The Rex Coat Modifier first appeared in 1970. [1] It is a Recessive Gene. [2] It is characterised mainly by Curly, Short whiskers. It can appear in both Short Coat and Long Coat Hamsters. The curls are more visible on the Short Coat and displays as a wavy coat on the Long Coated Hamsters, because of the variance in curliness, the most foolproof way of knowing if a Hamster is Rex is by looking at the whiskers. [1]
Note on Rex Gene
It is commonly assumed you should never breed a Rex Hamster to a Rex Hamster, the reasoning behind that is that it can cause the eyelashes and fur to become too curly and go into the eyes, this is however completely incorrect and on the whole, misinformation. The information originated from a breeder who bred Rex and also happened to have the issues of Entropion in their line. It was the Entropion causing the eyelids to go inward, not the Rex Gene. Entropion can be found in all coats of Syrian Hamsters and is, on the whole, pretty rarely seen.
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References
[1] Logsdail, C., Hovers, K. and Logsdail, P. (2003). Hamsterlopaedia. Lydney: Ringpress, p.138.
[2] WHITNEY, R. and NIXON, C. (1973). Rex coat: A new mutation in the Syrian hamster. Journal of Heredity, 64(4), pp.239-239.
[2] WHITNEY, R. and NIXON, C. (1973). Rex coat: A new mutation in the Syrian hamster. Journal of Heredity, 64(4), pp.239-239.