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This is a smooth –haired cavy and, for showing purposes, must have only one colour hair. There are 12 recognised colours of the self cavy which are; P.E White, Black, Cream, P.E Golden, Red, Chocolate, Lilac, Beige, D.E White, D.E Golden, Saffron and Buff. There are also a small number of colours that are still in the stage of proving themselves to the standard required as to consistency of breeding true to the defined colour.
Another aspect of gaining recognition for a new colour is that there have to be a reasonable number of breeders interested in developing and showing that particular colour. This stipulation is there because it will ensure that there is a definite pool of breeding stock available, that other interested people may find it possible to obtain breeding stock before the cavy is given a ‘full standard’.
We will now take a view of each colour individually.
This cavy is fully described by its name. It’s a large cavy with a pure white coat. The eyes should be large and pink in colour. It is not an albino, although this is how it is often described by newcomers and the general public. The ears should be large rose petal shaped and should be pink, as should the pads of the feet. The toenails must be white. It is about the only breed of cavy that carries no other colour. This cavy can be difficult to show to perfection, as it is imperative that it is perfectly clean and that is has not stained under on its stomach. As you can imagine as it lies in its cage.
Pink Eyed White cavies, which are being used as show stock, are not usually fed carrots, especially near show time, as it can stain the hair around the mouth. The coat of the self cavies can be smooth and easy to groom. However the cavies with the best conformation have a very thick and sometimes longer than average coat. Woolly coated pigs never make an exhibition pig and should not be bred from. Another serious fault is a very thin, cottony coat. Whites are also bred with Dark eyes.
The Self Black
This is a very popular breed, with its raven black glossy coat showing very well after grooming. Probably more blacks than any other colour are bred to the conformation aimed for. This is especially true of the boars, which often excel in shoulder definition, while the sows often have an extremely good profile.
However, the best blacks often carry red and/ or white hairs, which often spoil there appearance. A judge will fault such a pig, quite correctly, on colour. They have an advantage over P.E Whites and other paler cavies in that they do not show stains as much.
One problem with black cavies is often, although the top coat is a beautiful deep black, the colour does not reach to the bottom of the shaft of the hair and the under colour of the cat looks dull, greyish black. Unfortunately the cavies with the best under colour are often those carrying most red coloured hairs. These do not make show animals and nails of the self black cavies must all be black. Poor depth of colour in blacks is mostly caused by white hairs in breeding stock. Red improves the depth of top and under colour.
The Self Cream
The ideal shade for a self cram cavy is often described as that of ‘Devon Cream’, and it is a difficult colour to aim for. It is another breed that has a problem with under colour pigmentation. The animals where the cream colouring is carried down to the skin are almost too dark on the surface, while those of the correct top colour seem to fade to almost white under and must be faulted by the judge. As with the Self White cavy, the cream cavy is a large breed with plenty of width between the eyes. The eyes of the cream cavy should be ruby while the ears and the pads of the feet should be pink.
Self creams are also prone to staining around the rear end (vent) in the same way as the Self whites. A patchy appearance is a bad fault, rendering such a pig unsuitable for showing.
The Self P.E Golden
This is another of the self cavies that has two slightly different colour options. The Pink eyed Golden is also a very popular breed. The coat should be of a medium golden colour, neither looking ‘brassy’ nor having a red tint.
Again the under colour is a problem and, if the grooming is not done carefully, they can then look patchy or flaky. This especially happens on the sides of the animal, which detracts from the appearance and, as with the blacks, goldens they can often have course white hairs. Breeding stock should be a good colour to the skin, otherwise the depth of colour gets worse in the breeding and will be faulted by the judge. It is another breed that has a good conformation and is often one of the largest breeds. Goldens are also bred with dark eyes. These first four breeds are probably the most popular of the Selfs at the shows regularly win the Best Self and Best In Show accolades. However they are not the only self colours.
The Self Red
This cavy is not as popular now as it used to be. The colour should be a mahogany red. Unfortunately, the head of a Self red is often narrower than it is desired, which gives the animal a snipey profile that does not look as attractive. The ears should have a dark red/ brown colour and the feet and eyes should also be dark.
The Self Chocolate
This cavy should be the colour a good dark chocolate bar and have dark ruby eyes. Unfortunately, as with so many of the dark colour types, lighter creamy hairs will appear, particularly on the face, body and around the vent. Use sound colour for your breeding stock.
The Self Beige
Think f the colour of a beige material. Possibly crème caramel is a better comparison. He eyes are pink. There can be varying shades in animals’ dorm the same litter. One bonus of the colour is that what you see on the top goes right down to the skin. When breeding for this colour, use a dark sow or a boar with its opposite colour – dark with light, light with dark.
The Self Lilac
The colour should be dark lilac to Dove grey, and tends to fade as the cavy matures. Again, when breeding for this colour, use light with dark, not two lights or two darks together. This cavy should also have Pink Eyes.
