What color can I expect their child to have?

[blessedwindz]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum to ask so excuse me if it isn't.

So my mother cat is a blue mackerel tabby, while her mate is a gray bicolor (both are british shorthair). Say, if she has 4 kittens, can I expect at least 2 of them being bicolor and the other two being tabby? One thing to note is that mother cat carries pointed genetics and I'm not sure about the father.

Also is there a method to know the gender ratio and eye colors? I've read a bit about color and pattern but it's getting a little confusing for me to handle.

 

[StefanZ]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum to ask so excuse me if it isn't.

So my mother cat is a blue mackerel tabby, while her mate is a gray bicolor (both are british shorthair). Say, if she has 4 kittens, can I expect at least 2 of them being bicolor and the other two being tabby? One thing to note is that mother cat carries pointed genetics and I'm not sure about the father.

Also is there a method to know the gender ratio and eye colors? I've read a bit about color and pattern but it's getting a little confusing for me to handle.

Yes, at least half of them will be mackerel tabby, and at least half will have white - probably in a bi-color pattern.  the main coloring will probably be blue / gray, as both parents carry it.  Although some may be black.

If daddy is a point carrier, one of the kittens should be point.  Otherwise none.  But 2 will be carriers.

Gender should be half - half.   I know in humans there are slightly more boys.  100:108, but I dont know if tis true for cats too.   I dont know much about the eye color hereditary.  Probably essentially as body color and as with humans, but I dont know.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

The only gene-linked eye colour trait is for blue, and then only in Siamese, Balinese, Javanese, Tonkinese, Himalayan, Birman, Ragdolls and Snowshoes, where the eye colour allele is linked to "s" on the C locus (i.e. the point gene).  In epistatic white cats (W) and in white cats whose spotting gene covers the entire body, eye colour is often said to be gene linked, but in fact is not - it's simply that the masking gene also affects the eyes by "covering" the pigmentation, leaving the eyes clear, so that the blue colour we see is simply blue light refraction.

There has been some speculation regarding eye colour gene links in Egyptian Maus and Burmese, but as far as I'm aware, no specific genome examinations have been made thus far, although Abyeb might be aware of something more recent and definitive.

Eye colour is simply a roll of the dice in domestic cats, though variations on green are more common than variations on copper.

.

 

[Willowy]

If they're both dilute (d/d, blue in this case) all the kittens will be blue, either tabby or solid. 2 dilutes can't make a non-dilute. If the mother is dominant tabby (A/A) all the kittens will be tabby but if she's only visible tabby (A/a) then about 50% of the kittens could be solid (a/a). Does the mother have any white on her? If so, all the kittens will have some amount of white. If not, about 50% of the kittens will have some white. I think the rest was covered . Post pics when they're born!

 

[StefanZ]

 
The only gene-linked eye colour trait is for blue, and then only in Siamese, Balinese, Javanese, Tonkinese, Himalayan, Birman, Ragdolls and Snowshoes, where the eye colour allele is linked to "s" on the C locus (i.e. the point gene).  In epistatic white cats (W) and in white cats whose spotting gene covers the entire body, eye colour is often said to be gene linked, but in fact is not - it's simply that the masking gene also affects the eyes by "covering" the pigmentation, leaving the eyes clear, so that the blue colour we see is simply blue light refraction.

There has been some speculation regarding eye colour gene links in Egyptian Maus and Burmese, but as far as I'm aware, no specific genome examinations have been made thus far, although Abyeb might be aware of something more recent and definitive.

Eye colour is simply a roll of the dice in domestic cats, though variations on green are more common than variations on copper.

.

Swell!  I have observed torties ("three colored cats")  tend to be green-eyed.   Not always, but its a clear tendency.   Do you know any explanation for it?

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 
Swell!  I have observed torties ("three colored cats")  tend to be green-eyed.   Not always, but its a clear tendency.   Do you know any explanation for it?

I'm sorry that I don't.  You're at the far outside edge of my meagre knowledge, and my familiarity with Chromosome B3 links in general, and with what was formerly referred to as the "P Protein" Gene (i.e. OCA2 - the  melanocyte-specific transporter protein [melanosomal transmembrane protein] ) specifically doesn't allow for even a reasonable hypothesis on my part.  The NCBI - NIH general data page for Gene 101091026 can be found here:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/101091026

the Genome Data Viewer can be accessed here:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genome/gdv/browser/?context=gene&acc=101091026

and the whole map here:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mapvie...TR=101091026[gene_id]&maps=gene_set&cmd=focus

Current knowledge regarding melanosomal transmembrane protein - beyond the fact that it does, indeed, furnish the genetic encoding 'instructions' - is that it's predicted to be an Integral Membrane Protein which is involved in small molecule transport - here specifically Tyrosine - within the cell structure of the melanocytes.  The (OCA2) gene itself, on chromosome B3 is (almost) certainly the primary determinant of eye colouration, since it regulates the passage or Melanin  Tyrosine [

] via the transporter protein, and it's the concentration of melanin within the iris' stroma which produces what we perceive as, "eye colour."

I suspect (opinion; untested; unpublished hypothesis; wild guess) - given that the well-known mutation in the HERC2 gene directly adjacent to OCA2, which affects OCA2's expression in the Human iris, is common in all blue-eyed Humans - that the link between something [coat colouration; point colouration and cetera] if one exists, will be at the C locus, just as "blue" eye colour is common to the Siamese genotype, and the trait is (will be) carried by c^s.

