A is for Albino Hamsters-- taking a look at some of the least understood hamsters

We've all heard about the unfortunate plight of wild albino animals-- they're different, they stand out, they're an easy kill for predators. So I set out on a mission to find out just how this affects hamsters and everyone who loves and cares about them.

via here

Above is a photo of a true albino hamster-- that is, a hamster whose genes have rid them of pigment. They appear white with light pink skin and slightly red to pink eyes.The red/pink eyes thing is a big one... many white hamsters are mistakenly called albino even though they have dark (brown/black) eyes.

The Facts

• albino hamsters can occur in both Syrian and dwarf blodlines
• in both cases, however, albinos are usually smaller than their pigmented siblings
• in some cases, albino hamsters are born without eyes and die young (according to the UK Hamster Society.) These rare cases are known as anoptalmalic whites.
• contrary to popular belief, it is unproven that the eyesight of an albino hamster is any worse than that of it's pigmented siblings, because hamsters as a whole tend toward bad eyesight.

Sorry for having such a short first post, there will be more :)