Cat Genetics
This is a simplified genetic profiler for cats for use with the Warriorcats game. Each cat has 2 genes (WW) of each type onr from the mother and one from the father. These genes determine coat color, sex, eye color, and hair length. I based some of this on American Shorthairs since they are the closest to Domestic shorthiars in America.
Each cat has a pattern: WWBBOODDAAMMIIGGSSTTLLEECCX.
Where each two letters represents a gene and the final letter detemines sex.
Agene
The agouti gene. Causes hairs to have bands of yellow and black rather than being just a solid color. This gene is required for tabby cat patterns, it works in conjunction with several other genes (Ggene, Igene, Tgene, Mgene) to express colors and patterns.
Options
Agene1 + Agene2 =
Bgene
The black gene. Express which variation of the "black" color a cats coat is.
Options:
- 3 = Dominant black alelle
- 1 = Chocolate (brown) alelle
- 0 = cinnamon (beige) alelle
Bgene1 + Bgene2 =
- >3 = black
- 1-2 chocolate (brown)
- 0 = cinnamon (beige)
Cgene
Full color Gene. This gene in various forms produces albanism but I am only using it to produce rare color pointed cats that have dark
Tail, legs, muzzle, ears but lighter color or white bodies. The albanism effects eye color, making the full expressin have blue eyes (lack of pigment).
Options
- 3 = Dominant full color
- 1 = recessive siamesse
- 0 = recessive burmeses
Cgene1+Cgene2=
- 0 Colorpoint (siamese) blue eyes. body white, point of coat color.
- 1 tonkinese. green eyes. between other two.
- 2 burmese. color between coat and points is gradual. Points darker shade of coat color.
- 3+ normal
Dgene
Dilution Gene. Dilutes black and red genes to lighter colors.
Options:
- 0 = not-diluted
- 1 = diluted
Dgene1 + Dgene2 =
- <2 = not diluted
- 2 = diluted
Black -> blue
chocolate -> lilac
cinnamon -> fawn
red -> cream
Egene
Eye color. Hazel is the most common.
Options:
round((Egene1+Egene)/2)=
- 0 = blue
- 1 = green
- 2 = hazel
- 3 = yellow
- 4 = amber
- 5 = orange
- 6 = copper
Ggene
. Wide Band Gene effects the length of the Agene yellow bands. Requires Agene to show up. Appears recessive. Assume most dominate # trumps others. Produces silver and goldens
Options:
- 0 normal band. Tabby or silver:. Dominate.
- 1 small band = shaded golden or silver (with IGene)
- 3 medium band = golden or silver (with IGene) shell/chinchilla
- 7 widest band = total golden or silver (with IGene)
Ggene1+Ggene2=
if either gene is 0 no banding neither silver nor gold
- 2,4,8 = shaded
- 6 = shell
- 14 = ?/copper
Igene
Inhibitor Gene. Inhibits the yellow production of Agene making it white instead. This produces shaded, shell and chinchilla in tabbies (with reduced tabby markings) and smoke in solids. There is no golden smoke.
Options
Igene1 + Igene2 =
Interacts with A and G gene.
(I-)(aa)(--) = silver smoke
(I-)(A-)(g/g) = Silver tabby
(I-)(A-)(G/-) = Silver shaded/chinchilla
(ii)(A-)(G/-) = Golden shaded/chinchilla
(ii)(A-)(g/g) = Golden tabby
Lgene
Long hair. Domestic short hairs are 90-95% of cats in the U.S.
Options
- 0 = short dominant
- 1 = long
Lgen1+Lgene2=
- <2 short hiar
- 2 long hair
Mgene
Mackeral pattern gene. Recesive to the Tgene. Any O gene will show some tabby pattern regardless of MGene
Any non-O gene requires Agene > 1 to show tabby pattern
Options
- 0 = clssic (Blotched)
- 1 = mackeral (Striped) Dominant
Mgene1+Mgene2=
- 0 = classic
- >0 = mackeral
Ngene Spotted Tabby Gene. Unused. Dominant over Mgene but requires it.
Options
Cat must have 1 Mgene that is > 0 for spots to appear
- 0 no spots
- >1 + Mgene >1 = spots
Ogene
Red (Orange) Gene. co-dominant with BGene. Only appears in X chromosone.
Options:
- 1-7 = Co-dominant red
- 0 = male or nor red
Ogene1+Ogene2=
- 0 = not red
- 1 = red if male, tortie if female
- >1 red
My shades of red
- >= 7 orange
- 3-6 dk orange
- <3 ginger
Sgene
White Spotting gene. Causes a lack of pigement. Spreads from ventral to dorsal sides.
Options
- 0-4 no spots
- 5-9 white spotting of various degrees
Sgene1+Sgene2/2=
- 0-4 no spots
- 5 = [with a white locket| with a white belly spot| with a white paw]
- 6 = [with a white chest | with white mittens]
- 7 = with a white chest and belly and feet
- 8 = bicolor (mask&mantle, bicolor w freckled legs)
- 9 = van
Tgene
Ticking Gene causes alternating yellow/black on hair when active and stripes on legs and tail only. Dominant over Mgene. Requires Agene.
- 0 = no ticking
- 1 = ticked
Wgene
. White gene. overrides all other colors.
Examples
# WWBBOODDAAMMIIGGSSTTLLEECCXY
#$catscode="00330000000000000000000000XX"; #black
#$catscode="10330000000000000000000000XX"; #white
#$catscode="00333000000000000000000000XY"; #red male
#$catscode="00331100300000000000000000XX"; #black (red carrier) female
#$catscode="00333100000000000000000000XX"; #tortie female
#$catscode="00333300000000000000000000XX"; #red female
#$catscode="00330000000010000000000000XX"; #black smoke
#$catscode="00333000000010000000000000XY"; #red smoke male
#$catscode="00331100000010000000000000XX"; #black smoke (red carrier) female
#$catscode="00333100000010000000000000XX"; #tortie smoke female
#$catscode="00333300000010000000000000XX"; #red smoke female
#$catscode="00330000100000000000000000XX"; #black tabby
#$catscode="10330000100000000000000000XX"; #white tabby
#$catscode="00333000100000000000000000XY"; #red tabby male
#$catscode="00333100100000000000000000XX"; #tortie tabby female
#$catscode="00333300100000000000000000XX"; #red tabby female
References
http://www.eurocatfancy.de/en1/nav/cat-genetics/genetic_terms.html
http://cfa.org/Portals/0/documents/breeds/standards/american-sh.pdf Shorthair standadrd
http://www.eurocatfancy.de/en1/nav/cat-genetics/gene_I.html
http://messybeast.com/chinchillas.htm
https://www.basepaws.com/blog/cat-coat-genetics/