"Tortitude" Is Real, And Other Fun Facts About Tortoiseshell Cats
Ready for some fast feline facts about Tortoiseshell Cats? These notoriously feisty felines are surrounded by some pretty cool facts - and fiction - from rare genetics to a pretty metal story involving the blood of a mythical goddess. Man, Torties are great.
Tortoiseshell Cats Are Not Actually a Breed of Cat
Tortoiseshell actually refers to the cat’s coat color and fur pattern. Affectionately shortened to “Torties,” Tortoiseshell cats are named for their distinctive multicolored coats featuring a constellation of black, brown, amber, red, cinnamon and chocolate – and very little or no white markings.
Often confused with calico cats, who are predominately white, orange and black, the Tortoiseshell pattern can be seen in Persians, Cornish Rex, and the Japanese Bobtail - just a few of the many breeds that can produce a tortoiseshell coat, both long and short-haired.
Some variations of the tortoiseshell include "dilution," which results in softer, muted greys and creams instead of red and black. There is also the "Torbie" pattern, which is a tortoiseshell cat with tabby stripes.
Torties are Full of “Tortitude."
If you are the servant – er, owner – of a multicolored kitty like a calico or tortoiseshell, you might already know what “tortitude” is. But for those who aren’t aware, there is a bit of a myth surrounding our multicolored feline friends. “Tortitude” is often affectionately applied to a cat with a tortoiseshell or calico coat that also happens to have a bit more, well, cattitude.
Torties are known for being a bit more challenging, strong-willed, and can be possessive of their human. Other words used to describe torties are “fiercely independent, feisty and unpredictable,” according to Ingrid King, author of the Conscious Cat.
If your tortie has a bit of ‘tude, don’t worry – you’re not crazy for thinking it! According to a study from veterinarians at the University of California, cats with calico and tortoiseshell coats tend to challenge their humans more often than other less flashy felines.
Looking for a way to tame your cat's tortitude? Be sure to provide your kitty with plenty of indoor enrichment, like food puzzles or catnip kicker toys as an outlet for all that pent up 'tude!
Torties are almost always female.
The color of a cat’s fur is inherited from its parents, much like our human hair color. Because the genes responsible for orange and black fur color in cats are carried on the X chromosome, torties (and other multicolored kitties) are typically born female. This fun feline genetic detail also applies to calico cats!
About 1 in 3,000 Torties are male
Because each color is carried on a different X chromosome, a cat needs two X chromosomes to be born with a calico or tortoiseshell pattern, which means they will almost always be born female. However, due to a rare genetic mutation that results in an XXY genotype, a male tortie may be born. But that’s a 1 in 3,000 occurrence – a 0.3% chance!
Torties Are Mythical
Torties - and calicos, too - are often the focus of folklore and legend. In the United States, they’re referred to as “money cats," being that male torties and calicos are so rare. In Scotland and Ireland, it’s seen as good luck when a male tortoiseshell comes into your home.
Japanese fisherman believed that bringing a tortie onto their boat would protect them from storms and ghosts.
Even the Khmers of Southeast Asia even developed an explanation as to the origins of a tortie: they came from “the blood of a young goddess born of a lotus flower during a magical ritual”.
Do you have a Tortie at home? Now you can get their photo printed on any custom item, like a mug or blanket! Click here for more details.
This article confirms what I have always believed to be true about tortoiseshell cats. I own a luxury cat hotel in Salem, Oregon. Some of my clients who are owned by tortoiseshell cats have often asked me why their cats have such “cattitude”. I tell them that it does seem to be a trend, and that I see it all the time. Now, I have definitive proof, and will share this article with them! Much thanks!
Our tortie, Butterscotch (Scotch), found us by meowing at our back door during a snow storm. She was <6 months old, so malnourished she was dizzy,and could not refuse food. She earned a fierce reputation at the vet, consequently, they preferred to treat her when she was “asleep”. What a personality! She loves me and is terrified of my husband’s hands. He picks her up, which she doesn’t like; I let her come to me. Scotch gets fed 3x a day but will not eat until we tell her it is okay and pet her. She is very affectionate to our ankles. When she is feeling loved, she walks around on her tippy toes. Playtime with my husband is her favorite. She will sit between him and the TV and stare until the laser comes out. She watches us (eerie) and is very sharp. She learned how to live in a house from our older cat and followed her everywhere for a year. Scotch has no desire to go back outside. She is now 2-1/2 years and the most interesting cat we have ever had the pleasure of living with.
I have two Torbies and both are Spicy and Sassy! One is a lazy, gorgeous foodie that loves to fist fight with my boyfriend, the other is outright NUTS and quite psychic. We adore them both as they each add a huge amount to an already big household of two humans and six felines!
I am the slave to a nortie tortie. She is very sweet but very demandy. She is also very clever. She will pick up on an order or an admonition after the very first time it is taught to her. She also can figure our routines, how to deceive, or otherwise what humans will look for to control her. I don’t know what her IQ would be in human terms, but you have to watch her like a prisoner. She doesn’t just watch, she studies you. She has even come up with hunting tactics not native to her species. She figured out the Bobcat drop method to kill larger prey items. I’ve seen her take full size rabbits. She has also come to learn about the ideas of pursuit; she can’t catch a squirrel in her run, but she’s decoded their evasive behavior and knows she only has to keep them darting back and forth for about a minute to tire them. Then it’s a free kill. She has bribed the backyard hawk family into being her friends and allies. She leaves a kill for them every several days and they don’t attack her. I’ve seen them eat the same kills. She even can figure out other languages; we speak English at home, but I have also gotten her to understand cues an commands in Arabic, Korean, German, and Spanish. She got 50% of the German ones without instruction, meaning she can approximate meanings from cognates. She’s also very nortie; she requires a very firm hand to obey commands, or she decides they’re optional. She also likes to try to scam her way into extra food. She is also very demanding of pets, I am very happy to supply. Love my nortie tortie with all her tortietude.Genius headcase she is.
I have a 2.5 year old tortoiseshell kitty named Baby. She weighs 14 pounds and is NOT fat. She weighed less than 1.5 lbs when I brought her home. She is a real snuggle bug and loves to sleep on my lap or across my legs when I go to bed. If I talk too much to her or pet her too much while sleeping on my lap she will snarl, growl, hiss and huff air out her nose…. she never bites though other than little nibbles… if I call her “kitty kitty” while she’s sleeping, she growls… and when awake will not respond to anything other than “Baby”. She hates to be picked up and snarls, hisses and growls but is all noise, no violence. She keeps me quite entertained with her gifts, as well as her attitude.
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