How do cats get their markings?

Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?

My last cat was white all over with beautiful perfectly symmetrical black
markings on his face - he looked like Zorro in a mask.

I always said he was wearing the wrong tail as his tail did not really match
him at all - it was a sort grey speckled colour.

How do cats get their markings - or is God busy upstairs with a paintbrush?

jane

In article ,
enlightened us with...
Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?


It is one of the most complicated genetic interactions I've ever read about
involving several genes and not only dominant/recessive, but how gene
expression modifies the expression of other genes.
It depends on the entire lineage, which parents carry which genes, which are
passed onto the young, and which ones express in the whole mix.

There are enire books written on the subject, most intended for either a
scientific audience or for cat breeders. I don't pretend to really understand
it in its entirety, but I grasp the (very) basics from doing some research on
tricolor cats.

Recent studies of a cloned cat are proving that patterns may also be
influenced by conditions in the womb as well, since the cloned cat did not
have the same markings as her genetic "mother".
So, even scientists don't fully understand it.

IOW, yeah, God's paint brush.

--
--
~kaeli~
Support your local medical examiner: die strangely!
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

"kaeli" wrote in message
...
In article ,
enlightened us with...
Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?


It is one of the most complicated genetic interactions I've ever read
about
involving several genes and not only dominant/recessive, but how gene
expression modifies the expression of other genes.
It depends on the entire lineage, which parents carry which genes, which
are
passed onto the young, and which ones express in the whole mix.

There are enire books written on the subject, most intended for either a
scientific audience or for cat breeders. I don't pretend to really
understand
it in its entirety, but I grasp the (very) basics from doing some research
on
tricolor cats.

Recent studies of a cloned cat are proving that patterns may also be
influenced by conditions in the womb as well, since the cloned cat did not
have the same markings as her genetic "mother".
So, even scientists don't fully understand it.

IOW, yeah, God's paint brush.


I love this whole topic. I once had a bunch of web sites bookmarked, but
reformatted and lost them. Anyway, to the OP, a Google search on
"cat genetics" or "cat color genetics" might be fruitful.

"chas" wrote in message
...
Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?

My last cat was white all over with beautiful perfectly symmetrical black
markings on his face - he looked like Zorro in a mask.

I always said he was wearing the wrong tail as his tail did not really
match
him at all - it was a sort grey speckled colour.

How do cats get their markings - or is God busy upstairs with a
paintbrush?

Dunno, but tortoiseshells are always female for some reason.

In article ,
enlightened us with...

"chas" wrote in message
...
Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?

My last cat was white all over with beautiful perfectly symmetrical black
markings on his face - he looked like Zorro in a mask.

I always said he was wearing the wrong tail as his tail did not really
match
him at all - it was a sort grey speckled colour.

How do cats get their markings - or is God busy upstairs with a
paintbrush?

Dunno, but tortoiseshells are always female for some reason.

NEARLY always female.
If they are male, they are XXY and again nearly always sterile. It happens,
but it's rare.

This is because the color genes needed for all three colors require two X
chromosomes, to be a bit simplistic about it.

This was the subject that started my small research expedition into cat
genetics. Then I got a headache.

--
--
~kaeli~
Punctuation, capitalization, and grammar are your friends,
and will help people think that you aren't such an ignorant
moron, after all.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

On Fri, 29 Apr 2005 06:59:24 -0500, kaeli
wrote:


Dunno, but tortoiseshells are always female for some reason.

NEARLY always female.
If they are male, they are XXY and again nearly always sterile. It happens,
but it's rare.

Actually, there can be fertile male torties too, but they are
chimeras. They are even rarer than XXYs.



Orchid
See Orchid's Kitties! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/bengalpage
Want a Purebred Cat? Read This! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/orchid

In article ,
enlightened us with...
On Fri, 29 Apr 2005 06:59:24 -0500, kaeli
wrote:

Dunno, but tortoiseshells are always female for some reason.

NEARLY always female.
If they are male, they are XXY and again nearly always sterile. It happens,
but it's rare.

Actually, there can be fertile male torties too, but they are
chimeras. They are even rarer than XXYs.



That's what I said (meant?).
Sorry if I wasn't clear.



--
--
~kaeli~
Acupuncture is a jab well done.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

They can hold recessive genes (like people) and pop out kittens
completely different than themselves. Siamese is a recessive coloring.
Of our stray gray and white tuxedo cat's 6 kittens, 3 were siamese. I
would not have guessed that in a million years.

What I think is cool too, is Siamese points are heat-activated. Their
coats are darkest at the extremities were there is less blood-flow. As a
Siamese cat gets older, many times their coats get darker all over
because of less blood flow (they are colder.)

Rhonda


chas wrote:

Are moggies randomly marked or does it depend on their parents markings?

My last cat was white all over with beautiful perfectly symmetrical black
markings on his face - he looked like Zorro in a mask.

I always said he was wearing the wrong tail as his tail did not really match
him at all - it was a sort grey speckled colour.

How do cats get their markings - or is God busy upstairs with a paintbrush?

jane