Holmden Hill Haven - Black Eyed Cream Syrian Hamsters

Black Eyed Cream is one of the more popular color mutations in Syrians and one that is recommended for beginning breeders. This is because a good cream color can be easy to establish, doesn't change as much as other colors do with age and, because of the color, a hamster's type is easier to appraise. Black Eyed Cream is a self color, meaning the hamster is the same color all over, including the belly fur. The genetic abbreviation for the cream mutation is "e" and it is a recessive mutation.

Here are the British Hamster Association's color standards for Black Eyed Cream (please note that the British Hamster Association is no longer active):

TOP COAT: Deep rich sandy cream to the roots
BASE COLOR: Deep rich cream
BELLY FUR: Deep rich cream
CRESCENTS: Absent
TICKING: Absent
CHEST BAND: Absent
CHEEKFLASHES: Absent
EYE COLOR: Black
EAR COLOR: Dark grey, almost black

The National Hamster Council's Black Eyed Cream color standard is as follows:

TOP COAT: Deep rich cream to the roots
UNDERCOLOR: Deep rich cream
BELLY FUR: Deep rich cream
CRESCENTS: Absent
TICKING: Absent
CHEST BAND: Absent
CHEEKFLASHES: Absent
EYE COLOR: Black
EAR COLOR: Dark grey, almost black

The NHC's standard is more general and allows for more interpretation on the part on the judges. The BHA has attempted to narrow down the tonal range, specifying the color to be a deep rich sandy cream.

At my first hamster show, I was very surprised to find that the color of my Black Eyed Creams were not to show standards, they were much to orange (or "brassy") in tone. Since then I've been breeding and watching for better Black Eyed Creams.

While I've had Creams in my hamstery since the beginning, I've never had a line that was solely Black Eyed Cream, "ee", but have kept it in combination with other genes. It has not been an intentional move on my part, as I've been assessing the color quality of my Black Eyed Creams for years, though have never bred specifically to improve upon it. The biggest obstacles I have when working with Black Eyed Creams are the other color and/or pattern mutations an individual hamster may have.

A Black Eyed Cream that carries Cinnamon, "ee Pp", can be more orange, or "brassy", in tone. (A hamster that is Cream and Cinnamon, "ee pp", is a Red Eyed Cream and thus, has a different color standard.) A hamster that is both Cream and Yellow, "ee ToTo/ToY", can have obvious differences in color and tone. While it's color does appear to be a bit richer and deeper, it can have an obvious darkening it's forehead and can even develop slight ticking! A Black Eyed Cream that is Cream and Rust, "ee bb", is a Pale Eared Cream, which can be difficult to identify in comparison to a Black Eyed Cream as their ears darken with age and their coats can be more sandy in color, giving the appearance of being a good cream while it's really a combination color. One of the things I intend to work on is to document and compare the two, Black Eyed Cream and Pale Eared Cream, as they age from pups to adults.

A Black Eyed Cream with a white pattern gene, is much harder to assess and it's best to leave the majority of pattern genes out of any Cream lines. Coat mutations can also effect the appearance. Both Longhair and Rex can lighten the color, while Satin darkens it.

Holmden Hill Haven's "Powderpuff"
Extreme Dilute Cream Longhaired

I have been working with Cream and Extreme Dilute combinations for years. Unfortunately, because of the Extreme Dilute, I can't truly assess the quality of the Cream color. Cinnamon is also in that line and the few outcrosses I've done have all had the Cinnamon mutation involved, making it hard to judge the Cream. I have not noticed that much difference in color between the Extreme Dilute Black Eyed Creams, though I have not had very many at the same time to make the best comparison. I plan to work Cinnamon out of the Extreme Dilute line, which may or may not be easy given the linkage between the Dark Eared White mutation and the Cinnamon mutation. While I will probably not breed my Extreme Dilute line into my Black Eyed Cream line, even though many are Extreme Dilute Black Eyed Creams or Heterozygous Extreme Dilute Black Eyed Creams, I did want to make mention of them.

Holmden Hill Haven's "Pudding"
Black Eyed Cream Longhaired

I expect my Black Eyed Cream line to become one of my stronger lines using Holmden Hill Haven's "Pudding" as one of it's foundation females. I would definitely describe her color to be a deep, rich sandy cream and her color is consistent over her entire body. She is actually a Cream Tortoiseshell so I'll have work that out of the line with the future generations.

I will also use my Black Eyed Cream line in my Sable/Umbrous line. It will be essential in determining the effects of the Umbrous gene in heterozygous versus homozygous forms. The Sable/Umbrous line also has a good many genes involved so it will be much easier to use my Black Eyed Cream line in the Sable/Umbrous line but not the other way around.

Here are some of the hamsters I have used or am using in my Black Eyed Cream line: