All about tricolor cats

Tortoiseshell cats with white spots, also called calicos, have been known since ancient times. Thanks to the bright spotted coloring, they look unusual and attractive, and in many countries they are also considered a symbol of good luck. If you have become a happy owner of a tricolor pet or just want to learn more about cats of this color, then this article is for you.

How tricolor cats appear If you see a kitten whose coloration combines spots of three colors, you can be sure that in 99,9% of cases such a kitten will turn out to be a girl, not a boy. But to understand why this happens, it will take a little digression into genetics.

Fur color in cats depends on the pigment melanin, which has two chemical varieties. Eumelanin gives black color and its weakened variants (chocolate, cinnamon, blue, etc.), and pheomelanin – reddish-red and cream. The Orange gene, which is located on the sex X chromosome, blocks the production of eumelanin and gives a red coat color. The presence of a dominant allele of this gene is designated as O (Orange), and a recessive allele as o (not Orange). 

Since cats have two X chromosomes, the color can be as follows:

OO – red / cream; oo – black or its derivatives; Oo – tortoiseshell (black with red, blue with cream and other variations).

In the latter case, one of the X chromosomes is inactivated: this happens randomly in each cell, so the coat is chaotically colored in black and red spots. But there will be a tricolor cat only if the white spotting gene S (White Spotting) is also present in the genome.

Is it true that only cats are tri-colored, and cats of this color do not exist? Cats have only one X chromosome, so a male without genetic anomalies can only be black or red. However, there are rare cases when a cat with two X chromosomes (XXY) is born. Such cats can be tortoiseshell or tricolor, but almost always turn out to be sterile..

If you want to learn more about how genes influence the colors and patterns of a cat’s coat, read our new article “What Colors Cats Come In: Color Genetics” (article 5).

How to name a tricolor cat (girl and boy) Want to give your pet a special name? Nicknames for tricolor cats may reflect their unusual color: for example, Turtle, Pestrel, Speck, Tricolor, Harlequin. A name taken from foreign languages ​​will sound exotic: in Japanese, such cats are called “mike-neko”, and the Dutch call them “lapiskat” (“patchwork cat”).

Many cultures believe that calico cats bring good luck or wealth to their owners. This can be used when choosing a name: name the pet Lucky (English “lucky, bringing good luck”), Happy (English “happy”), Rich (English “rich”), Zlata or Bucks.

Tricolor cat and signs All beliefs associated with this color are extremely positive. The Japanese have long believed that tricolor cats bring happiness, and therefore maneki-neko (good luck seals waving their paws) often have a calico coloring. And Japanese fishermen in the old days believed that such a cat reliably protects the ship from shipwreck and evil spirits. 

Americans call tortoiseshell and white cats money cat (“money cat”), and the Germans – Glückskatze (“cat of happiness”). In England, it is believed that tricolor cats and especially rare calico cats bring good luck to the owner. And in Irish folklore there is an amazing recipe for treating warts: you need to rub them with the tail of a tortoiseshell and white cat, and it is in May. Interesting Tricolor Cat Facts:

• For every 3 Calico cats, only one cat of this color is born.
• The spotting pattern of each tricolor cat is unique and cannot be cloned.
• The name of the color “calico” comes from a cotton fabric that was produced in the Indian city of Calicut (not to be confused with Calcutta).
• The tricolor cat is the official symbol of the state of Maryland (USA).
• Calico color can have cats of different breeds, as well as outbred animals.