# Snowshoe Siamese kitten question



## Adrienne123 (May 13, 2009)

Has anyone heard of these? Are they a Siamese or a snowshoe or would it be a mix of the two? Someone posted in ad in my paper and I was thinking of calling and getting a friend for China. Any help would be appreciated. I did a general search on the internet and it seems they originated as Siamese when a lady's Siamese had kittens with the snowshoe markings. What would happen if you bred a Siamese to a Snowshoe? Just for curiosity sake, not really planning on anything like that.


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Adrienne123 said:


> What would happen if you bred a Siamese to a Snowshoe?


Without going to my cat-book to check, I think it would depend on how the genetics were laid out and distributed.

First, all Siamese and mix-breed meezer cats (_Siamese -> meezer_) are homozygous (hmzg) for the recessive pointed gene, which gives the Meezer/Himalayan/Ragdoll/Snowshoe cats their pointed markings. Because this is a recessive gene, there must be TWO of these genes for the pointed distribution of color to appear, hence; the cat is homozygous for the recessive gene.

Many mix-breed cats that have one recessive pointed gene and one dominant solid-color gene are called heterozygous (htzg) for the pointed markings. Because the dominant "trumps" the recessive, the cat will phenotypically look like a regular domestic cat, non-pointed. But if bred with another cat who also carries the pointed gene and kitten(s) receive a recessive pointed gene from each parent, the kitten will be pointed, and therefor homozygous.

The Siamese breed, also the Korat, Russian Blue and British Blue Shorthair are homozygous in another way: they are hmzg for NO agouti. 
_I need to back up a bit_: all cats are tabby cats, they carry a variation of the tabby genes that govern the tabby patterns of Abyssinian, Classic (target/circle/blotched) and Mackerel ~ mackerel variations are striped, broken striped and spotted. These patterns will not be obviously visible, _though in certain lights some solid colored cats can reveal their tabby pattern_, but because they do not carry the agouti gene, they appear as a solid colored cat: black, gray, meezer. 

_The Korat, Russian Blue and British Shorthair also carry a "cream" gene that dilutes their black base-coat to gray (blue). Years of selective breeding have given reputable breeders cats who breed "true" because they have specifically chosen cats for their breeding programs that are homozygous for no agouti and hmzg for cream, so all kittens born are dilute and solid, with no obvious tabby markings._

Cats who *do* carry agouti, express their tabby patterns in an obvious manner. Black cats are the typical tabby cats we are familiar with, black with cream are gray cats with tabby markings. Meezer cats with agouti become "lynx points", which means their tabby markings show up in their darker points. Red cats are different...agouti only expresses on a black base-coat, so the tabby markings on red hair will always show their tabby markings. The difference, is their red hair does not have the banding/ticking that black agouti cats have. 

This is important for calico cats, especially defining tortoiseshell cats. Tortoiseshell (Tortie) is black and red, no agouti...though if the red markings are in large enough patches, the tabby pattern will show through. The Torbie (tortoiseshell + tabby) is a black/red cat who does have agouti, hence their tabby pattern will be visible in their entire haircoat. It is my understanding that "calico" refers to seperate patches of color on the cat; patches of solid black, patches of red (that will show the tabby pattern) and patches of white. Tortoiseshell cats can also have white, though I think most people designate tortie/torbie for cats who have no white.
_Tortoiseshell vs Calico is just semantics. I prefer to describe what the haircoat pattern looks like instead of defining it as whether or not the cat has white markings. White markings only cover over the base-coat color of the cat and range from minimal (toes/nose) to medium (tuxedo) to maximum (Turkish Vans and nearly white to all white._

So, now I finally come to your question of breeding a Meezer with a Snowshoe...Because the Meezer and the Snowshoe are both hmzg for pointed, all kittens will be pointed. If the Showshoe is homozygous for the white spotting, every kitten will get a white spotted gene and have some form of white on them. They will also be designated as htzg for white spotting, themselves. If the Snowshoe is htzg for the white spotting, it will depend on which genes were passed to the kittens: white spotting = spotted kittens. No white spotting = no spotted kittens.

Sorry, TMI? :lol: 
heidi


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## Adrienne123 (May 13, 2009)

That is a lot of info to process but I certainly appreciate you going into such depth with it. I think I can make sense of it but I may need to read it a few more times!

Thanks so much! :mrgreen:


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Here is a short version:
Siamese/meezer-cross cats, when bred together, will always have meezer kittens. If the meezer parent with the white markings is homozygous for white spotting, all kittens will receive 1 spotting gene from that parent. If the meezer parent with white markings is heterozygous for white spotting, this means they have 1 spotting gene and 1 non-spotting gene...and depending on which is passed to each kitten, will determine if the kittens have white markings.

Sorry, I am fascinated by coat color genetics and I tend to get carried away.  
h


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## gunterkat (Aug 19, 2006)

Heidi, I, for one, always appreciate your in-depth explanations of kitty coat geneticss. I like anything that helps me to know my kitteh better.  
rcat


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## Adrienne123 (May 13, 2009)

Thanks Heidi! It's a whole new kitty world to me and the more I can learn the better prepared I will be!


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## gunterkat (Aug 19, 2006)

Regarding the _purrsonality_ of a Siamese/Snowshoe (Snowpaws?) mix kitty, I think that would produce a cat with a very interesting mix of tendencies. And all genetics contributes to a cat personality is tendencies. :wink: 
Meezers tend to be highly intelligent, but often high-energy, feisty kitties. Mix that with a Snowshoe's tendency for an intelligent, but laid-back personality, and you could end up with a feline genius, who is mellow, adaptable, and loyal.
Sounds like a nice combination,


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