Cat Breeds

About ginger cats

Also known as orange, or red, ginger is a common coat colour that comprises of a light agouti (ticked) background and darker stripes, sworls or spots. The orange gene is located on the X chromosome, which makes it sex-linked. As males (XY) only have one X chromosome, they will either be orange or non-orange, however, as the female (XX) has two chromosomes, she can be orange if she inherits two copies of the orange gene, or caliby, calico or tortoiseshell if she inherits one copy of orange and one non-orange.

All ginger cats are tabby, but not all tabby cats are ginger. The solid pattern is the result of the non-agouti gene which overlays the agouti base colour with melanin pigment to produce a solid coloured cat. The non-agouti gene does not affect phaeomelanin (red), and therefore all ginger cats exhibit the tabby pattern.

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Pointed is a coat pattern that consists of dark points on the face, ears, legs and tail with a pale ivory or cream body. This unique colour combination is a form of partial albinism in which the colour is turned off on warmer parts of the body.

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Also known as piebald or bi-colour, grey and white is a coat combination that consists of solid grey and areas of white. These white patches are caused by the white spotting gene. The grey and white coat colour is common in both random-bred and purebred cats. The cat fancy refers to the grey colour as ‘blue‘.

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At a glance

• Birman
• Burmese
• Dragon Li
• Japanese Bobtail
• Khao Manee
• Konja
• Korat
• Persian
• Siamese
• Singapura
• Suphalak
• Turkish Angora
• Turkish Van

About

Asia has provided us with an array of stunning cats which are often referred to under the umbrella of ‘oriental’ although this term is distinct to the oriental cat breed, which is essentially a Siamese type cat in non-pointed colours and did not originate from Asia.

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• Origins: England
• Lifespan: 15-20 years
• Eyes: Blue
• Energy: Medium to high
• Temperament: Talkative, intelligent, affectionate, dog-like
• Weight: Males 4-6 kg (8.8 – 13.2 lbs), females 3.5-5 kg (7.8 – 11 lbs)
• Coat: Short
• Grooming: Weekly
• Talkative: Very
• Cost: $900 – $1,500

What is a Colourpoint Shorthair?

The Colourpoint Shorthair is a man-made breed that was created by crossing Siamese cats with domestic shorthairs to create a Siamese type in new colours. Traditionally, the Siamese occurred in four colours, seal, chocolate, lilac and blue. The Colourpoint Shorthair extended those colours, to include reds, creams, torties in pointed and lynx (tabby) point.

Most cat councils recognise the Colourpoint Shorthair as a Siamese, however, the Cat Fanciers Association and the World Cat Federation recognise them as a standalone breed.

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Low shed cat breeds at a glance

1. Sphynx
2. Donskoy
3. Cornish Rex
4. Devon Rex
5. Lykoi
6. Bengal
7. LaPerm
8. Selkirk Rex
9. Siamese

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The difference between cat breeds isn’t quite as vast as that of dogs but many cat breeds have unusual features that make them unique. This may be curled ears, short legs or unusual fur. Most of the cats arose from a spontaneous mutation and were developed to create new cat breeds.

New breeds which arise from spontaneous mutations take years to develop, breeders must determine if the mutation is dominant or recessive and if it causes any long-term effects on the cat. Established breeds or domestic (mixed-breed) cats are often utilised to increase the size of the gene pool.

Dominant vs recessive genes

Cats acquire two copies of each gene, one from the mother and one from the father. A dominant gene only needs one copy for the trait to be expressed, whereas two copies of the recessive gene must be inherited to be expressed.

Some cats may inherit one dominant and one recessive gene, the dominant gene overrides the recessive, which is not expressed. However, if the cat mates with another cat who also carries the same recessive gene and the kitten receive a copy from each parent, the trait will be expressed. This is known as a carrier.

In some cases, a doubling up of a dominant gene (homozygous) is lethal.

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1. The munchkin cat is a short-legged cat whose origins can be traced back to Rayville, Louisiana when a black short-legged cat named Blackberry who was rescued by local teacher Sandra Hochenedel after being chased under a truck with her sister, Blueberry. Blackberry was pregnant at the time of her rescue and went on to deliver four kittens, two of whom had the same short legs as their mother. A male, named Toulouse was gifted to Kay LeFrance and it is Blackberry and Toulouse who went on to become the founding cats of the munchkin breed.

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• Lifespan: 12-14 years
• Energy: Low to medium
• Temperament: Good-natured, quiet, independent, amiable
• Weight: Males 6-9 kg (13.2 – 19.8 lbs), females 4-6 kg (8.8 – 13.2 lbs)
• Colours: Blue, black, red, fawn, lilac, chocolate, cinnamon in solid and bicolour
• Grooming: Daily
• Other names: British Longhair Variant, British Semi-Longhair, Lowlander (United States), Britannica (Europe)
• Cost: $1,000-$1,500

The British Longhair is a medium to large semi-longhaired cat who originated from Britain and is essentially a British Shorthair with longer fur.

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