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Solid - black and blue
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Colors:
Black, chocolate, blue, lilac, fawn, red, cream, white. See pictures
and details here: Solid
Cat Coats.
As expected, solid color means continuous color. It is not unusual,
however,
for faint tabby markings to show through, particularly for cream
(dilute
red) and red cats. The cats featured are black and
blue (Nox and Sky - Ken
& Helmi's cats). 1 |
Tortoiseshell
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Mosaic
of color pigment; eumelanin and phaeomelanin. The amounts are
determined at the embryo stage. Colors:
chocolate, cinnamon, blue, lilac or fawn tortie (the last 3 are
diluted).
The preferred pattern is evenly distributed with good
delineation between the colors. The nose streak (blaze) is desired. Tortoiseshell
cats, Black
Tortoiseshell cats. 2 |
Tabby - mackerel
is one type
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The
most commonly encountered cat color and pattern. See much more here: Cats
coats tabby. There are two things going on to make the tabby
pattern: the famous
agouti
gene producing the ticked (banded) hair shafts and the Primary
Tabby gene. Patterns: ticked,
mackerel, spotted classic and marbled.
3 |
Tipped - black
smoke is one type
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This
cat color and pattern relates to the fact that the individual hairs are
colored at the end, the tip.The lower portion of each individual hair
shaft lacks color color due
to the inhibitor
gene and it is thought, another
gene. The amount of the tipping dictates the type either, smoke, shaded
or chinchilla.
See-Black
Smoke Maine Coon
4 |
Silver - spotted
is one type
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The
ground color has been "silvered". It is caused by the inhibitor
gene that removes the yellow
pigment granules in the hair shafts. The smoke effect above is also
caused by this gene but in the case of
smoke the yellow pigment in the hair is removed from the lower part
only. Examples:
chinchilla, spotted tabby, silver torbies.
5 |
Pointed
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We
all know the Siamese and the pointed coat. Pointing means that the
"points" of the body (i.e. extremities, the mask, ears, tail and feet)
are darker. There are many variations of pointing, which can be seen
here: Cat
Coats Pointed.
The cat on the left is a Modern
Siamese with the classic seal pointing. 6 |
Solid & White
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The
Solid and White cat is a solid colored cat with the white spotting or piebald
gene producing the white areas
by preventing the migration of the pigment cells during the embryonic
stage.
The cat on the left is a black
and white Cornish Rex.
See: Cat
Coats Solid and White 7 |
Tortoiseshell &
White
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These
are called Calico cats in the USA and as a less technical term in the
UK and elsewhere. Tortoiseshell and White cats are, as
expected, the result of the presence of the genes that
produce the tortie mosaic together with the white
spotting gene mentioned above.
This post covers it all: Calico
Cats. 8 |
Tabby & White
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One
sees lots of tabby and white cats because they are so popular. The coat
color and pattern is caused by the well know piebald
or white spotting gene
interacting with the genes that produce the tabby pattern, the Primary
Tabby gene. This page deals with this coat color and pattern in more
detail: Cat
Coats Tabby and White. 9 |
Tipped & White - golden
shaded
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Golden
shaded and white is just one example of a tipped cat color and
pattern. The cat illustrated is a golden shaded Australian Tiffanie cat
called Gastonne.
Tipping, as mentioned, is caused by the inhibitor
gene. The white areas are caused
by the piebald
gene.
10
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Silver & White
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I
have already mentioned the silver coat color and how it is formed. In
the silver and white cat color and pattern (and curled hair!) the
silvered hair is affected once again by the piebald
gene to create the white areas.
The featured cat is a silver laPerm, one of cat breeds with curly
cat coats.
11
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Pointed & White
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You
can see how the points, the extremities of this Snowshoe cat have been
rendered white by the white spotting or piebald
gene.
See: Cat
Coats Pointed for a discussion
on the genetics of pointing and this page: Snowshoe
cat for more of this very
interesting looking cat. |
