# What's with all the Orange Tabbies? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 27, 2010, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039 "2010-03-27T18:42:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/41 "2010-03-30T06:38:25Z")
I just thought of two show biz cats who weren’t orange tabbies: the white Persian and the hairless cat from _Austin Powers_. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/42 "2010-03-30T10:24:19Z")
> [@ghardester](#): > > And almost all three color cats are female. Males are either one or two color cats. Again, there are exceptions but it’s a quick and handy thing to know. Does that only refer to tortie/calico markings, or to tabby markings as well? I’m just curious because I have a boy who is white, black and brown with orange patches (and I suppose the “brown” may just be “orange” that appears darker for being so mixed with the black). My daughter would be amused to know that there’s something “unusual” about him (beyond the usual cat weirdness). She’s always trying to figure out what breeds our cats are. To me, cats is cats. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/43 "2010-03-30T13:25:01Z")
> [@HazelNutCoffee](#): > > The complete opposite of my current cat (not orange), who is a total slut and will make love to anyone who walks through the door, including the cable guy. Jeez, you could have at least _tried_ to tell me that she liked me for me… ☹ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/44 "2010-03-30T13:53:14Z")
Animals used in live filming are often of a fairly solid coat color or a breed with a standard coloration, because that makes it easier to switch out animals when and if you need to. It’s a whole lot easier to find two orange tabbies or two German Shepherds with nearly identical markings than it is to find, say, two nearly identical calico cats or Dalmatians. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/45 "2010-03-30T14:32:48Z")
> [@interface2x](#): > > Jeez, you could have at least _tried_ to tell me that she liked me for me… ☹ LOL. Don’t take it personally. 😉 I’m her freakin’ owner and she treats me like she treats the cable guy and the Fed Ex dude and my mom and everyone she’s ever met. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/46 "2010-03-30T17:21:17Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Does that only refer to tortie/calico markings, or to tabby markings as well? I’m just curious because I have a boy who is white, black and brown with orange patches (and I suppose the “brown” may just be “orange” that appears darker for being so mixed with the black). My daughter would be amused to know that there’s something “unusual” about him (beyond the usual cat weirdness). If he truly has _orange_ mixed with other colors and not just a light brown, then he is almost certainly carrying an extra X chromosome or two and would probably be sterile ( if you had never neutered him, which is still always a good idea for behavioral reasons ). They also may tend to put on weight easier and while externally male, they may sometimes have slightly confused internal sexual plumbing, for that extra “unusual” factor :). The “O” converts all colors to orange ( but can be overlain with white from the piebald gene ). So to get orange plus other colors you need “Oo”, which is normally only possible with two or more X chromosomes. ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/47 "2010-03-30T17:46:01Z")
I have a orange tabby and he is a weirdo. He asserts his dominance in odd ways. He has a purple blanket with cow markings on it that I call his “fucking blanket” because he hauls it around the apartment and sexes it up with some regularity. _Every single time_ a new person comes into the house he drags the blanket in front of them and sexes it up for a few minutes so that they can see just how dominant he is and know that he is the lord of the blanket or something like that. Once he gets to know you he becomes very loving and curls up next to you to sleep and seeks out pettings but until he has determined that you are an acceptable person he doesn’t want to have much to do with you. Except, you know, to make sure you watch him molest his cow blankie. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/48 "2010-03-30T21:31:37Z")
> [@sweetie pea](#): > > I’m so jealous. > I’ve turned over every damn calico and tortoiseshell I’ve ever met since I was a little kid, and I’ve never seen a male. Unless we’re talking about an intact tomcat, I can’t see any indication of gender on a cat. The penis doesn’t dangle down like a male dog’s, but is hidden behind a fold of skin, or something like that, except when in actual use. I’m sure there’s a simple procedure for checking a fixed tom, but I don’t know what it is. As for females, I can’t always tell with them either. Sometimes even when their pregnant it’s not that easy to tell. ON the other hand, when they start popping out the kits, that’s a dead giveaway. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/49 "2010-03-30T21:40:17Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > Surprised the OP forgot to mention Spot, Data’s orange tabby on TNG. Although now that I think about it, was that a tabby? Huh. Quoting Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Spot originally appears as a male Somali cat, but later appears as a female orange tabby house cat ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2010, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/50 "2010-03-31T00:37:59Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Unless we’re talking about an intact tomcat, I can’t see any indication of gender on a cat. The penis doesn’t dangle down like a male dog’s, but is hidden behind a fold of skin, or something like that, except when in actual use. > > I’m sure there’s a simple procedure for checking a fixed tom, but I don’t know what it is. > > As for females, I can’t always tell with them either. Sometimes even when their pregnant it’s not that easy to tell. ON the other hand, when they start popping out the kits, that’s a dead giveaway. Males are periods. Females are exclamation points. 'Nuff said. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2010, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/51 "2010-03-31T08:05:32Z")
> [@](#): > > Unless we’re talking about an intact tomcat, I can’t see any indication of gender on a cat. The penis doesn’t dangle down like a male dog’s, but is hidden behind a fold of skin, or something like that, except when in actual use. > > I’m sure there’s a simple procedure for checking a fixed tom, but I don’t know what it is. Male cats, either neutered or intact, have a penile sheath, though it’s not long at all. After you see a few of them and know what you’re looking at, you’ll be able to tell. However, the cat has to be on his back to take a good look at it. Even a neutered boy, though, will still have his scrotum, he just won’t have the balls that goes in it. The scrotum is easily seen when the cat is standing up. On an intact adult tom, the scrotum will be quite prominent. Female cats, spayed or not, have a vulva. Again, once you’ve seen a few of them, you’ll be able to tell them apart. You can see this vulva when the cat’s standing up. You do have to look at the back end of a cat in order to tell which sex it is. If there’s a vulva, the upside down exclamation point, then it’s a girl type kitty. Most cats are only too willing to give you a good look at their butthole, and thus you can check out their genitals, too, if you want. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039/52 "2010-04-01T21:18:26Z")
It’s that damn w… Garfield! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-the-orange-tabbies/534039.md?page=2)