This Cat Is Going Viral for Her Extremely Rare Coat Pattern—Meet the Dilute Calico

Lots of pet owners love to show off their furry family members on social media, especially if they have unique features and quirky personalities.

So it's not surprising that TikTok users are big fans of Niska, a very rare cat that's known as a dilute or muted calico. The account @cat_astrophies has been posting videos of their special feline, along with her cat sister, Mattie, for several years, and one video of Niska has reached more than 10 million views.

While cat videos are common, Niska and her muted coloring are anything but. Standard calicos occur about once in every 1,000 cats, making a dilute calico even rarer. Among all domestic cat coat patterns, dilute calico ranks among the rarest to occur naturally.

That's because they carry the recessive dilution gene, which regulates the pigment for each hair strand, vet Dr Rebecca MacMillan explained to PetsRadar. When the gene is inherited from both parents, the cat's color appears more faded and soft than that of a regular calico, which is usually a rich tricolor coat of black, orange, and white.

Related Stories

She Finally DNA Tested Her Dog—The Results Changed What She Thought She Knew

Check Your Pet Food: More Products Recalled Due to Risk of Serious Illness

Niska's coat features soft blue-gray, cream, and pale ginger tones. Dilute calicos are also typically female because the color genes are located on the X chromosome.

Since the dilute calico is named for its coat pattern and isn't a breed, both short- and long-haired cat breeds can produce these tricolored kittens, including Maine Coon, Persian, and Ragdoll.