Rare kitten, the ‘unicorn of cats,’ is adopted from Las Vegas animal shelter, staff says

A little kitten named Comet made quite the impression at a Nevada animal shelter.

Comet is a “super rare male tortie kitten,” according to The Animal Foundation, a Las Vegas animal shelter. In an Instagram post, the organization said that kittens like Comet are so rare, they’re sometimes called “the unicorn of cats.”

He was quickly adopted, the shelter posted on June 4.

Tortoiseshell cats like Comet are almost exclusively female, according to the Oakland-based rescue organization Cat Town. The cats aren’t a specific breed, but are named after their unique coats that combine patches of colors, like red, black and brown.

The cats are predominantly female because two X chromosomes are needed to produce the tortoiseshell pattern, Cat Town said. Only around 1 in 3,000 tortoiseshell cats are male, and it’s because they have an extra X chromosome. Because of this genetic anomaly, male tortoiseshell cats are usually also sterile, the organization said.

The cats are so rare that “those in veterinary medicine work years or even decades without ever seeing one in person,” The Animal Foundation said.

Comet is about eight weeks old and arrived at the shelter as a stray, Kelsey Pizzi from The Animal Foundation told McClatchy News.

He “spent about a month in a foster home before he was big enough and old enough to be adopted,” Pizzi said. He was neutered on June 3 and taken to his new adoptive home the next day, she added.

“Comet is certainly one of the most unique cats we have ever seen at The Animal Foundation,” the shelter said. “So cool!”

This story was originally published June 7, 2022 at 4:23 PM with the headline "Rare kitten, the ‘unicorn of cats,’ is adopted from Las Vegas animal shelter, staff says."