Rare Coat Colours in Cats
There are many beautiful coloured cats whether it's a striking ginger tom or a stunning white Persian cat and lots of other in-between. There are many reasons why a cat's coat is a certain colour with breeders trying their best to produce more unusual ones whether in hybrid cats or pure breeds. However, there are certain colours that are considered exceptionally rare even in pedigree cats which are listed in this article.
Cream
Cats with cream coloured coats have them because of a gene mutation too which is responsible for the colour red or ginger being diluted. A lot of pedigee cats have the gene which includes cream colour pointed breeds, but otherwise the colour is rarely seen in other cats.
Chocolate
There are two breeds that come to mind when thinking about chocolate coloured cats, namely the Persian and the gorgeous Havana Brown. In actual fact cats with a chocolate coloured coat do so because of a gene mutation that results in a black cat's coat being diluted to brown. Unless a cat is specifically bred to have a chocolate coloured coat, it's one colour that's rarely seen in other cats. Breeds that boast having chocolate coloured coats include the following:
- Balinese
- British Shorthair
- Burmese
- Scottish Fold
- Havana Brown
- Persian
Smoked
Cats with smoked colour coats have them because of a colour inhibiting gene and where each hair is banded so that lower down may be lighter in colour, but the tips are much darker. On parting a cat's coat, it's easy to see their coat is actually smoked in colour.
Lavender/Lilac
One of the rarest colours seen in cats is lavender/lilac. Cats with this colour coat have them because the colour is a diluted chocolate and not purple at all. Breeds that boast having lilac coloured coats include the following:
- Balinese
- British Shorthair
- Burmese
- Scottish Fold
Roan
Roan coloured cats are incredibly rare and they are a result of the hairs in their coats being mixed with white hairs. The first ever cat with a roan coat was found in Thailand way back in the eighteen hundreds and blue roan cats can still be seen as roaming the streets over there.
Fawn
Like Lavender coated cats, the colour fawn is rare and is a dilution of a diluted colour, namely cinnamon a colour that is very often seen in certain breeds with the Abyssinian being one of them. However, other it's a colour that is very rarely seen in other breeds. Breeds that boast having cream coloured coats include the following:
- Abyssinian
Chinchilla
Chinchilla coloured cats are rare, although they are becoming a lot more popular and as such more cats are being bred to have this specific colour coat. Very similar to a smoke coloured cat with the difference being that each shaft of hair is light in colour with only the very tips being that much darker. Breeds with chinchilla coats include the following:
· Chinchilla
Lastly
If you are looking for a cat with an unusual coloured coat, there are many to choose from which includes the gorgeous spotted and marbled coated new breeds of cat that have appeared on the scene. For rarer colours many breeders try to produce kittens with exceptionally rare coloured coats and sometimes a kitten is born quite by accident with a more unusual colour which means sometimes it is a little bit luck of the draw.
