Pink eyed white
The pink eyed white, or albino, is one of the oldest and most popular selfs amongst show breeders, and one that is often in receipt of top awards. Genetically there are almost as many types of pink eyed white as there are other varieties due to the masking effect of the albino gene when homozygous (c/c). PEW mice cannot hide other genes on the C locus, however - when one copy of the albino gene (c) is present along with another c-dilute (such as c^e, c^h, c^ch and so on) you can produce coloured mice. This makes the PEW dangerous to use as an outcross without first test breeding to find out which genes are present.
Although you may not get the variation in colour in a PEW that you do in, say, champagne, there are still varying degrees of whiteness. The ideal is a pure, bright white with no hint of yellowing. In Encyclopedia of Pet Mice, Tony Jones refers to the practice of washing and powdering whites; "There seems to be a strong feeling in the fancy today that powdering of whites is a bad practice, yet it is accepted in other fancies. It is up to the individual to make his own decision on this rather delicate subject". Personally I have never tried this and yet have still won top awards with whites, so it seems to me that washing and powdering is unnecessary.
Although you may not get the variation in colour in a PEW that you do in, say, champagne, there are still varying degrees of whiteness. The ideal is a pure, bright white with no hint of yellowing. In Encyclopedia of Pet Mice, Tony Jones refers to the practice of washing and powdering whites; "There seems to be a strong feeling in the fancy today that powdering of whites is a bad practice, yet it is accepted in other fancies. It is up to the individual to make his own decision on this rather delicate subject". Personally I have never tried this and yet have still won top awards with whites, so it seems to me that washing and powdering is unnecessary.
When breeding PEWs, there is an advantage in the albino gene's ability to mask all pigment; improving size and type. If for any reason you needed to improve the size and type of a PEW, you could simply put it to the biggest, typiest mouse available regardless of colour and then breed the offspring together. This allows you to use any variety as an outcross.
PEWs are also produced in cream breeding. These PEWs can be of good enough quality to show colour-wise, so breeding cream and PEW together is perfectly acceptable and gives you the opportunity to keep an extra self variety without maintaining a separate breeding group.
A satin PEW is known as an ivory in the UK to acknowledge the fact that the satin coat changes the colour slightly so that it is not quite as white as with a normal coat.
PEWs are also produced in cream breeding. These PEWs can be of good enough quality to show colour-wise, so breeding cream and PEW together is perfectly acceptable and gives you the opportunity to keep an extra self variety without maintaining a separate breeding group.
A satin PEW is known as an ivory in the UK to acknowledge the fact that the satin coat changes the colour slightly so that it is not quite as white as with a normal coat.
