Can An Orange Cat Have Blue Eyes – Here’s The Answer!

Cat-eye color is one of the essential parts of their appearance. Your cat communicates a lot of information about their mood and even their health with their eyes, so it makes sense that owners spend a lot of time thinking about their cats’ eyes. But are cat eye colors predictable? Is their eye color related to their coat color? Can an orange cat have blue eyes?

Yes, in some rare cases, an orange cat could have blue eyes as an adult. However, blue-eyed orange cats are incredibly rare, and most orange cats will ultimately have yellow, green, or gold eyes. That’s because blue eyes have very little pigment, and most cats have too much pigment in their irises for that color. 

If your orange cat has blue eyes, or you’re curious why they don’t, you’re in the right place. We’ll talk about blue eyes in cats, what blue eyes can mean for your cat, and which colorations of cat can end up with blue eyes. 

Here’s what you need to know. 

Do Orange Cats Eyes Stay Blue

Most orange cats are born with blue eyes, just like any other kitten. That’s because their eyes aren’t fully developed when they start to open them and won’t be for the first several weeks of their life. 

Most kittens get their final eye color around 6-8 weeks old, but they’ll start to change colors even before that. In some cases, it takes longer, even as much as 10-12 weeks, for a kitten’s eyes to finish changing color.

That’s why your kitten might have had blue eyes when they were small but have a different color now. Usually, the further from blue your cat’s eyes will turn, the sooner and more drastic the change will be. 

Once your kitten is a few months old, you should know what their eye color will be for the rest of their lives. But, their eyes might change shades slightly as they age. Any significant changes in your cat’s eye color after that age may be a good reason to go visit a vet to make sure they’re alright and that there isn’t a problem causing the change. 

What Color Eyes Do Orange Cats Have

You can’t fully predict what color eyes an orange cat will have until they finish settling, but most orange cats have similar-colored eyes. The most common eye colors for orange cats are yellow and gold. Slightly fewer orange cats have green eyes, and even fewer have dark brown eyes. 

Very rarely, an orange cat will have blue eyes. 

Other colors can signify that something is wrong or that your cat has an eye infection. So, if your cat’s eyes appear reddish or any other unusual color, it’s best to take them to a vet for a checkup. 

What Color Cats Have Blue Eyes

Blue eyes are most common in Siamese cats (who all have blue eyes because of their albinism), but they are much more common in white cats than cats of any other color. 

That’s because blue eyes aren’t the product of blue pigment in the eye, but of low densities of other pigment and the color of the eye without pigment combining to create blue. Blue eyes in people are the same way; it’s not that there’s blue pigment; it’s that the light is reacting to a little pigment and what’s behind it in a way that creates blue. 

Since cats with orange, gray, or black fur all have more natural pigment than white cats, they tend to have too much pigment in their eyes to have blue eyes.

There are some rare cases where a cat could develop pigment for darker fur color and still have blue eyes, but it’s not common, and not all breeds can have blue eyes. 

Siamese cats are the only cats that always have blue eyes. White cats from other breeds can have yellow or green eyes just from having a little extra pigment in their irises. 

What Is The Rarest Color Of Cat Eyes

The rarest color of cat eye is orange. Orange eyes are only found in a couple of breeds and are considered unique mutations of those breeds. The orange color itself ranges from a very bright orange to a deep scarlet or burgundy orange, but every shade of orange cat-eye is striking. 

Orange eyes seem to have more pigment than yellow or green eyes, but less than brown, and possibly a slightly different combination or arrangement of pigments to help create the bright orange hue. 

Since the breeds that have orange eyes very rarely have orange fur, it would be rare to see an orange cat with orange eyes. A few lucky cats have both orange fur and orange eyes, though! They’re just uncommon. 

Do Blue Eyed Cats Go Blind

Blue-eyed cats don’t necessarily go blind, thankfully. This rumor probably started because Siamese cats, who always have blue eyes, were also thought to have eye problems and sight problems, making them more high maintenance than other cats. 

Thankfully, Siamese cats don’t have as many eye issues as most people think they do, and there’s nothing about blue eyes that means that cats will have sight problems. 

You only need to know about a cat with blue eyes because bright light may sometimes hurt their eyes, and you may need to limit their time in bright sunlight. But that’s because the light can damage their eyes, not because having blue eyes makes it harder for them to see in the light. 

Do All Cats With Blue Eyes Have Siamese In Them

Not all cats with blue eyes have any Siamese genetics, but all cats with the gene for Siamese albinism will have blue eyes. 

Siamese cats have a specific mutation that prevents their skin and eyes from developing pigment above a specific temperature. Since that temperature is lower than their body temperature, Siamese cats only develop pigment in the coolest parts of their body and never their eyes. 

But there are other reasons a cat might have blue eyes besides Siamese albinism. While it’s possible the cats will blue eyes are descended from Siamese cats, in most cases, the connection is so distant that your cat won’t be related to Siamese cats today. 

Can Tabby Cats Have Blue Eyes

Tabby cats can have blue eyes, just like any other coat pattern. But, like other coat patterns and colors, blue-eyed tabby cats are relatively rare. 

Things To Consider

Many cat owners think about rare coloration in their cats because particular colorations are rare or seen as more valuable than other colors. When it comes to blue eyes, that’s not the case. While blue eyes are rare, they aren’t so rare that they make your cat more valuable or likely to score better in cat shows. 

The exception is Siamese cats, where eye color can matter and impact the cat’s value, though blue cats aren’t always as valuable as white or silvery-eyed Siamese. 

Of course, no matter what color your cat’s eyes are, the most important thing is their bond with you!