If you are a cat lover and have many pet cats, then you know that newborn cats have eyes color of blue. This is not the case with a few cats, all cats after they are born, have the blue eye color. Many people secretly wish that their cat eyes will remain blue, but that’s not the case. A cat’s eye color changes once they mature. Then why are they even blue in the first place?
When a cat is born, its eyes are not even open, its only after a week or two that you can see their eye color, and that color is blue. This blue is actually quite blurry and glassy, and this is because the cat’s vision is still developing and hence this is not their original eye color.
Well, isn’t that fascinating. Some kittens are born wit their original eye color, by which I mean the blue color, but that is not the case with every kitten. Let’s find out the science behind this and why it happens in the first place.
Kittens born with blue eyes
When a kitten first opens their eyes, her eyes are technically of no color, because the pigment hasn’t developed yet. A kitten’s body starts developing pigment after they are born, means their eye color will depend on the amount of pigment that they create.
Then why do we see a blue color? The gray blue color that we observe in a kitten’s eye is just a refraction of light on the glassy surface, as their vision is still developing, it is something that we see because of the nature of the light and not the eye color itself.
Why does the blue color disappear
It is common knowledge by now that a kitten’s eye changes color once they mature. The color of a kitten’s eye is determined by genetics and the dominant genes win out. When a cat is of 2 weeks old, they open their eyes and you can see they are a blurry blue, that is because their vision is still developing and adapting to the light.
Once a kitten reaches its mature state or age, they will change their eye color to their permanent eye color. That is not the case with all the kittens, and some retain their blue color throughout. The most common kitten eye color is yellow, copper, green, brown and even amber.
Some cats are even born with different eye colors, this is common trait and is known as heterochromia. It is found in many kittens and makes them even more adorable.
Science behind a kitten’s eye color
Now let’s discuss the science of a kitten’s eye color. The eye color is determined by cells called melanocytes, which are present in the eye’s iris. The iris consists of 2 layers, the stroma and epithelium, one is strongly packed and the other is loosely packed, both of them contains the pigment cells melanocytes.
Most of the common eye colors include brown, gold, amber or green. And no pigment results in blue color. Some cat breeds retain the blue color that they had at their birth, but most cats change their colors within the period of 3 months to up to 1 year. This is the color that remains throughout their life.
Cats with blue eyes
There are many cats breeds out there that have originally blue color throughout their life. These include Siamese, Himalayan, Balinese, Persian, Birman and Javanese.
White cats and blue eyes
Most white cats will also have blue colored eyes. Why is this? These cats have many less pigment cells, these less pigment cells bring about the white color of their skin and also the blue color in their eyes. But these few pigment cells are also responsible for causing issues with hearing. Almost all white cats with blue eyes have an ear-dysfunction and cannot listen properly, this is also known as congenital deafness. And the ratio of such cats is up to 85%.
When does the eye color change
Now when does a cat’s eyes change color? Once they mature, of course. A cat’s maturation period is among 5-6 weeks and this is the time that the pigment cells in a cat’s iris, called melanocytes, starts producing melanin. Melanin is responsible for the permanent eye color of the cat and is purely dependent on genetics.
The eye color is determined by melanocytes and the amount of melanin they produce. Permanent blue eye color is a result of low melanin production and whereas brown eye color means the huge amount of melanin was produced. Whatever the case maybe, a cat’s eye color is not something that can be controlled.
The changes in eye color can take a long period of time. This could take around 3 o 6 months or even extend up to a year. But once a mature color has been developed, your cat should not change its eye color. If you notice any changes once they mature, it is important to take your cat to the vet immediately as it could lead to a certain condition.
Conclusion
Cats are adorable creatures and the most prettiest thing about them is their eyes. A cat’s eye varies in colors ranging from brown, green, yellow, blue and gold. The fun fact is that a when a cat is born, it has blue eyes or that’s what we thought. It is actually the light playing tricks on us and makes us seem that our cat has blue color eyes. All cats are born with blue eyes and this color is changed once they are matured, that means in about 6-7 weeks, you will start to notice the change. And that changed color is the permanent eye color of your cat.