PetFinder.my - Domestic Cats and Their Colours and Patterns

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Domestic Cats and Their Colours and Patterns - Part Two

* Tri-color Cats
Tri-color cats include:
o Calico
Separate solid blocks of color, which must include red (orange), black, and white. They also may have blocks of tabby pattern, which produces an extremely colorful and beautiful cat. Dilute calicos, have the same separate blocks of color, only the colors are "diluted," i.e. "faded" shades of the original, which gives them an ethereal appearance. A dilute calico will have pale orange or buff for the red, and gray (or "blue") for the black.

A beautiful example of a calico girl is Sweet Pea, an About Cats forum cat.

o Tortoiseshell AKA "Tortie"
Instead of solid blocks, torties' coats weave the three colors throughout, creating a tapestry of color. A forum member described torties beautifully, "they are cloaked in the lovely colors of Fall." Tortoiseshell cats may also be dilute, with softer versions of the colors. Like the tabby, torties may also have white accent markings, creating a "tortie with white." They also sometimes have an interesting mix of tortoiseshell, with a bonus of tabby patterning mixed throughout. These cats are referred to as torbies. It should be noted that white plays a very small role in the tortoiseshell pattern - most of the color weaving is done with the red and black components. Here is a lovely example of a tortoiseshell girl, Coco, who co-rules the household of HOSTPat.

Because of the associated genetic factors that creates their color patterns, tri-color cats almost always are females, although occasional males crop up (about one in 3,000, according to this excellent article by Barbara French) Those rare males are almost always sterile, also for reasons of genetics, so don't expect to gain a fortune by selling your male calico cat.

* Tuxedo
Tuxedo cats were so named for their glossy black coats, enhanced with white bibs and "spats," less esoterically described as white feet. Columbus is a nice example of a tuxedo cat; he is also one of our forum kitties.

* Bi-Color
Bi-colored cats may include tuxedos, as well as other configurations on one color plus white. A black and white cat might be better described as bi-color if the colors are present in large blocks on the cat's body rather than the "bib and boots" pattern. Other bi-colors might include gray and white, brown and white, or red and white.

* Points or Pointed Markings
"Points," or darker shades of the body color, generally include the ears, muzzle, tail, and feet of the cat. The original pointed cat was the Siamese, and many years later, the Himalayan was developed by crossing Siamese with Persian cats. Many other breeds of pointed cats are now accepted by cat registries, including Ragdoll, Ragamuffin, Birman, Exotic, Balinese, and Javanese. Breed registries disallow pointed patterns in most other breeds. Many mixed breed cats display these distinctive points, which may be found in various colors.

Note : Excerpt from Fanny Syufy Article in http://cats.about.com. For more information and full article please visit this site.