The Purrfect Guide To Domestic Cat Coat Patterns

Domestic cats' coat patterns are the result of genetics, with the same genes that determine human eye and hair colour dictating cats' coat patterns and colours. There are six basic varieties of coat pattern: Solid, Tabby, Bicolor, Tortoiseshell, Tricolour, and Colourpoint.

Solid coats are the easiest to recognise, with one colour evenly distributed across the body. Tabby coats are the most common type worldwide, harking back to the stripey pattern of the domestic cat's wild ancestors. There are four variations of the Tabby: striped or mackerel, classic or blotched, spotted, and ticked. Bicolour coats are a combination of white and one other colour, with the possibility of a tabby pattern. Tortoiseshell coats are a mixture of red (ginger) and black, with the pattern usually seen in females. Tricolour coats are a combination of white, red, and black, or their diluted versions of cream and blue. Colourpoint coats are darker on the face, paws, and tail, caused by a gene that makes the coolest parts of the body darker.

Solid-coloured cats

Even solid-coloured cats may display faint tabby markings, known as "ghost markings", especially when they are kittens. These ghost markings are most often observed in red and cream cats. Interestingly, solid-coloured cats may also display a few hairs of a secondary colour when they are very young, only for this surprise to fade away as the cat matures.

In terms of genetics, all solid-coloured cats are either pure black or have a gene that dilutes black into another shade, such as brown, blue (grey), lilac, fawn, or cinnamon. For instance, Russian Blues are solid black cats with a gene that dilutes black to grey, while Havana Browns are black cats with a gene that turns black into chocolate-brown.

Solid white cats are the exception to the rule, as white is considered an absence of colour rather than a colour itself. Solid white cats can sometimes be associated with deafness, although this is not always the case.

Bi-colour cats

There are many different patterns of bi-colour cats, including:

• Van-patterned: Colour on the tail and crown of the head, with the rest of the coat being white.
• Cap-and-saddle: Coloured head and a coloured patch on the back, resembling a saddle.
• Mask-and-mantle: Coloured fur covers the eyes, ears and top of the head (the mask), with the colour reaching down over the back (the mantle).
• Harlequin: Predominantly white coat, usually with a coloured tail and random spots of colour on the body.
• True bi-colour: Equal parts solid or tabby colouring and white markings.

The amount of white on a bi-colour cat can be graded from one to ten, with one being completely coloured and ten being completely white. Bi-colour coats can be found in many different breeds of domestic cats, including longhair and shorthair cats.

Tabby cats

The four known distinct patterns, each having a sound genetic explanation, are the mackerel, classic, ticked, and spotted tabby patterns. A fifth pattern is formed by any of the four basic patterns being included as part of a patched pattern. A patched tabby is a cat with calico or tortoiseshell markings combined with patches of tabby coat.

The mackerel, or striped, tabby pattern is made up of thin vertical, gently curving stripes on the sides of the body. These stripes can be continuous or broken into bars and short segments/spots, especially on the flanks and stomach. Mackerels are the most common among tabbies.

The classic tabby, also known as the blotched tabby, has the 'M' pattern on the forehead but, rather than primarily thin stripes or spots, the body markings are thick curving bands in whorls or a swirled pattern, with a distinctive mark on each side of the body resembling a bullseye. 80% of modern-day cats have the recessive allele responsible for the classic pattern.

The ticked tabby pattern is due to even fields of agouti hairs, each with distinct bands of colour, which break up the tabby patterning into a salt-and-pepper appearance that makes them look sand-like—thus there are few to no stripes or bands. Residual ghost striping and/or barring can often be seen on the lower legs, face, and belly and sometimes at the tail tip, as well as the standard 'M'.

It's thought that the spotted tabby results from a modifier gene that breaks up the mackerel tabby pattern and causes the stripes to appear as spots. Similarly, the classic tabby pattern may be broken by the spotted tabby gene into large spots. One can see both large and small spot patterns in the Australian Mist, Bengal, Serengeti, Savannah, Egyptian Mau, Arabian Mau, Maine Coon, and Ocicat breeds, among others, as well as some crosses. Naturally, the most common spotted tabby looks most similar to the mackerel tabby, including the classic marks on the limbs, tail, and head, as well as the 'M' on the forehead.

Tortoiseshell cats

Tortoiseshell is not a specific breed but a coat pattern that appears in many breeds, as well as in non-purebred domestic cats. It is especially preferred in the Japanese Bobtail breed and exists in the Cornish Rex group.

Calico cats

The calico pattern consists of red (ginger), black and white colouration, though diluted calico cats may feature grey, cream and white patches. Calico cats are believed to bring good luck in the folklore of many cultures. They were declared the official state cat of Maryland in 2001, as their colouring is in harmony with the colouring of the state bird (Baltimore oriole) and the state insect (Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly).

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