The silver you describe is a pattern more than a color. The mixing of the dark and light guard hairs is not limited to the black and white - we've got chocolates and cinnamons with the white mixed in. Some call these choclate silve rmitts or cinnamon silver mitts. You did get me right in that I think - though this is still an opinion - that a typical silver mitt is a black sable with a pattern overlaid. The light silver mitts have the addition of roaning (the mixed light guard hairs) with the mitts. Farrah Shimbo - who has the most detailed book about ferret genetics I've found yet - even differentiates between the white feet of a mitt and the white feet os a blaze or panda which she calls socks. There are different opinions from all the breeders I know and it will probably be quite a while before the real 'truth' is worked out. One of my goals as a breeder. bill and diane killian zen and the art of ferrets [Posted in FML issue 1210]