When most people envision a Siamese Cat, they’ll think of a cat with a light body and darker marks on their faces, paws, and tails. However, Siamese Cats are actually born completely white and start to develop their darker color points about a week after birth. These special color point markings are caused by a genetic mutation, and they can be seal, chocolate, blue, or lilac. Siamese Cats with seal markings have black pigments and can also be referred to as Black Siamese Cats.
So, from a genetic standpoint, Black Siamese Cats do exist. However, they don’t look like how cats born with black coats look.
Cat Genetics: How Siamese Cats Get Their Color Points
Siamese Cats and other cat breeds with color point markings are carriers of the Himalayan gene. Siamese Cats are actually partially albino and are carriers of an albino gene mutation that causes cats to have white coats and blue eyes 1. This is why all Siamese Cats have blue eyes and give birth to litters of completely white kittens.
The albino gene mutation is recessive to Siamese color points caused by the Himalayan gene 2. The Himalayan gene is a mutation that’s sensitive to temperature and causes color changes based on cold spots. So, cats will remain white or cream in warmer areas of their body, while cooler spots will change to a darker pigment. This usually occurs around the ears, nose, paws, and tails.
What Does a Black Siamese Cat Look Like?
The possible color point markings for Siamese Cats are blue, chocolate, lilac, and seal. The seal color refers to black pigmentation and was actually inspired by the color of seals. Therefore, Seal Point Siamese Cats have markings that range from dark brown to black, and they can also be called Black Siamese Cats.
Though Black Siamese Cats exist, they won’t have completely black coats. Cats born with a black coat will have the black pigmentation in their genes without the albino gene variant found in Siamese Cats. This enables them to have a solid black coat. In contrast, Black Siamese Cats can’t be completely black, but some can have darker bodies if they’ve been exposed to colder temperatures.
While color points start to appear several days after birth, the point will continue to darken and solidify throughout the kitten’s first year of life. Siamese Cats’ coats can darken when they’re older due to internal body temperature changes. So, a Seal Point Siamese Cat can more closely resemble a solid black cat as he ages.
Interestingly enough, it is actually much harder to find an all-black cat. Due to genetics, all-black cats are rare, and cats that seem to have solid black coats often have patches of hair that are different colors or whiskers of another color. All-black cats also usually have matching black paw pads, while black cats with other coat markings can have pink paw pads with darker patches on them.
Conclusion
Black Siamese Cats do exist, but they look different from cats with all-black coats. They’re partially albino, so they’ll always have lighter shades on their coats. However, as a Seal Point Siamese Cat ages, you may notice that his coat may start to darken. So, it is very possible for a Seal Point Siamese Cat to look more like a solid black cat over time.
Featured Image Credit: bazoul, Shutterstock
