How rare is black smoke coat?

Ittyprettyblacksmokekitty

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I am curious. Some places seem to say that black smoke is very rare in "moggies" (essentially mix breed cats with no purebred in them anywhere) but then had someone argue that they knew several strays at the shelter who had "black smoke" coloring. The coloring I am talking about is the CFA definition, not a unsound coat or slightly lighter undercoat, but a drastic difference between the top coat and undercoat. My rescue Raven is clearly a smoke, his hair shaft splits about halfway from black to light grey/white and it shows through when he moves.

So is Black Smoke rare in the DSH/DMH populations? Or is it common to find mixes with it?
It's called an Egyptian maus black smoke.. obviously there's no way to tell if he's a purebred from just looking at him but thats where he gets his good looks I have one too.
 

Ms. Snarls

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This makes me so happy! My kitty is a gorgeous black smoke, it's one of my favorite things about him. He looks totally black in darker lighting, but has white markings and a brown tint to him in brighter lights. My chameleon :) He has these white eyebrows that show up sometimes that slay me. His litter had 5 black kitties and one white one. Ha!
 

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genseeker

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My Raven was rescued from a hoarder with her mom and siblings about 2 months ago. Sadly none of her siblings survived due to the neglect and her mom is blind in one eye. Vet estimates Raven to be 4 months old since mom was weaning when I got them but she was only 1 lb 2 weeks ago at the vet. Vet said she looks like she will be a smoke.
 

genseeker

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Raven with her mom. I wanted to bring them all home from that horrible woman's house but Momma Kate and her babies, along with a black base calico were all I was able to catch. The others were all too wild. Sadly, because she provides food & water, my local AC can do nothing under NC law.
 

Shatteredair

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Hello, I just got this little boy today and thought he had the most peculiar coat, would you consider this a black smoke?



 

genseeker

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He looks just like my little Raven. My vet said she is a black smoke. You can really see the color difference on her belly. It looks more silvery than black but when you brush her neck hair back, it is the same way. Another rescue - stray - looks black but is starting to get white at the root of individual hairs, vet thinks he may turn out to be a black smoke as well. If so, his color change is much slower than Raven's. I named him Winter because he was so cold and aloof and reminded me of the Winter Soldier in the Marvel movies.
 

Moka

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Now I am not expert and could be completely wrong. But your kitten kind of looks like he has fever coat.
 

Shatteredair

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Now I am not expert and could be completely wrong. But your kitten kind of looks like he has fever coat.
Fever coat is when they’re born with light and it goes dark, he was born dark and started to lighten up.
 

lutece

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They can also develop fever coat after birth. I have seen it happen myself. Your pictures do look like fever coat to me, but you'll have to see how the coat develops over time. At this age, a black kitten's coat often has grayish/brownish areas anyway.
 

TiGuardian

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This is Tiger. She was a rescued feral cat that we've been socializing.

Her undercoat is almost snow white, and the overcoat varies a little with the seasons. During winter she is almost black, and she pales during summer. At the peak of summer her top coat turns brown over her back. Also, when she is scratching the same area a lot, she becomes significantly paler in that spot.

Her fur is silky smooth; softer than any other cat I've petted. We think she has some long hair genes in her.

We have had her for three years now. She is still nervous and a bit shy, but can show a lot of trust in people she has gotten familiar with. She has become such a lovely housecat, as well as a great hunter of rodents.

winter_coat.jpg


Tiger01.jpg


Summer:
summer_coat02.jpg

Winter:
winter_coat02.jpg
 

rosegold

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Chai was a calico smoke DSH. You could clearly see the white base of fur when you petted her or in movement. I’ve seen a couple photos of tortie smokes but I have yet to see another calico smoke shorthair quite like her—I wish they were more common as her coloring was so beautiful!
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Jayne89

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We have this beautiful girl on our little of 3 plus a blue smoke boy! And one solid blue girl.
 

mcpheatf2

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I got Chin Chin from a cat shelter just over 2 years ago.
She was all grey when I first pick her up, however turned black smoke over time.
Beautiful little girl, very vocal and never leaves me alone!
 

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Stepcai

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Hi. I'm really confused on cats coats? I can't 20200513_114943.jpg seem to find were my cat belongs...Is she a black smoke? Her little one has a bit light brush spot of orange and the smallest of the litter and all her brothers are light shade of orange.
 

Stepcai

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Hi. I'm really confused on cats coats? I can'tView attachment 334778 seem to find were my cat belongs...Is she a black smoke? Her little one has a bit light brush spot of orange and the smallest of the litter and all her brothers are light shade of orange.
Here are some more pix... :) I don't know why the fur near the base of her tail never got back to its fluffy self.
 

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lutece

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Stepcai Stepcai your cat's color appears to be tortie smoke, from looking at her face. My guess is that the female kitten is tortie smoke like mom, and the males could possibly be red silver tabby (cameo tabby), although it's hard to tell in the picture.
 

Stepcai

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Stepcai Stepcai your cat's color appears to be tortie smoke, from looking at her face. My guess is that the female kitten is tortie smoke like mom, and the males could possibly be red silver tabby (cameo tabby), although it's hard to tell in the picture.
Thank you. That's where I'm confused between a tortie and a black smoke... Maybe I could post a better pix next time when the boys can be still at least for a moment for me to be able to take a decent photo of them.
 
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