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Kitten <3 Anonymous
This is my new kitten.
Do you lyk her?
>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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icu
>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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we take naps together
>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
EYE liek! awwr ^.-.^
>> Pride
Me likes :3
>> Kitten <3 Anonymous
:3
:3
:3
>> Anonymous
no your kitten has cutemia. an acute absence of cuteness. get it to a meatgrinder immediately!
>> Anonymous
A

K
I
T
T
Y

I
S

F
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N
E
>> Anonymous
kitty is so coot.
>> Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
>>58343
LoL! Cute.
>> Anonymous
did u know that if a male cat has 3 different colours in it's fur, he cannot make babies!
>> Anonymous
>>58955
That sounds like a lie-- but I do know a male cat with 3 colors in its fur is worth alot of money.
>> Anonymous
>>58955
>>58957

Wrong and wrong.

Calico males are rare and often infertile, but some are fertile. Neither infertile or fertile male calicos are worth a buck more than your average kitty.
>> Anonymous
hu m4d3 j00 da 3><|03|27?
>> Anonymous
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>>59000
>> Gunlord !.YMO7aNBcQ
>>59000
worst get ever D:
>> Anonymous
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>>58959
>>58957
>>58955

The reason why male calicos are extremely rare is because fur color is partially determined by the sex chromosomes, and 3 colors can only appear in the female's set of sex chromosomes. For a male to have 3 colors actually means its kind of female, which is why when there IS a male calico, he's often sterile.
That is the short answer.

Here is the long answer:
Fur pigment is partially determined by the X chromosome. In order for there to be 3 colors present (orange, black, and white) one X chromosome must have the gene for orange pigment, and the other X chromosome must have the gene for black pigment. White fur is actually a lack of pigment, and is controlled by a completely different chromosome, which I will not get into.

Since there must be 2 X chromosomes present in a calico, and because only females have 2 X chromosomes, all normal calicos are female.
However, if a "male" calico has a genetic defect causing the karyotype XXY (similar to Klinefelter's syndrome in humans), then it is possible for both orange and black to be present. This defect is extremely rare, and will usually cause sterility.
>> Anonymous
>>59012
reminded me of biology class
>> Anonymous
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>>59021
If a female cat heterozygous for both the orange and non-orange fur allele (XO Xo) mates with a homozygous orange (XO Y) male, what are the chances of a heterozygous male being produced? Support your answer with a punnett square.
>> Anonymous
>>59083
I used to be so good at this kind of stuff. Biology is superior to Chem and Physics.
>> Anonymous
>>59012

Chemists and physicists >> biologists.
>> Anonymous
>>59107
I remember when the physics people used to justify that physics was better because physics explains chemistry which explains biology, therefor physics explains everything.

I thought male calicoes cost much more?
>> Anonymous
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Fertile calico males are chimeras.

Which is cool.
>> Anonymous
>>59112
In that case, please explain>>59012in superior chemistry and physics terms.
>> Anonymous
You're all wrong!
Geology is superior.

Cause, you know, we have ... we have rocks, a-and ... stuff
>> Anonymous
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My cat's an orange female. I heard they're not all that common, but I've seen lots of orange female kitties in my day. Can any of you science guys explain?
>> Anonymous
>>59160

just a color as far as I know, the only time people have to break out the Big Book of Introductory Biology is when its a calico, since that involves X chromosome inactivation and crap.
>> Anonymous
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>>59160
>>59163
I hope I don't sound all smart-alecy when I say this...

X-inactivation is a factor in any coat genetics involving orange. If, on a female, one X is orange and the other X is non-orange, each cell randomly inactivates an X chromosome and that produces the calico or tortoise shell pattern.
In order for X-inactivation not to affect fur color, both Xs must be homozygous for either orange or non-orange. Of course, it is very possible for a female cat to be homozygous orange, which is why there are certainly more female orange cats than there are, say, male calicos. In fact, it's *because* males lack the ability to be heterozygous that solid orange coats are more common in males.
>> Anonymous
>>59197

It's amazing that some vets don't know this, though. When my sister took her orange kitty to be neutered, the vet wouldn't believe it was a female before he had it sedated legs spread on the operating table. :|