Tricolor cats: origin and care of a wonderful pet

Cats are one of the most popular pets, each species has its own characteristics and one of the most famous is the so-called tricolor, since they have a special coat made up of a palette of colors that includes a triad of colors that are never the same in each copy.

In addition to their unique color characteristic, most of this cat species are females. Generally its color scheme includes orange, white and black. The important thing, however, is that the color orange corresponds to the X chromosome, which contains a gene that determines that type of color in felines.

Male cats have XY chromosomes and the color trio emerges.

However, there is a possibility that tricolor males exist, although this mutation has a chance of occurring 1 time in every 3,000 births of this type of cat.

The legend about the origin of tricolor cats

There is a version that many years ago, in the 12th century, in the monasteries of Tibet, the Buddhist monks of these territories were in constant tension and internal strife. When the tension increased, three began fasting for three days to relax the spirit and find the path to enlightenment.

After this fast, a tricolor cat appeared in the monastery together with her kittens who had fur with the same characteristics. The monks took the feline family and for several days spoke of nothing but it.

One day the monks were summoned to carry out meditations on the calm that the new family of cats brought them, and one of them, after meditating, explained, they have the three colors, black and white are yin and yang, and his hair the color of the earth, it is where we live.

The monk explained, as if it were a revelation, that this apparition “means that here, if we come together, we can reconcile our differences by forming a union and thus achieve peace.” of the young people present in the complex explained that «we do not possess the gift of life, women do. They are women and they bring a new message of mutation and change.“.

What is the behavior of tricolor cats?

These felines are usually demanding and very affectionate, as they love their owners very much who pet them and give them a lot of attention. If they are long-haired cats, they will need a lot of brushing to prevent their fur from getting tangled.

And for the superstitious there is also a legend about the power of this type of cat to exorcise and ward off ghosts. In Japan, in fact, fishermen accompanied this type of cat across the seas and used them as an amulet against storms and ghostly apparitions.

Types of tricolor cats

• Hawksbill cat or tortoiseshell: The colors are mixed asymmetrically. White in this variant is scarce and the colors are usually diluted into lighter tones. Black predominates.
• Tricolor tabby cat: it is a division between the previous ones. The model is brindle with all three colors.
• ​Calico cat: In these cats, white predominates in the legs, chest and chin. They have black and orange spots on their skin. Black can be greyish.