Russian Blue Berkshire Bloodline

Overall Goals of the Line

The original plan was to create a marked line, mostly consisting of Berkshire, and integrate it into my Russian Cinnamon line. Because the markings were coming from a trusted source, but a line I had never worked with, coming from Dazzle Me Rattery, I decided I wanted to see at least four generations of this line before I worked it into my main line, in case it had health issues that would need to stop the line

Unfortunately, I've come to the conclusion that markings do not actually show up well on Russian Cinnamon, due to the combination of light Agouti bellies and light overall color, it really doesn't make much impression. At this time, I've decided to try and strip the Mink and Agouti out of this line to make a nice, clean, dark line of Russian Blue Berkshires. This is a difficult goal, as markings tend to be difficult to produce consistently.

Right now, the conformation of this line is very good, but there have been some oddly-shaped heads and pinchy noses. Additionally, the markings have been dwindling, and most of rats I've produced recently with markings are also Agoutis. So stripping out the Agouti and Mink, keeping our conformational standards high, and consistently reproducing markings are all high on the list. I will re-evaluate the line after the next two litters and see whether or not it's doable.

As always, health and temperament are paramount. Color will always take a back seat to those.