Status: 

• Active Breeding

Litters:

• CELESTIAL • Born: 14 April 2026 • Sire: SNOWBALL – Guldsten Fancy Rats

Project:

Silva is the foundation female of our Silvermane breeding project and one of the key animals for the future development of this line.

She has already been confirmed Roan-free and Russian Blue-free, making her an ideal foundation for establishing genetically clean Silvermane bloodlines.

Our next objective is to determine whether Silva carries English Blue and to identify which Colourpoint variety she carries. Based on current knowledge, she is believed to carry either the Pink Eye or Ruby Eye gene, as well as either Siamese or Burmese.

Through carefully planned test breedings, we aim to identify or rule out these hidden genes and gradually remove them from future generations while preserving Silva’s outstanding temperament, excellent health and beautiful Silvermane type.

Silva and her descendants will form the foundation of our future Black Silvermane and English Blue Silvermane bloodlines.

Status: Active Breeding

Litters: 

• EDELWEISS / Born: 24.06.2026  • Sire: BILLY (external sire, based in Switzerland)

Project

Namaah is one of the most important foundation females of our Red Eyed Devil breeding project and will play a central role in the long-term development of this line.

Although Namaah herself is a Marten Siamese, she represents a key foundation animal for the future development of our Red Eyed Devil bloodlines.

Her first litter, EDELWEISS, had a different primary purpose. Rather than advancing the Red Eyed Devil project, this pairing was carefully planned to introduce the Dwarf gene from our Swiss bloodlines into Sweden, creating the foundation for our future Dwarf breeding programme.

In addition to her fascinating genetics, Namaah stands out because of her exceptional temperament. She is an incredibly calm, affectionate and people-oriented rat, and preserving these qualities is just as important to us as preserving her genetics.

Another exciting aspect of Namaah is that she carries English Blue, or may even be English Blue herself. Determining this will be one of the next important steps in her breeding journey through carefully planned test breedings.

As with all of our breeding projects, these pairings are designed to improve our understanding of hidden genetics and to support well-informed breeding decisions for future generations.

In the long term, Namaah will not only play a key role in developing our Red Eyed Devil bloodlines, but may also become one of the foundation animals for our future English Blue Red Eyed Devil project.

Status: 

• Active Breeding

Litters: 

• FONDUE / Born: 27. Juni 2026  • Sire: PEPE (external sire, based in Switzerland)

Project

Skadi is a foundation female of our Dwarf breeding project, as she plays an important role in establishing the next generation of Dwarf carriers within our breeding programme.

Her first litter, FONDUE, was deliberately planned as part of this project to introduce a second, independent Dwarf bloodline into our breeding programme and to expand its long-term genetic diversity.

Beyond the Dwarf project, Skadi is currently still being evaluated. Before deciding on her long-term role, we first want to gain a better understanding of her remaining unknown genetic loci through carefully planned test breedings.

Both Skadi and her brother are considered potential candidates for our future Capped, Masked & Down Under breeding project. However, only one of them will ultimately be selected as a foundation animal. This decision will be based on their genetic results, overall development, health, temperament and type.

As with all of our breeding decisions, we believe that colour alone should never determine a breeding animal’s future. Instead, we carefully evaluate the complete package before deciding which animals will continue our bloodlines.

Status: 

• Retired from Breeding Programme / Not Suitable for Breeding

Litters: 

• GOTHIC / Born: 22. Juli 2026 • Sire: ALEXEJ color of Fulpaws

Project

Lexa was originally selected as a promising young female for our breeding programme. Her first litter, GOTHIC, was planned with Alexej, a Russian Blue Agouti male, both as a genetic test breeding and as part of our evaluation of Lexa for a possible future role within our breeding programme.

The litter has developed well so far, and we have retained two youngsters for further observation and evaluation. However, retaining offspring does not automatically mean that they will later be used for breeding. They will each be evaluated individually as they mature before any decision about their future role is made.

As Lexa herself has continued to mature, her physical development has unfortunately moved in a direction that does not meet the anatomical qualities I want to preserve in my breeding programme.

Her prominent, protruding eyes have become increasingly noticeable. In addition, the combination of her Dumbo ears with her very narrow, pointed and elongated head gives her a head shape that, in my personal evaluation, has moved too far away from the balanced head structure I want to breed towards.

For these reasons, I have decided that Lexa is not suitable for further breeding, and she will have no additional litters.

The GOTHIC litter was deliberately produced with a Standard Ear male who, to our knowledge, does not carry Dumbo. This choice was intentional.

Over many years of keeping and breeding rats, I have personally observed that some Dumbo rats, particularly in families with repeated Dumbo-to-Dumbo breeding in their background, can develop increasingly narrow, elongated or otherwise exaggerated head shapes.

This is a personal breeding observation and not a scientifically established causal relationship. I therefore do not present Dumbo itself, or Dumbo-to-Dumbo breeding, as scientifically proven to cause these head shapes. Nevertheless, this observation influences my own breeding decisions and is one of the reasons I prefer to introduce Standard Ear animals when I feel that head structure needs improvement.

The two youngsters retained from the GOTHIC litter will therefore be watched particularly carefully as they mature. Their eye shape, head proportions, overall anatomy, health and temperament will all be evaluated before any breeding decision is made.

A successful litter does not automatically make a parent an animal I wish to breed from again, just as being retained from a litter does not automatically make a youngster a future breeding animal.

