Argent

Argents, or as they are also called, silver pigs, are one of the new breeds of guinea pigs, bred recently and not very common in our country so far.

Argents are similar to agoutis in their coat color with the so-called ticking (ticking), when each hair is colored in a certain way. However, if ticking in agouti means three shades in the color of the hairs (closer to the skin, the hair has the main color, brightens in the central part, and darkens again at the tip), then argent is a slightly different story. Unlike the agouti, the hair of the Argent is divided not into three, but into two zones. In other words, Argents are guinea pigs with two-tone colored hairs. Ticking covers the entire body of the guinea pig, with the only exception being a solid belly.

Unlike most guinea pigs, the Argent’s eyes have a bright reddish-pink hue which, combined with their unusual coat, makes them easily stand out from other breeds.

Another feature of Argents is that they are born exclusively with light-colored fur, ranging from white and lilac to golden and beige. The reason for this phenomenon is that Argents are essentially cross-eyed agoutis. The presence of the red eye gene lightens the black color of the coat to lilac, and brown to beige.

Argents have six basic colors, just like agoutis. When describing the coat color of the Argents, the ticking color is listed first:

• gold / lilac (Gold / Lilac). The main color is lilac, the tips of the hair on the coat are golden, the belly is golden. The eyes are red, with an orange tinge. Ears and paw pads are pink.

• gold / beige (Gold / Beige). The main color is beige, the tips of the hair on the coat are golden, the belly is golden. The eyes are red with an orange tint. Ears and paw pads are pink.

• lemon / purple (Lemon / Lilac). The main color is lilac, the tips of the hair on the coat are lemon, the belly is a delicate lemon color. The eyes are red, with an orange tinge. Ears and paw pads are pink.

• lemon / beige (Lemon / Beige). The main color is beige, the tips of the hair on the coat are lemon, the belly is a delicate lemon color. The eyes are red, with an orange tinge. Ears and paw pads are pink.

• white / purple (White / Lilac). The main color is lilac, the tips of the hair are white, the belly is white. The eyes are orange-red. Ears and paw pads are pink.

• white / beige (White / Beige). The main color is beige, the tips of the hair are white, the belly is white. The eyes are orange-red. Ears and paw pads are pink.