Published in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, the research considers cats' everyday interactions with people and how they respond on visits to the vet.

It found:

Black and white cats are least receptive to being handled
Grey and white cats are most likely to become aggressive at the vet's
Tortoiseshell cats are generally the most hostile to humans

How cats coats fare on the aggression scale:

Most aggressive

Tortoiseshell and white (calico)
Black and white
Grey and white

Least aggressive:

Black
Grey
White
Tabby

But don't write off patterned coat cats entirely. Lead researcher Dr Liz Stellow told The Huffington Post her own cat is tortoiseshell and “is not the least bit aggressive.”

“It's not that your average white cat is an angel and your average calico is a devil,” she explained. “We're looking at a continuum here.”

Join in the discussion on cat behaviour on our Facebook page

Images: Think Stock

How mean is your cat? It depends on the colour of its coat, says science