Siamese Twins From Calico Mom

[Hreedertwinsmom]

My run of the mill calico cat gave birth to 2 Simase kittens one boy and one girl the rest of the litter were color other solid colors. Does this mean these 2 are twins and how rare is it to have boy n girl Siamese twins

 

[Kieka]

They are actually colorpoint not Siamese. Siamese being a specific breed with colorpoint being cats who display the genetic trait giving them the heat sensitive coloration. They are born pure white because Mom is toasty and their coloring develops with exposure to cold and age. While it comes from the original Siamese the gene is wide spread in the general cat population and could've from ancestors thousands of generations back or just a few. Mom and Dad both had the colorpoint gene to have the kittens show it; with two it's more likely dad was a colorpoint too. Most cats are not any specific breed with the genetics for the domestic cat being such a mixed bag that there aren't very many that are actually a specific purebred. Mostly because being "purebred" is a human concept/habit and a relatively new one in the cat world so there just aren't many of them.

The first one looks like your typical domestic short hair with seal point coloring. The second one looks like it might be a lynx (tabby) seal point. Basically the second one would have looks like the little tabby except it got the colorpoint gene and that muted the coloring. Over time they will both continue to get darker. Colorpoint cats can be any underlaying color and pattern you see in the general cat population.

 

[Hreedertwinsmom]

They are actually colorpoint not Siamese. Siamese being a specific breed with colorpoint being cats who display the genetic trait giving them the heat sensitive coloration. They are born pure white because Mom is toasty and their coloring develops with exposure to cold and age. While it comes from the original Siamese the gene is wide spread in the general cat population and could've from ancestors thousands of generations back or just a few. Mom and Dad both had the colorpoint gene to have the kittens show it; with two it's more likely dad was a colorpoint too. Most cats are not any specific breed with the genetics for the domestic cat being such a mixed bag that there aren't very many that are actually a specific purebred. Mostly because being "purebred" is a human concept/habit and a relatively new one in the cat world so there just aren't many of them.

The first one looks like your typical domestic short hair with seal point coloring. The second one looks like it might be a lynx (tabby) seal point. Basically the second one would have looks like the little tabby except it got the colorpoint gene and that muted the coloring. Over time they will both continue to get darker. Colorpoint cats can be any underlaying color and pattern you see in the general cat population.

Would it be possible that the father was a Siamese cat ? What different traits do they have to a"color point" I've never heard of color point before sorry does that mean they will change color over time?

 

[Kieka]

Would it be possible that the father was a Siamese cat ? What different traits do they have to a"color point" I've never heard of color point before sorry does that mean they will change color over time?

I doubt it. Siamese is a very specific breed and usually kept by a breeder so it's unlikely that your girl would run across a Siamese loose. Colorpoint is the term for moggy cats with that type of coloring. Not a breed but a genetic coat trait like tabby, calico, etc. I have two myself. My girl, Rocket, is definitely not close to siamese. She is short and stubby. Actual Siamese are longer and angular more often. My boy, Link, has more Siamese traits and might be closer. Long limbs, angular head, big ears, etc, but without breed documents from a breeder we can't call a domestic cat a specific breed.

Since most recognized cat breeds are mixed of naturally occurring cat traits you can get lookalikes without them being the specific breed. Look up "snowshoe Siamese cat" and then compare it to my two in this photo.

Neither are snowshoe Siamese despite looking just like them. My girl is from a feral colony and definitely is not. Like I said, my boy might be genetically closer. But unless you have the breeder documentation of lineage they never will actually be snowshoes

 

[jcat]

As Kieka said, what you've got there are two colorpoint moggies (domestic cats) that got the luck of the genetic draw. We've got a green-eyed tuxedo (black with white) mom of five at the shelter right now; father(s) unknown, but almost certainly moggies. Two kittens are solid black, one is a b/w tuxedo, one is a brown tabby. Those four have green eyes. The fifth kitten is a blue-eyed lynx point (solid cream body, light tabby face mask, tail, and legs).

 

[StefanZ]

Momma has the gene for becoming a point (colorpoint). Daddy may be a "siamese mix" but its really fully possible he is a non pointed cat. Surely a tabby as your momma is a calico without being tabby...

So, if there in the neighbourhood is or were a handsome, intact tom whom is a tabby- its probably him whom is the daddy.

And some kittens (typically 1 of four) from such a non pointed pair but where both are carriers of the point gene, are born as points, differing from their siblings.

If father were a point, a "siamese-mix", typically half of the kittens would be pointed.
The statistics arent ironclad, so it may vary somewhat.

A similiar hereditary is for the longhair gene.

 

[catapault]

The statistics are only apparent over very large numbers. The dice are rolled anew for each kitten's conception. It is possible that from a litter of four or even more kittens of mixed parentage (not Siamese patterned/ Siamese patterned) there could be anything from four Siamese patterned (s/s) all the way to none (S/s or S/S)