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A tortoiseshell cat is a coat color where the cat is a molted brown cat with black, reddish, or orange patches. They can also have white paws.

Tortoiseshell cats have unique genetics. The vast majority of tortoiseshell cats are female, because two X chromosomes are required to produce black, gold and orange coloring. Male cats only have one X and one Y chromosome, so technically it's genetically almost impossible for a male to inherit the tortoiseshell coloring. A male tortoiseshell has an extra X chromosome, making it an XXY.

According to a study by the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Missouri, only 1 in 3000 tortoiseshell cats is male.

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11y ago
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4mo ago

Tortoiseshell cats are almost always female. The orange and black fur colors required for a tortoiseshell coat are linked to the X chromosome, so most tortoiseshell cats have two X chromosomes. Male tortoiseshell cats are rare and are typically sterile.

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15y ago

Tortoiseshell describes a coat coloring found in cats. Cats of this color are mottled, with patches of red and black, chocolate, or cinnamon. They are sometimes called tortiesfor short. The term "tortoiseshell" (also called calimancoor clouded tiger in North America) is typically reserved for cats with brindled coats that have relatively few or no white markings. Those that are largely white with red and black patches (rather than a brindled aspect) are described as tortoiseshell-and-white (in the United Kingdom) or calico (in the United States). Tortoiseshells and calicos are not specific breeds of cat. The tortoiseshell markings appear in many different breeds.[1] This pattern is especially preferred in the Japanese Bobtail breed. Both calico and tortoiseshell cats are almost always female

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15y ago

Tortoiseshell cats are usually white with brown, blonde and black blotches. also, Tortoiseshell cats are almost always girls. if 1 is a boy, it becomes infertile

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Holly Denney

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3y ago
No. White indicates a calico. Tories have no white.

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12y ago

Cats with a fur pattern similar to a tortoise's shell. Most calico cats are tortoiseshells.

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16y ago

Tortoiseshell cats are nearly always female

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Q: Are tortoiseshell cats female or male?
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How can you tell the difference between a female and male tabby cat?

You can determine if a tabby cat is male or female by its color. Ginger tabby cats tend to be male while tortoiseshell tabby cats are female.


Can tuxedo cats be female?

Yes, tuxedo cat doesn't refer to a breed of cat like the Tortoiseshell does, it refers to the color of the cat which can be either male or female


Are all peach cats male?

By peach I expect you mean ginger. No, 90% of ginger cats are male just as 90% of calico/tortoiseshell cats are female. Those two colours are part of the same mutation, Ginger being male and tortie being female but there is cases of ginger females and tortie males.


Are all yellow cats males?

Orange cats can be either male or female. The only color that I know of that is most always female is the Calico color. Personally I have never seen a male Calico cat. Most male calico or tortoiseshell cats are sterile.


Do you get male tortoiseshell cats?

First, you should understand that tortoiseshell is not a breed in and of itself. It can occur across breeds. Second, the majority of tortoiseshell cats, like calicos, are female. One source I checked claimed that only 1 in 3,000 tortoiseshell cats were male. This has to do with what chromosome this color variation is linked to (X). When you have a male tortoiseshell cat it is quite often sterile - can't make babies - because it has an extra X chromosome which messes with their sex characteristics. Most boys are XY, girls XX, male tortoiseshell & calicos XXY - that extra X causes a male tortoiseshell and messes with its ability to breed. A pretty scientificy answer, the long and short of which is - such a mating is highly unlikely to produce any kittens. It's rare "luck" when you get a boy.


Does a cat's coloring indicate gender?

Sort of. A Calico cat is almost always (99.9% of the time) going to be female. The reason is that the female has two X genes, one has to carry red and the other black to get the 3 color effect. For a male to be a calico, it has to have XXY and is normally sterile.


Was Redtail a tortoiseshell?

No, Redtail was a ginger tomcat with a distinctive red tail. Tortoiseshell cats have a coat pattern with a mix of black and orange colors.


How rare is a torby cat?

A torby cat, which is a tortoiseshell and tabby mix, is not very common but not extremely rare either. The unique combination of both tortoiseshell and tabby coat patterns can give torby cats a distinctive and beautiful appearance. They are sought after by some cat enthusiasts for their unique coloring.


Are all tortoiseshell cats female?

No, the vast majority of tortoise shell cats are genetically and phenotypically female, as they need to have one brown gene on one x chromosome, and one ginger gene on the other chromosome. On very rare occasions, a phenotypic male tortoise shell cat will be born, but he is almost always sterile due to his genotype (XXY).


Are all tortoiseshell cats girls?

Male tortie and calico cats are extremely rare. Here's a little feline genetics lesson: The reason is that black and orange hair can only occur together in the hair coat if that cat has two X chromosomes. Calico cats (white cats with patches of black and orange) and tortoiseshell cats (black and orange swirled together), therefore, have to have two X chromosomes, and two X's means that you're a girl.In order to be a boy, you need a Y chromosome. Boys are XY; girls are XX. Very rarely, a mutation occurs that leads to a calico or tortie male. Genetically, these cats are XXY. The two X's allows for the color; the Y allows for the maleness.The incidence is reported to be 1 in 3,000.In other words, out of every 3,000 cats with black and orange together in the hair coat, on average, 2,999 will be girls, and only one will be a boy. The XXY mutation leads to sterility. They can't reproduce. Your orange tabby girl is not sterile. Get her spayed.Fun Fact:Orange female cats are a little uncommon; only about 1 in 5 orange tabbies are female.


Why do we not normally see male tortoiseshell cats?

Well, because to have a tortoiseshell to begin with there has to be two X chromosomes, therefore usually only females are born. Every once in 3000 times there will be a male tortoiseshell, and they are usually sterile, and prone to shorter lifespans. Very, very rarely there will be a non-sterile male tortoiseshell, but only exceptionally rarely.