Saturday, April 24, 2010

Cat myths and facts

Common myths and facts about cats include (but not limited to) the following

- are all white cats deaf?

Researchers found that only 17 to 22 percent of white cats with non-blue eyes are born deaf. The percentage rises to 40 percent if the cat has one blue eye, while upwards of 65 to 85 percent of all-white cats with both eyes blue are deaf. Some of these cats are deaf in only one ear. Interestingly, if a white cat with one blue eye is deaf in only one ear, that ear will invariably be on the same side of the head as the blue eye.

- are all tricolor cats female?

The genes for the colors black/gray and brown/orange/red live on the X chromosome only. They do not live on the Y one. A female cat has 2 X's so she can therefore inherit a gene for black on of her X's and for brown on her other X. She can receive both colors. However, a male only has one X and can therefore only inherit one color (either black or brown, but not both).
Since the color white does not exist on the X and Y gender chromosomes, all cats can inherit white.
There are male kitties with all 3 colors. It's not a magic trick, just a genetics "mishap". What happens is these male cats have 3 gender chromosomes: two X's and one Y. He's a white cat who received brown on one of his X's and black on the other X. This is rare but does happen every once in awhile.


More adorable little kittens


Saturday, April 10, 2010

Cat colors and coat patterns

There are amazing varieties in cat coat coloring and patterns, and there are many different classifications. Roughly, pattern categories include:

The tabbies
The torties or tortoiseshell
The calicos
The torbies
The tuxedos
The solids and smokes
The pointed
The "with white"

As far as coloring is concerned, well, nature is just imaginative and endless!

Adorable little kittens

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