Need help with breeding please!

[smedina]

I have 3 gerbils.
A lilac female with dark pink eyes
A black male with black eyes & patch of white under chin
A golden agouti male with black eyes
None of them have white or different colored bellies

I got them from my local pet store and have no idea who their parents were or what color they were.

So my question is
If I breed the black and the lilac what color would the babies be?
And if I breed the agouti and the lilac what color would their babies be?
Which pair should I breed if I don't want all the babies to be one color?

Im afraid if I breed the black & lilac all the babies will be black and if I breed the agouti & lilac all the babies will be agouti.

Please any advice will help?

[betty]

I'm afraid you are (almost) correct with your own assumption.

The only colour you can guarantee from the lilac to black would be black and from the lilac and agouti, agouti.

There is the chance though, however - depending on the genes - for you to get all sorts of other colours - but you just can't tell this from looking. If you knew a bit more about the parents of these gerbils or the siblings of these gerbils we may have more to go on. But without this it is all guesses.

You say however, at the top that 'none of them have white of different coloured bellies' but an agouti ALWAYS has a rich creamy belly - did you mean except that or could your agouti actually be a nutmeg (speckly brown all over including the tummy?)?

Anyway back to your breeding question. Firstly, it wouldn't really be advised to breed from a female that you know nothing about from a pet store - but I understand that that is where a lot of people start from. I assume that you know that she is young and she is healthy-looking and also that she has a friendly character already otherwise she really wouldn't be a great choice for your new mother and you would be best to look elsewhere.

Also, are the two males together already in an existing clan - as if they are I would suggest that you leave those two together (as they are already a bonded pair) and find yourself a suitable spotted male elsewhere for your breeding partner. Breeding would keep your males apart and living on their own for several months and they may not go together afterwards, where as a new single male could stay with his own pups without having to split tank them afterwards.

Using a spotted male would mean that your litters always looked different even if all the pups were technically agouti or black - and by getting this spotted male from an experienced breeder it would also allow you to find yourself some genes for sure, genes that could increase your chances of throwing out the colours of pups that you are most interested in.

It still isn't guaranteed of course, but - for example - if you were going to use your Lilac female still and you found a male who had a parent with red eyes, you could find yourself with both black and red eyed pups in your litter - so argentes and more lilacs. Also with the same female, if you found yourself a male who is colourpoint or light colourpoint or had a parent who was colourpoint/light colourpoint, you may find that your lilac is actually a sapphire and you could find burmese or siamese in amongst the pups.

An experienced breeder would not only be able to help you find the genes for the variety of colours that you like, they would also be able to be your closest adviser for all things breeding when you eventually start your own clan.  It means you get a head start rather than starting from scratch.

Breeding for colour from scratch like this usually takes several generations - unless you are really lucky - but by choosing the right gerbils in the first place you can get your preferred colours in the first generation.  This instantly and effortlessly reduces the number of times you have to breed from a particular female and it also reduces the number of pups you have to find homes for.

Good luck!