Cream cat
Also called: Cream cat, Beige cat, Dilute ginger, Pale ginger.
A warm beige, somewhere between butter and peach. Cream is the dilute version of ginger: the same gene, with the pigment distributed differently, which is why it inherits all of ginger’s quirks.
What it looks like
Cream or pinkish beige fur, usually with soft stripes of a slightly darker cream. Pink nose and paw pads, copper, gold or green eyes. In long-haired cats (Persians, British Longhairs) it is especially striking.
The genetics, made simple
To be cream a cat needs two things: the orange gene (on the X chromosome) and two copies of the dilution gene, which is recessive. Dilution clumps the pigment inside the hair and makes it paler: black becomes blue, chocolate becomes lilac, cinnamon becomes fawn and orange becomes cream. Like ginger, cream is more common in males. A female with one orange X and one non-orange X who is also dilute is a dilute tortoiseshell (blue and cream).
Myths and what science says
“It is a dirty white cat”
No. White masks all colour; cream is a colour in its own right, with its tabby pattern and its own genetics.
Fun facts
- If a cream cat also has the silver gene, the shade becomes almost white with pinkish glints: that is cameo.
- Blue and cream females (dilute tortoiseshells) are the “pastel sisters” of tortoiseshells.
- As with ginger, cream cats can have dark freckles on their lips.
Does it affect its health?
The colour does not cause disease. As in ginger cats, there may be benign lentigo on the lips and nose, and the pale skin of the nose and ears burns more easily in the sun.
Breeds where it appears or is typical
This coat turns up in plenty of moggies. These are breeds where it is common, characteristic or accepted; under each one, the colours the breed comes in.
British Shorthair
Shorthair · United Kingdom
Blue (the classic), black, white, cream, lilac, chocolate, silver, golden, bicolours, colourpoint…
Persian
Persian · Iran / United Kingdom
Almost all: white, black, blue, cream, chinchilla, golden, bicolour, tortoiseshell…
Exotic Shorthair
Persian · United States
The same as the Persian
Burmese
Oriental · Myanmar (Burma) / United States
Sable (brown), chocolate, blue and lilac; in Europe also red, cream and tortie
Himalayan
Persian · United Kingdom / United States
Colourpoint: seal, blue, chocolate, lilac, red, cream, tortie and lynx; blue eyes
Ragdoll
Semi-longhair · United States
Colourpoint, mitted and bicolour, in seal, blue, chocolate, lilac, red, cream, tortie and lynx; blue eyes
European Shorthair
Shorthair · Europe
Almost all: tabby, black, white, bicolour, tortoiseshell, red…; no colourpoint, chocolate or lilac in pedigree cats
Frequently asked questions
What is a cream cat?
A ginger cat with a double copy of the dilution gene. The pigment clumps and the orange shows as pale beige.
Are cream cats usually male too?
Yes, for the same reason as ginger cats: the colour depends on the X chromosome.
Can a cream kitten be born to two ginger parents?
Yes, if both carry the recessive version of dilution hidden.
Educational content from Michipedia. The genetics of coat colour are simplified so they are easy to follow; colour tells you nothing about the personality of a particular cat.