Please don’t get the idea that I have nothing else to do . . good grief . . what is wrong with me? I have so much I should be doing.
But I was reading about tortoise shell cats and to make this post ever more absurd, I’m not a cat lover. I have Boots because he showed up at our house and I do love him but he’s not like most cats. He doesn’t rub on me. He rarely meows. He doesn’t go upstairs much but I don’t think he’s ever been on the kitchen counter.
Back to tortoise shell cats. I think I already knew this but, from what I read, tortoise shell cats are not a bread but just a coloring pattern. I wonder if a Siamese cat could be tortoise shell colored. I’m kinda guessing tortoise shell cats just come about when your typical alley cats bread but I certainly do not have a clue if that’s true or not.
Second, I knew that most all tortoise shell cats were female. I googled “Can you breed two tortoise shell cats?” and the answer was that most all are female and almost all male tortoise shells are sterile. Isn’t that weird?
My second question and I did not Google this . . if you have a male tortoise shell cat, can the vet do a test to see if he’s sterile? I probably do not want to know that answer and I probably should not have even brought that up here. 🙂 I don’t plan on ever having another cat but I’d hate to pay for neutering a cat if he’s already sterile!
Carol says
Judy, I have a partiality to calico and tortoiseshell (tortie) cats and have owned several over the years. It is my understanding that the genes that control the orange and the black coat colors are on the x chromosome only. So females, because they have 2 x chromosomes can have a combination of those colors. But males, because they have only 1 x chromosome cannot, they will be one color or the other. Unless they have an extra x chromosome, xxy. If they do have the extra chromosome, they have a genetic abnormality and it renders them sterile. As far a calico/tortie attitude goes, I have had both laid back sweethearts and little devils. The coat color doesn’t seem to make a difference in personality.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
Thank you! That was very informative and appreciated! I miss Cat. I may miss the challenge of trying to befriend her. Even though I say I don’t want a cat, if a tortoise can showed up here to stay, I would probably be happy.
Teresa E Springer says
I think I would neuter the male cat just so he doesn’t spray the house. That reeks!
Rebecca L says
.I just wrote some of this same info under your previous “A Cat” post. I knew that male torties are rare, but Carol explained why. Interesting! I also didn’t know about their sterility.
JustGail says
If I had a male tortie, I’d still have it neutered. Sterility has nothing to do with testosterone based male behaviors like spraying, and chasing after females.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I would too but I don’t think I’ll ever have another cat. You know what’s going to happen now that I’ve said that. 🙂