Ginger Cat Appreciation Day

Do you have an orange kitty? If so, you may want to give your furry pal a special treat today: it’s Ginger Kitty Appreciation Day! Cats come in all sorts of pretty coat colors and patterns, and we think they’re all adorable. However, ginger cats definitely have some raving fans! A veterinarian discusses these miniature lions below.

Kitty Purrsonality

Our feline buddies all have their own distinct ‘purrsonas.’ That said, ginger cats do seem to have some similarities. Boy gingers tend to be chatty, feisty, frisky, bold, and active. Your little red buddy may yell at you for being late with his dinner, or to tell you to pick him up (or put him down) right meow. Girl gingers are usually more gentle and laid-back. They’re also not *quite* as verbose.

Boys Club

Whenever you see or meet a new orange cat, the odds are pretty high that your new feline buddy is a boy. The gene that produces that red color is only on the X chromosome. Since girls are XX, female kitties need two copies of the gene to be gingers. In case that is making you wonder what Fluffy’s family tree looks like … if your ginger is female, that means both of her parents were gingers. If your furball is a boy, only one of his parents had to have been a ginger, but his own kids could be either gingers or tortoiseshell.

Fluffy’s Fashion Sense

Ginger kitties can have either long or short hair. Some of these pretty kitties even have curls! There are also several different variations in the Fluffy’s coat pattern. These include spotted; classic, or swirled, as they are sometimes called; mackerel, or striped; ticked; and patched. Another interesting fact? All ginger cats are tabbies! However, not all tabbies are gingers.

Famous Gingers

We can’t really discuss ginger cats without talking about the most famous one ever: Garfield! The beloved ‘Flabby Tabby’ was born in the back room of Mama Leoni’s Italian Kitchen in 1978. It did not take the tiny orange ball of fur long to realize that lasagna is the best thing ever. The sarcastic kitten’s rapidly growing appetite for the classic casserole almost put the restaurant out of business! Fortunately, Jon Arbuckle adopted the Monday-hating furball. The rest is history. Of course, we can’t forget to mention Morris, the cat food spokeskitty (or technically, spokeskitties) that captured millions of hearts back in the 80’s.

Do you have questions about your ginger cat? Contact us, your animal clinic, today!