Meet the Brown Cats

In the feline world, shades and patterns of brown coats fall into two categories: common and uncommon. The brown tabby coat, for example, is extremely common. Cats with a solid brown coat? Well, that’s a different story altogether.

The Only All-Brown Cat: Meet the Havana Brown

The rarest of all cats with a brown coat is the Havana Brown. This is the only cat breed that comes exclusively in brown. In fact, except for those beautiful green eyes, this breed is entirely brown: fur, nose, paw pads—even the whiskers.

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The Havana Cat was developed in England during the 1950s, where fanciers crossed Siamese cats with black cats in pursuit of a cat with a solid, rich brown colour. Over time, breeding efforts focused on retaining the brown colour while eliminating the pointed Siamese coat pattern. The name refers to the rich brown colour that is a trademark of Cuban cigars. While still quite rare, the breed has gained popularity outside of England and can be found throughout the United States and Europe.

Other Popular Brown Cat Breeds

Some cat breeds come in a full brown coat option. The Burmese was developed in South-east Asia in the country now known as Myanmar and is a strikingly beautiful cat that can be all-brown. The coat is traditionally solid in colour with the most common being sable—a rich, dark brown shade, though they also come in other colours, like champagne, blue, and platinum. These are social and affectionate cats, medium-sized with a muscular build and a distinctive round head. Their eyes are large and expressive and most commonly gold or yellow.

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The exotic-looking Bengal is the result of crossbreeding between domestic cats with wild Asian Leopard Cats. Playful and athletic, Bengals are known for their striking, leopard-like appearance. These muscular and athletic cats are great hunters, but it’s that coat for which they’re most famous. Bengal cats come in shades of mahogany and their spots can be very well-defined. While commonly found in shades of brown, the Bengal does come in other coat colours, such as silver, charcoal, and snow.

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Next up, we have one of the oldest cat breeds—the Abyssinian. This beautiful feline has captivated people for centuries. We know their history dates to ancient Egypt, but their earliest origins remain shrouded in mystery. The Abyssinian’s coat is one of its most defining features. Coat colours include ruddy, red, blue, and fawn, but reddish-brown tones are the most common. The Abyssinian is medium in size with a slender, fine body and large, expressive eyes. These cats are natural athletes known for their love of play and big jumps. They’re also very affectionate and social—happy to be a part of whatever is going on in the home.

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Brown Patterned Coats

There are also several different brown coat patterns in cats. Let’s look at a few. The Ticked Tabby is one of the most common coat patterns found among domestic cats and is also sometimes referred to as Classic Tabby. It shows up in many shades of brown, ranging from a light tan to a deep chocolate. Individual hairs are banded with these varying colours, and the effect is a speckled or saltand- pepper appearance. There are no clearly defined stripes or spots on this coat pattern.

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The Mackerel Tabby is another common pattern which comes in shades of brown as well as other colours. This striking coat is characterized by narrow, vertical stripes that run parallel along the body and resemble the bones of a fish skeleton—hence the name. The cat’s head typically features narrow stripes that run across the forehead and cheeks.

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The Spotted Tabby is yet another eye-catching variation. Cats with this coat have an exotic look, characterized by circular markings across the body. The spots can vary in size and shape and may appear on the back, sides, leg—and sometimes on the face and tail. As with the other tabby patterns, this coat comes in a wide variety of colours and shades, including brown.

Photo Aleksand Volchanskiy/Adobe Stock

Next up is the Tortoiseshell pattern, or “Tortie,” as it’s referred to by devotees. This pretty pattern is like a patchwork with two distinct colours, most typically black or dark brown and red or orange. When blended, they form unique marbled patterns. The look of Tortoiseshells varies significantly from cat to cat.

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Some breeds, notably the Siamese and the Balinese, feature a distinctive coat pattern where the fur on their extremities—ears, face, paws, and tail— appears darker than the rest of their bodies. This is referred to as a Pointed pattern and often these darker areas appear in shades of brown, ranging from light caramel to rich chocolate. As you can see, plenty of cats display a brown coat pattern, come in a shade of brown or, in one case, come exclusively in brown. On the flip side, plenty of cat breeds don’t come in a brown coat whatsoever. These include the Bombay, Russian Blue, Burmilla, and Chartreux. The brown cat is anything but average. With so many coat variants, shades, and patterns, there’s more than meets the eye—and plenty to love—about each of these cats.

This article originally appeared in the award-winning Modern Cat magazine. Subscribe today!