Munchkin Cats Basic Color Genetics

TONKINESE TYPE COLORS

Pointed X pointed = 100% pointed

Pointed X Mink = 50% pointed, 50% mink

Pointed X solid = 1--% Mink

Mink X Mink = 50% Mink, 25% Pointed, 25% Solid

Mink X Solid = 50% Mink 50% solid

Solid X Solid = 100% Solid

POINTED PATTERNS

Pointed X Pointed = 100% Pointed

Pointed X Solid = 100% Non pointed CPCs

Pointed X Solid CPC= 50% pointed, 50% Solid CPCs

Pointed to Homozygous tabby=100% non-pointed tabby CPCs

Pointed X Homozygous tabby CPC= 50% tabby CPCs, 50% Lynx Points

Pointed X Homozygous Tabby = 50% tabby CPCs, 50% Solid CPCs

Pointed X Heterozygous Tabby CPC =

25% pointed, 25% lynx pointed, 25% tabby CPCs, 25% solid CPCs

Pointed X White: See below

Pointed X BiColor=see white spotting below

TABBY

Two non-tabbys can not produce a tabby

Note: A tabby pattern can often be show in red or cream cats that are not tabbys. Bicolor cats will appear with patches of 2 different tabby colors.

Homozygous Tabby X homozygous or heterozygous tabby= 100% tabby

Heterozygous tabby X heterozygous tabby = 75% tabby, 25% solid

Homozygous tabby X solid = 100% tabby

Heterozygous Tabby X solid = 50% solid, 50% tabby

SILVER

Silver is an inhibitor gene that prevents the color on the part of the hair shaft closest to the skin. Silver is a dominant gene, therefore two non-silver cats can not produce a silvered cat, there must be at least one silver parent. Silver presents itself in different ways: Smoked, shaded or Chinchilla.

Homozygous Silver X homozygous Silver = 100% Silver

Homozygous Silver X heterozygous Silver = 100% silver

Heterozygous Silver X Heterozygous Silver = 75% Silver, 25% non-Silver

Homozygous Silver X non-Silver= 100% Silver

Heterozygous Silver X non-Silver = 50% Silver, 50% non-silver

Example: 2 Silver tabbys can produces a brown tabby but 2 brown tabbies cannot produce a silver tabby.

WHITE

White is not a color, it is an absence of color that comes in 2 patters, dominant white which prevents color anywhere on the cat and the White Spotting gene which only prevents parts of the cat from having color, like bicolor and vans.

Dominant White (DW) :

Homozygous DW X Homozygous DW= 100% White

Homozygous DW X Heterozygous DW= 100% White

Heterozygous DW X Heterozygous DM = 75% DW, 25% colored

Homozygous White X Colored = 100% white

Heterozygous White X Colored = 50% white, 50% colored

WHITE SPOTTING (WS)

Spotting can be anything from a locket to a van. Two colored cats without white can not produce a bicolor (white spotted) offspring. You have to see white to get white.

Homozygous WS X Homozygous WS = 100% bicolor cats (often called vans)

Homozygous WS X Heterozygous WS= 100% bicolor cats

Heterozygous WS X Heterozygous WS = 75% bicolor, 25% colored

Homozygous WS X colored = 100% bicolor

Heterozygous WS X Colored = 50% bicolor, 50% colored

Dominate: This gene only needs to be inherited from one parent to show up in kittens. A complete dominate is when the trait is expressed in the homozygous state A/A or A/a

Recessive: These genes must work in pairs in order to express themselves and kittens must receive one gene from each parent. The trait is expressed only in the homozygous mutant state a/a. However these recessive genes can be carried in secret through many generation and suddenly surprise you with unexpected colors or mutations. This is especially true in CPC cats.

Homozygous means possessing the same gene for a particular characteristic from each parent, two copies of the same gene, having the same alleles at the same gene locus (locations) such as cs/cs; Essential for a recessive color gene to work.

Heterozygous means possessing different genes from each parent; having dissimilar alleles at that gene locus such as cs/cb; in heterozygous cats one form of a gene is dominant over the other.

Multiple Alleles:

The Sepia alleles allow little difference between the body color and point color cb/cb

The pointed alleles allow extreme contrast between the body color and point color cs/cs

The Mink color is only heterozygous cb/cs, a cat can not "carry Mink".

Sex-linked Traits:

Red gene:

O=red o=non-red

Males get only one copy of the X chromosome, if they get a red X (O) from mom you can have red males, if they get a non-red X (o) from the mom they will be non-red males.

Females get two copies of the X chromosome so you can have non-red females, tortie females, or red females. Red females tend to be a bit more rare because you have to breed a red male to a female with red.

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