Nearly always female
The genes for orange and black are both carried on the X chromosome, so a cat needs two to show both. About one calico in three thousand is male.
Fancy cats · Time every day
Calico cat
A coat pattern, not a breed
A white cat with bold patches of orange and black. In Britain it is called tortoiseshell and white.
- Size
- About 25cm at the shoulder; 3.5 to 5kg
- Lives for
- 12 to 16 years
- Suits
- Almost any home
Trots after you, tail up. Move your pointer and see.
Good to know
Six things about the calico
A lucky cat
In Japan the beckoning cat seen in shop windows is a calico, and brings good fortune.
Each one is unique
The patches form at random as the kitten grows before birth. No two are alike.
Named after cloth
Calico was a printed cotton cloth. The name is used in America.
Tortoiseshell cousins
A tortoiseshell has the same orange and black, mixed together without the white.
A state cat
The calico is the official cat of the American state of Maryland.
The real thing
Photos of the calico
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons, used under the free licences shown. They have been resized, and cropped where they appear in link previews.
Looking after one
Care is the same as for any cat: good food, play, a clean tray and a weekly brush.
Before you get one
A calico is a colour, so its nature depends on the individual cat. Plenty are waiting in rescue centres.
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