On each hair, there is a lighter color at the base and a darker color near the end.Ī mackerel tabby is characterized by vertical stripes down their body and a dark colored spine. Then there are ticked tabbies that have an almost iridescent look thanks to their multi-colored hair shafts. To keep up with our favored tabbies, did you know there are actually five different kinds of tabby cats ? The classic tabby with its combination of stripes and swirls is what most people think of. It gives tabbies a striking look that accentuates their eyes. It can be any color, but you’ll always find it planted squarely between a cat’s eyebrows. All tabbies have the characteristic “M” marking on their foreheads. These are called “ghost markings.” To avoid confusion and to make things simpler, we only call cats tabbies when their stripes are clearly seen.īesides the stripes and swirls, there’s one other way to identify a tabby cat. But even still, many solid colored cats show their inner tabby if you look at them in the right lighting or when they still have their kitten coats. If the gene is not present, their dark stripes won’t show up. Whether a cat shows its stripes or not depends on if it has a dominant Agouti gene that controls the distribution of black pigment. You’re right when you call a tiger-striped kitty a tabby, but there’s more to it than that. Ready to have your mind blown? We bet you didn’t know that all cats are tabby cats. Do You Believe In Ghosts? What About Ghost Markings All those other colors you see are simply dilutions or mixtures.Ĥ. But scientifically speaking, cats only come in three colors. There’s a whole rainbow of cats out there. You’ve seen cats of all colors including black, gray, cream, white, brown, and orange. For cats, however, coat color is found on the same chromosomes that determine if the cat is male or female. Think about it: you can’t tell what gender a dog is simply by looking at its coat color, can you? That’s because most mammals have genes for hair color and pattern on other chromosomes besides the sex chromosomes. Most people don’t realize, however, that cats and hamsters are the only mammals that closely link coat color to gender. This has to do with chromosomes that carry certain color genes, and you can read more about that here. Most cat lovers know calico cats and tortie cats are almost always female, and most gingers are male. This coat pattern is not restricted to any individual cat breed, and they’re fairly easy to spot.Ģ. There are also flame-point, lilac point, lynx point, chocolate point, and several other kinds of point coat patterns. They typically have cream-colored fur on the bulk on their bodies and dark brown fur marking their extremities. Siamese cats are great examples of this cat coat pattern. The color only appears on the cooler extremities of the body. The gene related to the point-restricted pattern (recognized by a lighter body color with a darker color at the face, ears, and feet) is sensitive to temperature. Those Pretty Points Have A Relation To Their Body Temperature Every type of cat coat pattern has been analyzed and categorized, and here are the top most interesting facts you probably didn’t know about your favorite kinds of cats.ġ. But no matter what your cat’s coat looks like, it’s her DNA that determines whether she has the stripes and swirls of a classic tabby or the pointed pattern of a Siamese. It can get pretty complicated once you get down to Punnett squares and recessive versus dominant genes. And whether you love the bold and busy or something more subtle and subdued, there’s always a strict science to understanding cat coat patterns.ĭid you know a cat’s coat pattern manifests depends on their genetic code? For me, the unique mix on a tortie and the colorful patches of a calico stand out the most. Stripes, swirls, spots, or even solids, there’s a long list of cat coat patterns to fall in love with.
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