Rex Hamsters
Manstenens Zon of a Curl
Manstenens Zellina
For more information on Cream and Rex hamsters please visit the British Hamster Association website.
Curlz was Reserve In Show Syrian at the August 2, 2003 CHA show.
In the Spring of 1993 I received several hamsters from a shipment imported from Sweden. These included Manstenens Zon of a Curl (Curlz) a Black Eyed Cream Long Haired Rex male and Manstenens Zellina a Red Eyed Cream Long Haired Rex Carrer Female. My goal is to combine this line with the Swedish Dark Gray line to obtain Dark Gray Rex.
Some of the California Curly Kids
Left - Tarot's Surprize Surprize "Prize"
Black Eyed Cream Long Haired Rex

Right - Silver Gray Tort Long Haired Rex
We have found that it is very difficult to keep Long Haired Rex Males in good coat on most beddings. Due to the length and wave of the coat any bedding with ragged edges catches in the fur. Even with constant attention this results in a loss of density. Thus far the best bedding we have found to prevent the problem is Alpha-dri, a paper laboratory product seen in the picture above. This bedding consists of evenly cut squares with no ragged edges to catch in the coat. Though any bedding may become entangled in a Long Haired Males coat, this bedding has proven to cause the least problems while also being comfortable for the hamster and very absorbant.
Sadly, due to a health issue we almost lost the Rex Gene in California. A few dedicated breeders were able to preserve the gene thanks to a single Rex hamster from a line which was not effected. Breeders are currently working hard to introduce the Rex gene into other lines in order to prevent it from being lost again. One of these lines is my Dark Grays, and I expect to eventually produce Dark Gray Rex.