Buttery Soft Fur??

[shannon1984]

I have a litter of kittens, 4/5 of which all have normal American short hair which is softer on the belly. If you really pay attention you'll notice their back fur has soft fur mixed with coarser strands. I imagine there is a purpose for these coarser strands mixed in. Mom was a tortoise shell calico with white mittens/belly. Dad (one dad?) was a cow pattern white with significant black spots. Both parents also have normal short/medium fur texture with what feels like coarse strands and softer strands mixed.

One kitten (who happens to be a very marbled tortoise shell calico with very faint white chest/toe spots) has the most buttery soft fur all over. There are no coarser strands mixed in anywhere like there have been on all my other cats (and on all of her siblings). Every inch of her is buttery soft.

Does anyone know what causes this and if I need to worry about health conditions or exposure to the elements??

 

[shannon1984]

This is her (Mia). Maybe something about her appearance can help solve the buttery soft fur mystery.

(and yes, she's fixed...all of them are).

 

[kashmir64]

I don't know much about it, but my kitten has super silky fur. Is that what you mean? But in my case, she has some Siberian and is indoor only, so elements are not an issue.

Maybe it's just how her coat is.
She is very pretty.

 

[shannon1984]

I don't know much about it, but my kitten has super silky fur. Is that what you mean? But in my case, she has some Siberian and is indoor only, so elements are not an issue.

Maybe it's just how her coat is.
She is very pretty.

Yes, it's very silky. Her fur all over is silkier than the belly fur of her siblings. All of my cats have always been rescues over the years so I have not experienced much in the way of unusual genetics.

At first I thought "oh it's cute how it ended up being the little marble one has this ultra soft fur".

A few days ago it turned really cold and I got a little worried about her. She's totally spoiled and would never voluntarily stay too far from my heated blanket in this weather but It occurred to me that she might not be very well insulated. That could mean lots of things from being susceptible to illness to signs of other health concerns.

 

[kashmir64]

She may just have a dormant gene that made the coat silky.
These are just guesses. Like I said, I'm really not that familiar with this.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

.
shannon1984 - Here's a very simple explanation of the three hair types found in most cats:

How many kinds of hairs do cats have?

There are cats with no Guard hairs - the Cornish Rex, in fact, as a breed has only Awn and Down hairs. At Locus R, the recessive (r) yields a cat with no guard hairs.
.

 

[shannon1984]

.
shannon1984 - Here's a very simple explanation of the three hair types found in most cats:

How many kinds of hairs do cats have?

There are cats with no Guard hairs - the Cornish Rex, in fact, as a breed has only Awn and Down hairs. At Locus R, the recessive (r) yields a cat with no guard hairs.
.

This is great. Thanks!