chocolate color. They have to be homozygous for chocolate. Chocolate cannot carry black because black is dominant to chocolate and no recessive gene can carry a dominant gene. The following colors are some of the colors that are chocolate based:

Chocolate, Lilac, Chocolate Chestnut Agouti, Cinnamon, Lynx, Lilac Chinchilla, Chocolate Chinchilla, Chocolate Otter, Lilac Otter, Chocolate Tortoise, Lilac Tortoise, Chocolate Silver Marten, Lilac Silver Marten.

The C Locus:

In the C Locus there are 5 genes. “C” is the most dominant gene, “c(chd)” is the second dominant gene, “c(chl)” is the third dominant gene, “c(h)” is the fourth dominant gene, and “c” is the most recessive gene.

~ Full Color
“C” is called the Full Color gene. The full color gene can be homozygous for “C”. If it is not homozygous for “C” then it is heterozygous. The full color gene creates the one color that we see in blacks, blues, oranges, etc. Some of the colors that have the full color gene are as follows:

Black, Blue, Chocolate, Lilac, Otter, Chestnut Agouti, Opal, Orange, Tortoise, Castor, Lynx, Cinnamon, Chocolate Chestnut Agouti, Tri Colors, and Harlequins.

The full color gene can carry Chinchilla Dark, Shaded (Chinchilla Light), Pointed White, or Albino.

~Chinchilla Dark
“c(chd)” is called the Chinchilla Dark gene. The chinchilla gene can be homozygous for chinchilla dark. If it carries a gene recessive to it then it is heterozygous. It cannot carry Full Color because a recessive gene cannot carry a gene that is dominant to it. This gene removes all red, orange, and fawn pigment from the coat, leaving white. Some of the colors that have the Chinchilla Dark gene are as follows:

Black Chinchilla, Blue Chinchilla, Chocolate Chinchilla, Lilac Chinchilla, Frosted Pearl, Magpie, Self Chinchilla, Ermine (brown-eyed-white), and Silver Marten.

The chinchilla dark gene can carry Shaded (Chinchilla Light), Pointed White, and Albino.

~ Shaded (Chinchilla Light)
“c(chl)” is the shaded or chinchilla light gene. The shaded gene can be homozygous or shaded. If it carries a gene recessive to it then it is heterozygous. It cannot carry the full color or chinchilla dark genes because they are dominant to it and a recessive gene cannot carry a gene that is dominant to it. This gene also removes all orange, red, and fawn pigment from the coat, leaving behind white. It also creates the color lighter in areas and spreads it into a shaded pattern. The shaded pattern is darker than the body color. Some of the colors that have the Shaded gene are as follows:

Seal, Sable, Smoke Pearl, Siamese Sable, Sable Point, Smoke Pearl Chinchilla, and Sable Chinchilla.

The shaded gene can carry Pointed White and Albino.

~ Pointed White
“c(h)” is the Pointed White gene. The pointed white gene can be homozygous for pointed white. If it carries a gene recessive to it the it is heterozygous. It cannot carry any gene dominant to it as any recessive gene cannot carry a dominant gene. The pointed white gene removes all red, orange, and fawn pigment, leaving only white. It also makes the color (black, blue, chocolate, or lilac for the most part) only show on the ears, nose, feet, legs, and tail. Some of the colors that have the pointed white gene are as follows:

Pointed White (All), Himalayan (breed), and Californian (breed).

Pointed White can carry Albino.

The pointed white gene is incompletely dominant to the Albino gene. When a pointed white carries albino the point color is usually lighter than a homozygous pointed white.

~ Albino
“c” is the Albino gene. The albino gene can only be homozygous for albino. It cannot carry any other gene because all other C Series genes are dominant to it. This gene removes all pigment from the coat and also makes the eyes pink. The pink that is seen is from the blood vessels because the albino gene removes all pigment from the rabbit. The following variety has the albino gene:

Ruby-Eyed-White (REW).

Albino cannot carry any other C Series gene.

The D Locus:

There are 2 genes in the D Locus. The most dominant gene is “D” and the most recessive gene is “d”.

