How to tell if a cat is female or male

Have you just adopted a cute kitten and don’t know if it’s male or female? Don’t worry, when kittens are small, it is very difficult to distinguish their sex. Even so, if you look closely, you can figure it out. In today’s article we explain how to tell if a cat is female or male by analyzing its genitals.

How to tell if a cat is female or male by analyzing its genitals

When kittens are very young, their genital area is still underdeveloped. That’s why sometimes it’s not easy to differentiate a female cat from a male. Below we explain what the genitals look like in each case.

What are the genitals of a male cat like?

The genital area of a male cat is composed of the anus, penis, and scrotum:

• The scrotal sac is covered with fur and contains the testicles. Although in adulthood they reach the size of a cherry, in baby kittens the testicles are very small, like an olive pit.
• The penis is located just above the testicles, surrounded by a tuft of fur. It can be seen emerging between the cat’s thighs.
• The anus is about three centimeters away from the penis in adult cats. In kittens, this distance is shorter.

What are the genitals of a female cat like?

In the genital area of a female cat, you can distinguish the anus and the vulva:

• The anus is located just below the tail and is very easy to recognize.
• The vulva looks like a small vertical slit and is located approximately one centimeter from the anus.

How to differentiate male and female cats?

Now you know what the genitals of a male cat and a female cat look like. If you still don’t know how to tell if a cat is female or male, lift your feline friend’s tail and examine the shape of its perineal area:

• If it’s female: you will find a small vertical slit that extends almost to the anus. This is the vulva.
• If it’s male: about a centimeter below the anus, you will see a small opening. This is the prepuce, under which you’ll find the scrotal sac with two small bumps, which are the testicles.

Is it true that tricolor cats are always female?

When a cat has a coat of black, white, and orange, there is more than a 90% chance that it is female. This is due to a genetic factor, since chromosomes determine coat color.

In mammals, female sex is associated with the combination of XX chromosomes and male sex with XY chromosomes. Well, in cats, the orange-brown color is linked to the X chromosome. In some cases, this chromosome may have an allele for the black color (an allele is each of the options in which a trait can manifest). Therefore, the only way for both orange and black alleles to appear together in the same cat an