The Self Buff
Some people believe that the buffs are just dark creams. However, Buffs are bred to Buffs bred true, and do not produce any creams. They should be a deep rich buff shade, with no hint of lemon, apricot or cream. They are Dark Eyed.
The Self Saffron
The Saffron which looks similar to a Self Buff, should, however, have pink eyes and the coat should be a medium sand colour.
The Self D.E Golden
The D.E Golden is the Same as a P.E Golden However its eyes are Dark Ruby in colour, with the ear and pad pigmentation pink/golden in colour. The body colour should be a medium golden with no suggestion of yellow, brassiness or redness
The Self D.E White
The D.E White is the same as the P.E white, however the eyes should be dark Ruby in colour, the Body Colour is the same, it should be pure white snow in colour with the ears and pad pigmentation being pink/white.
The Non-Selfs
The Abyssinian
This is an Example of a Strawberry Roan Abyssinian.
This is one of the most striking coats, with rosettes in its coat and shades of colour. For showing purposes, it requires less preparation than a lot of other varieties, but to produce an Abyssinian that conforms to the show standard needs a lot of thought. The Requirements are specific. Although the Abyssinian, or Abby as it’s known to its devotees, has a rough coat, the formation of the rosettes is up most importance. Each rosette should be deep, emanating from a pin point centre. There should be four of them in a straight line of the saddle of the body, four around the rump and one or two on each shoulder. Then there are the ridges: these are formed when one rosette meets another. The ridges thus formed should run in straight lines, across the body and down the sides. Any sign of a flat coat anywhere on the cavy is not good. An Abby should also have what looks like a little moustache.
If you are thinking of showing your Abyssinian, look carefully at it. If the rosettes looked double centred, the ridges are uneven or the coat is soft or long, do not show it. Colour is important when showing any variety; coats of a single colour tend to be too soft. Roans, Brindles, and tortoiseshells and white tend to have better textured coats.
The Agouti
This is an Example of a Silver Agouti
Many people believe that the agouti coat is one of the most attractive that any animal – of whatever breed where this type is presented – can have. Each individual coat hair contains two distinct shades. On a smooth coat, these create a banded effect, which is a particularly startling when sunlight falls upon it. Agouti coats tend to have a little sparkle about them. The most common colours are Golden and Silver. Silver and lemon agoutis have dark eyes; chocolate, cinnamon and cream agoutis have ruby eyes.
Golden: Deep Black under colour with dark golden ticking. Belly to be an even, rich mahogany and free from brassiness. Ears and Pads black; eyes dark
Silver: Deep Black under colour with silver ticking, belly to be rich, even, silver and free from whiteness. Ears and pads black; eyes dark.
Cinnamon: Deep, rich, cinnamon under colour with silver ticking, belly to be rich, even, cinnamon. Ears and pads cinnamon, eyes ruby.
Lemon: Deep Black Under colour with lemon ticking. Belly colour to be even lemon. Ears and pads black; eyes dark.
Chocolate: Rich, deep, chocolate under colour with lemon ticking. Belly colour to be even lemon. Ears and pads chocolate; eyes ruby.
Cream: Rich, Deep chocolate under colour with orange ticking. Belly colour to be rich, even, orange. Ears and pads chocolate; eyes ruby.
The Argente is a variation on the agouti. It has pink eyes but it has ticking on its coat. The most commonly accepted colour is lilac – based coat with gold ticking. it has been seen in several colours.
GOLDEN/LILAC: Deep lilac undercolour with golden banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (gold). Ears and pads to be pink/lilac.
GOLDEN/BEIGE: Deep beige undercolour with golden banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (gold). Ears and pads to be pink/beige.
WHITE/LILAC: Deep lilac undercolour with white banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (white). Ears and pads to be pink/lilac.
WHITE/BEIGE: Deep beige undercolour with white banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (white). Ears and pads to be pink/beige.
LEMON/LILAC: Deep lilac undercolour with cream/lemon banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (lemon/cream). Ears and pads to be pink/lilac.
LEMON/BEIGE: Deep beige undercolour with cream/lemon banding. Belly colour to be the same as the banding colour (lemon/cream). Ears and pads to be pink/beige.
The Crested
An example of a Golden Agouti American Crested, clearly showing off its crest.
An Example of a Buff English Crested.
This Variety originated in the US and was imported into the UK in 1972. Its name derives from the rosette, which is centrally placed on the forehead, above the eyes but below the ears. The hairs radiate from the crests central hair point.
The Rest of the Cavies coat is smooth like a self. The English Crested is self-coloured with the crest of the same colour. In the American Crested the rosette is of a contrasting colour. Probably the most popular of these are the Golden and Black.
The Coronet
The all-important coronet on this pig should be near and symmetrical, adorning the head to give a balanced appearance. The coronet should radiate from a small centural point.
