Grey Cat Adoption Alberta

Grey is a colour, and it is not a Russian Blue

Grey cats, described as blue in pedigree circles, get their colour from a dilution gene that softens black into an even smoky grey. Understanding that grey is a colour and not a breed is the thing most likely to save you money, because grey domestic shorthairs are routinely advertised as Russian Blue mixes in Alberta classifieds, and adopters arrive expecting a pedigree temperament that the genetics never promised.

A genuine Russian Blue is a specific breed with a defined body type, a dense double coat and green eyes, and you should expect both a wait and paperwork. If what you actually want is a beautiful grey cat, Calgary Humane Society, Edmonton Humane Society and AARCS list them regularly and you will not wait long.

Why grey cats sit longer than they should

Grey cats share the black cat disadvantage. A solid dark coat photographs flat under shelter lighting and reads as unremarkable next to a calico in a grid of thumbnails, so grey cats get passed over and stay available longer. In person, particularly the silver-tipped and smoke variations that only show properly in daylight, a grey coat is anything but plain.

The remedy is the same: ask for a photo taken near a window before you decide. Care is ordinary domestic shorthair care, with an indoor home the sensible Alberta default given deep winter cold and coyotes on the urban edges.

Which grey breeds actually turn up here

Occasionally Russian Blue, British Shorthair, Chartreux, Korat, Nebelung or a Maine Coon in a blue coat, and almost always as mixes rather than documented pedigrees. Far more often the cat is a grey domestic shorthair or domestic longhair, which is not a lesser cat in any way. Treat any pedigree claim without paperwork as a description of looks rather than of ancestry.