~ Dense
“D” is called the Dense gene. This gene can be homozygous for dense. If it is not homozygous for dense then it is heterozygous. All non-diluted (dense) colors carry at least one of these genes. This gene creates the dark color that is seen in certain varieties. Some of the colors that are dense colors are as follows:

Black, Chocolate, Chestnut Agouti, Castor, Sandy, Chocolate Chestnut Agouti, Cinnamon, Black Tortoise, Chocolate Tortoise, Sable, Seal, Black Otter, Black/Orange Tri Color, Black Japanese Harlequin, Orange, and Red.

The dense gene can also carry dilute.

~ Dilute
“d” is called the Dilute gene. This gene has to be homozygous for dilute. It cannot carry dense as a recessive gene cannot carry a dominant gene. This gene creates the dilute (light) color that is seen in certain varieties. Some of the colors that are dilute colors are as follows:

Opal, Lynx, Blue, Lilac, Blue Tortoise, Lilac Tortoise, Smoke Pearl, Cream (Fawn in some breeds), Blue Otter, Blue/Fawn Tri Color, and Blue Japanese Harlequin.

The E Locus:

There are 4 genes in the E Locus. The most dominant gene is “E(s)”, the second dominant gene is “E”, the third dominant gene is “e(j)”, and the most recessive gene is “e”.

~ Steel
“E(s)” is called the Steel gene. This gene can be homozygous for steel but, it can also carry recessive genes and be heterozygous. The steel gene creates the steel ticking that is seen in Silver Tipped and Gold Tipped steels. This gene does not create agouti markings. The coat is dark and some of the guard hairs are ticked with either Gold or Silver tipping. Some of the colors that have the steel gene are as follows:

Silver Tipped Steel (All - Black, Blue, Chocolate, Lilac, Sable, and Smoke Pearl) and Gold Tipped Steels (All - Black, Blue, Chocolate, and Lilac).

The steel gene can carry Extension, Harlequin, and Non-Extension.

The steel gene is incompletely dominant. When it carries Harlequin there will be harlequin markings visible. When it carries Non-Extension it appears as a black. The non-extension gene makes the rabbit look like a black but, in reality it is a steel. If this gene is homozygous for steel then the rabbit will look black. The best steel color is created when it carries Extension.

~ Full Extension (Extension)
“E” is called the Full Extension or the Extension gene. This gene can be homozygous for extension but, it can also be heterozygous. It cannot carry Steel as no recessive gene can carry a dominant gene. Most colors have this gene. Some of the colors that have this gene are as follows:

Black, Blue, Chocolate, Lilac, Chestnut Agouti, Castor, Sandy, Opal, Otter, Silver Marten, Lynx, Chocolate Chestnut Agouti, and Cinnamon.

The extension gene can carry Japanese and Non-Extension.

It is incompletely dominant to the Japanese gene. When it carries the Japanese gene harlequin markings are visible (sometimes).

~ Japanese
“e(j)” is called the Japanese gene. This gene can be homozygous but, it can also be heterozygous. This gene makes the orange and the color (black, blue, chocolate, or lilac) separate onto different hairs and into bands. Some of the colors that have this gene are as follows:

Tri Colors (Black/Orange, Blue/Fawn, Chocolate/Orange, and Lilac/Fawn), Japanese Harlequins (Black, Blue, Chocolate, and Lilac), and Magpie Harlequins (black, blue, chocolate, and lilac).

The Japanese gene can carry the non-extension gene.

~ Non-Extension
“e” is called the Non-Extension gene. This gene has to be homozygous for non-extension. It cannot carry any other gene as a recessive gene cannot carry a gene dominant to it. This gene reduces the amount of color that is seen in the coat. The color it reduces is black, blue, chocolate, lilac, seal, sable, or smoke pearl. Some of the colors that have this gene are as follows:

Frosted Pearl, Orange, Red, Fawn, Cream, Tortoise, Sable Point, and Ermine (Brown-Eyed-White).

Qadoshyah