A black cat can be an ominous specter to some. But black is only one of hundreds of colors that our feline companions can be adorned with. There are pure colors like cream or white and color shading with one color at the tip and another at the root. Actual or perceived color is a function of pigment and light.

Self or pure colored cats should have the same coloration from tips to roots with none of the stripes seen in tabby cats. Diluted colors are pure colors where some areas have less pigment than others and reflect more light. Lavender, cream, and blue cat colors are dilutions. Tipped colors have a darker coloration only on the tips of the hair such as with chinchilla or cream shell cameos.

A shaded color coat has a darker tip that extends about half way down the hair shaft usually with a white undercoat. Cream and red shaded Persians are examples of this phenomenon. Smoke is the darkest form of tipping with most of the guard hair being shaded. The undercoat still remains light and the contrast is apparent when you see the cat in motion.

Finally there are cats with a ticked coat. Their coloration shows broken bands of dark and light along each hair shaft. It is thought that this pattern helps camouflage the cat when hunting or hiding outdoors. In addition to different colors for each hair, cats also have distinctive patterns of color distribution over their bodies. The variety is almost endless. However, unless you are showing or breeding cats, color is probably secondary to personality -  which all cats have in abundance.

Posted by Julie.