If your underlying question was actually an inquiry as to whether or not I was aware of any parallels between the His615Arg skin colouration allele of OCA2 in Humans, and a coextensive expression allele pair in coat colour in cats which specifically links eye colour to coat colour, I'm not, though (opinion; untested; unpublished hypothesis; wild guess) I expect that we shall, in time, learn that there is, indeed, a parallel in all domestic cats, in the same fashion as pointing and eye colour exist in Siamese genetics.

There's a simplified expression chart for Burmese here:

http://www.burmese-cats-alliance.com/genetics.htm

which breaks down c/b at C, and by dint of a little mental juggling, allows us to visualise the various loci expressions and then to insert our own wild conjecture as to other gene-linked traits such as eye colouration   and to see pictures of nice brown kitties.

So, to recap: do I know any explanation for the prevalence of green eyes in tri-coloured cats?  Nope.

.

 

[blessedwindz]

Thanks for all the help guys, appreciate it

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[…]
Gender should be half - half.

Sweet, I really wanted to keep a male gray bicolor, the same color as my first cat.

I wasn't really sure about gender since her most recent offsprings come with 3 female cats, which I find a bit strange.

If the mother is dominant tabby (A/A) all the kittens will be tabby but if she's only visible tabby (A/a) then about 50% of the kittens could be solid (a/a). Does the mother have any white on her? If so, all the kittens will have some amount of white. If not, about 50% of the kittens will have some white. I think the rest was covered . Post pics when they're born!

I don't think she has white, sure her belly is white but it comes with patterns so idk. Her last two offspring was lynx point if it has relations.

Post pics when they're born!

I'll definitely do!

 

[abyeb]

The only gene-linked eye colour trait is for blue, and then only in Siamese, Balinese, Javanese, Tonkinese, Himalayan, Birman, Ragdolls and Snowshoes, where the eye colour allele is linked to "s" on the C locus (i.e. the point gene). In epistatic white cats (W) and in white cats whose spotting gene covers the entire body, eye colour is often said to be gene linked, but in fact is not - it's simply that the masking gene also affects the eyes by "covering" the pigmentation, leaving the eyes clear, so that the blue colour we see is simply blue light refraction.

There has been some speculation regarding eye colour gene links in Egyptian Maus and Burmese, but as far as I'm aware, no specific genome examinations have been made thus far, although Abyeb might be aware of something more recent and definitive.

Eye colour is simply a roll of the dice in domestic cats, though variations on green are more common than variations on copper.

.

Burmese and European Burmese always have yellow to amber eyes (even tortie EBurms). Egyptian Maus always have gooseberry green eyes. Occasionally, these cats can be born with different eye color, but that is a disqualifer or major deduction in the show ring. I am not aware of any studies on gene links for eye color in Maus and Burmese, I'm afraid, I will try to do some digging around and see what I can find.

 

[Willowy]

I wasn't really sure about gender since her most recent offsprings come with 3 female cats, which I find a bit strange

Every individual has a 50% chance of being male and a 50% chance of being female. However, this doesn't mean that every litter will be half male and half female. Sometimes the odds hit oddly . The entire litter could all be the same sex, or half-and-half, or any mixture in between. Pure chance.

You say she's had previous litters? Have you considered having her spayed? It's not healthy for her to have too many litters.

 

[blessedwindz]

Every individual has a 50% chance of being male and a 50% chance of being female. However, this doesn't mean that every litter will be half male and half female. Sometimes the odds hit oddly . The entire litter could all be the same sex, or half-and-half, or any mixture in between. Pure chance.

You say she's had previous litters? Have you considered having her spayed? It's not healthy for her to have too many litters.

Ah...I see so it's 50% check for each kitten.

And yep I intended to spay her after she's done nursing, but this and that happened when I'm on a vacation with my husband. I was surprised when I saw her belly getting big until I asked my mother, who took care of her while we were away. Which she replied that she's afraid that spaying would hurt the mother cat so she tool her to mate >_> I explained to her many times but she's just that stubborn.

 

[blessedwindz]

Guys, they are born! Look like all of kittens have tabby pattern while 3 of them seems to have white on.

 

[StefanZ]

There are 6 kittens, right? so the 3 with white is the prescribed ratio.

All kittens being tabbies isnt necessarily what the doctor said, so I suspect some of them has ghost stripes, because only half should be tabbies for totally sure. Unless, momma is a homozygot tabby, with the tabby gene doubled up - yes, in such a case all would be tabbies (or striped / tigrered in the england english usage).

Tx for the report!

 

[blessedwindz]

I also suspected the three have ghost stripes but they have the letter "M" on their foreheads, which I've been told it's a sign of tabby cats so I'm not really sure..

Guess I'll have to wait until they grow up. I'll try to get a clearer picture of them when their momma allow me to.

 

[StefanZ]

If they are purebred, you can probably get knowledge on the grandparents, ie mommas mom and dad. If they both were tabbies, then you can be fairly sure she is homozygot in the tabby allele, ie has the tabby gene doubled up.

A serious breeder will know it for sure what major genes they do carry, but even an amateur breeder usually knows.

 

[blessedwindz]

So the kitten is 5 week old now and this is their colors. It seems there are two tabby, one bicolor, one bicolor (?) tabby (which is the only girl), and two blue kittens?

 

[abyeb]

I'd agree, blue tabby and white, blue and white bicolor, and blue kittens. If you post a side view of the tabbies, we'll be able to tell you exactly what type of tabby pattern. I'm thinking it will probably be mackeral- since mom is mackeral.

 

[haleyds]

I'm just geeking, those are some stinking cute babies.