At Guldsten Fancy Rats, breeding animals are continuously evaluated as they develop. Health, temperament, balanced anatomy and genetic diversity take priority over colour, variety or the value of a particular genetic combination.

Update: August 29, 2026

Status: 

• Active Breeding

Litters: 

• MOONGLADE / Born: 13.August 2026  • Sire: CHESTNUT

Project:

Phenelope is one of the young females in our breeding programme whose future role has not yet been determined.

As a daughter of Temperance and Bamse, she comes from a genetically interesting bloodline. At the same time, her development has raised several questions that we hope to answer through carefully planned test breedings.

At present, Phenelope displays some characteristics that may indicate Silvermane. However, she currently lacks the distinctive silky coat texture typically associated with Silvermane. It therefore remains unclear whether she is truly Silvermane or simply a Black rat with insufficient depth and quality of black pigmentation.

Her next litter is expected to provide the answers we are looking for. If none of her offspring clearly express the Silvermane trait, Phenelope will not continue in our breeding programme.

As with all of our breeding animals, these decisions are based entirely on the results. Health, temperament, genetics and a clearly defined phenotype will always take priority when determining which animals will contribute to future generations.

Status: 

• Reserve

Litters: 

• LANTERN / Born: 8. August 2026

Project:

Chanell is a member of our Test Group, which plays an equally important role in our breeding programme as our main breeding animals. Through carefully planned test breedings, she helps us answer important genetic questions and make well-informed decisions for the future of our breeding programme.

One of the most important unanswered questions surrounding Chanell is the genetic basis of her red eyes. She is Russian Blue, but it is currently unclear whether her eye colour is based on Pink Eye (P) or Ruby Eye (R). This information is particularly valuable for several of our future genetic test breedings.

Her first test breeding resulted in the LANTERN litter, born on August 8, 2026. This pairing was specifically planned to help distinguish between these genetic possibilities.

However, the litter has made the investigation particularly interesting: at present, there does not appear to be a single black-eyed youngster in the nest. Instead, all of the offspring currently appear to be red-eyed or very light-coloured varieties.

At this young age, their final colours and eye pigmentation cannot yet be determined reliably. The next 2–3 weeks of development are expected to provide much more information about whether we are looking at Ruby-Eyed or Pink-Eyed varieties, or whether additional genetic factors may be involved.

Until then, the question of whether Chanell is Pink-Eye-based or Ruby-Eye-based remains open. The development of the LANTERN litter will therefore be closely observed and documented.

Chanell’s A-Locus could also not be determined with sufficient certainty through the LANTERN litter. The question of whether she is genetically Agouti-based (A-) or Non-Agouti (aa) will therefore deliberately remain unanswered for now.

A further targeted test breeding with a genetically suitable Black male is planned for 2027. The final choice of sire has not yet been made. Onyx or Ethan are currently possible candidates, although Sterling is likely to be the most informative choice for this particular genetic question.

Rather than drawing conclusions from insufficient information, we will leave Chanell’s A-Locus unresolved until a suitable test breeding can provide a clear answer.

As with all of our breeding projects, health, temperament and a thorough understanding of genetics take priority over assumptions. Every confirmed result brings us one step closer to making well-informed and responsible decisions for future generations.

Update: August 17, 2026

Status: 

• Reserve

Litters: 

Project

Nerina is one of the candidates for our future Squirrel breeding project.

Born in our CELESTIAL litter, Nerina has already been confirmed as a Roan carrier. Based on her markings and genetic background, she has the potential to play an important role in the development of a carefully planned Squirrel line.

This will, however, require a suitable Self partner that also carries the Roan gene. Only through a carefully planned breeding will we be able to evaluate whether the desired traits can be reliably inherited and whether Nerina is the right foundation for this project.

Until then, we will continue to monitor her development and gather further information before making any long-term breeding decisions regarding our Squirrel project.

As with all of our breeding animals, health, temperament and a thorough understanding of genetics will always come first. Only then do we decide which animals are best suited to shape the future of our breeding programme.

Status: 

• Reserve

Litters: 

Project:

Arnica Montana is one of the most promising candidates for our future Dwarf breeding project.

As our Dwarf project is still in its early stages, there is no need to rush. Arnica Montana is still very young and deserves the time to simply enjoy growing up while developing both physically and mentally before any breeding decisions are made.

Within our Dwarf project, health, vitality and the responsible development of the line are far more important than colour or markings. For this reason, our current focus is entirely on her development and long-term potential.

In addition to her future role in the Dwarf project, Arnica Montana may also become an important part of our Red Eyed Devil project. However, her exact role within that programme will only be determined once she has fully matured.

As with all of our breeding animals, health, temperament and careful selection always come first. Only once Arnica Montana has reached full maturity and continues to develop positively will we decide on her future role within our breeding programme.

Status: 

• Reserve

Litters: 

Project:

Vacherin is one of the leading candidates for our future Dwarf breeding project.

As with all animals selected for this project, there is no need to rush. She is still young and deserves the time to simply enjoy growing up before any breeding decisions are made.

Within our Dwarf project, health, vitality and the responsible development of the line are far more important than colour or markings. For this reason, our current focus is entirely on her development, temperament and long-term potential.

Another interesting feature is that Appenzeller carries the Harley gene. Although Harley is not the primary focus of our breeding programme, we consider it a welcome bonus that may prove valuable in future breeding decisions.

As with all of our breeding animals, health, temperament and careful selection always come first. Only once Appenzeller has reached full maturity and continues to develop positively will we decide on her future role within our breeding programme.