Can you tell the difference between recessive yellow and lethal yellow?

by Soren Tue 03 May 2016, 1:24 pm

I adopted a cute broken marked yellow/white mouse only about 4 weeks old. But without knowing the lineage, is there a way to tell if this is the recessive yellow or lethal yellow?
I know Lethal yellow mice are prone to a lot of health problems (compared to recessive yellow), so I want to know if i should be prepared for my new friend to have an array of health problems.

by MouseLover Tue 03 May 2016, 2:18 pm

I heard that recessive yellows sometimes have a more uneven yellow colour in their fur when they are young, but this can even out over time. It can be very hard to tell though. I'd keep an eye on his/her weight. Some lethal yellows don't have any of the associated health problems, so try not to worry Smile

Out of interest, where did you get your mouse from? 4 weeks is very young.

by CinnamonPearl Tue 03 May 2016, 3:24 pm

If you live in the US and adopted her from somewhere where you don't know her lineage (I'm thinking pet store or adoption), then you really don't have to worry about her being lethal yellow. The gene is so rare in the US that yellow mice are pretty much always recessive yellow.

by Soren Tue 03 May 2016, 3:36 pm

Thank you for the advice! I bought her from a local pet shop (I know those are sketchy, but unfortunately I have not yet found a breeder in my area). I don't know exactly how old she is, but she was just weaned when I bought her, so I approximated.

by scaredymouse Wed 04 May 2016, 1:39 pm

yep, you don't have to worry about lethal yellow here in the US. all my mice are from pet stores. a breeder just moved into my area... but still, I "accidently" picked up another little lady from the pet store. I have such mixed feelings about pet store mice. on the one hand, buying from them supports horrible breeding mills... on the other hand, there is this sweet little creature here, now, through no fault of it's own that deserves a home.

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Can you tell the difference between recessive yellow and lethal yellow?

Can you tell the difference between recessive yellow and lethal yellow?

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Re: Can you tell the difference between recessive yellow and lethal yellow?

Re: Can you tell the difference between recessive yellow and lethal yellow?