THP - Contact | The Hedgehog Program

Contribute to the hedgehog weight research!

Contribute to the hedgehog health research!

Contribute to the hedgehog genetics research!

(Slate)Blue

A relatively new color, which is found for the first time in Slovenia (Sweet Spiky Hedgie’s Zoya) and per accident in The Netherlands (Provence of the High Moors) right after that. These first two hedgehogs were both very different and looked nothing like a real Grey, but also varied a lot in shade with each other. Although, both verified hedgehogs with the same genes. It’s logical to say that both Black and Grey factor creates a very unstable color which can vary a lot in shade.

A Blue hedgehog has very light grey quills, which can look either blue or brown, depending on the light. When they grow up, the quills can lighten up even more. The eyes start out black with a ruby point in the middle when they are young, but this will fade to black within the first 4 weeks. This trait however is not seen in every Blue hedgehog, lighter shades in this color are more likely to show this trait. The skin is very pale grey/blue. The nose is a mid grey color with a blue or purpe-grey hue. The mask starts out as a very pale grey-blue color. Some hedgehogs can fade completely when growing up, whist others keep their masks. It’s a very unstable color as it’s very new and not a selective bred color.

Chocolate

A dark brown colored hedgehog, which is the result of both Black and Brown combined.

The quills are very dark brown, near black. The mask and ears can differ in shade due to the unstable factor in the Black gene and can be either mid brown towards very dark chocolate. The nose is very dark chocolate and the eyes are black. The color of the skin can be very dark brown or grey, but can fade over time. The mask will get lighter when they grow up.

Cinnicot

Cinnicot is the base gene for pink eyed dilution. It dilutes all black pigment in both fur, quills, skin and eyes, creating an orange looking hedgehog with ruby red eyes. The mask fades to the point where only the cheeck patches are visible, if the hedgehog is Algerian.

The quills are light brown to orange, the skin is very light liver colored and the nose is pink. The mask and ears are a very light brown-orange color. The eyes are ruby red, but can differ in shade. However, they are never black nor bright red.

Grey

Grey is a form of dilution. At it’s own, it causes a Dark Grey to be much lighter and after fading, the mask is almost non-existent.

The quills of a Grey are nearly black, as is the nose. After fading, the nose can be an anthracite color. The ears are mid grey, the eyes are black and the mask is mid grey with a slight brown hue. After fading it turns to a very pale grey color, almost non-existent.

Albino

Albino is probably the most well-known mutation within animals. The muttion affects all pigments, causing a complete white animals with bright red eyes.

The skin is pink, eyes are red and both the fur and their quills are white.

Brown

Brown is a diluting mutation that affects the black pigment. The brown and yellow pigment stay the same, but the black pigment is brought down, creating a brown color.

The quills and nose are dark brown. The ears and mask are mid brown and the eyes are black, but can show a small ruby point in the middle depending on the light.

Black

Black is a form of melanism, a mutation in the pigmet that makes an animal very dark towards a black color.

The quills, mask, nose and eyes are black as well as the skin. They might fade a bit when getting older, but the quills and nose will always stay pitch black.

Dark Grey

Genetic code **

This is the wild color of the African Pygmy Hedgehog. Wild colors are the variaty in color without any visible mutations, therefore it has no genetic code. For example: A Grey hedgehog has the genetic code ‘dd’. An animal that has only one Grey allele (carrier of the gene) has the genetic code ‘Dd’. This animal is a Dark Grey, because the underlaying Grey allele isn’t visible but can be given to it’s young when paired with another carrier or a Grey-related color.

Dark grey has black quills, a dark grey or black nose and a grey mask with a brown hue. Their ears are dark grey and their eyes are black.

Contact

Contact

Information about the event

Information about the venue

About the organiser

Genetic code **