If you’re familiar with them, you know that they’re some of the sweetest, most lackadaisical felines that love long naps and snuggles. These cats used patterns to improve camouflage for hunting purposes.The chances are pretty high that you’ve seen an orange tabby cat, and you’ve probably met a few, too. The tabby cat pattern evolved from the cat’s ancestor the African wildcat. Genes give the wide range of color and pattern possibilities you see today. The categories of tabbies include the classic, mackerel, blotched, spotted, and ticked tabby. The word tabby is based on a Middle Eastern word for silk. They are a way of describing and categorizing different patterns. The reality is, it is down to genetics and the way cells develop, but that’s not a fun answer is it? Conclusion There is a lot of folklore about why tabby cats have a distinctive M on their forehead.Įxamples include named after the Virgin Mary, Mau (name of cats in ancient Egypt), or Mohammed (tabby cat lover). Want to learn even more about cat coats and patterns. The patterns reflect the way the cells develop in patterns. This is why the cats present with patterns, as opposed to millions of random colors making a rainbow cat. These eight cells are what divide and create the entirety of the cat. Inactivation of these eight cells then occurs. The X chromosomes are responsible for the color of the cat.Įight cells divide early in the embryonic stage of development. Eight Cells Form the Colors of a Tabby Cat A white color appears when a gene coding for pigment is not produced.Īs with tortoiseshell cats, the calico is almost always female. The cause of this whiteness is due to a genetic condition called piebald. That means a calico is a ‘tri-colored cat. What Is a Calico Cat?Ī calico is similar to a tortoiseshell cat, but they also have patches of white. Torbie is a combination of the words tortoiseshell and tabby.Ĭheck out more facts about torbie cats over here. What About Torbies?Ī torbie is similar to a tortoiseshell cat, however, it has distinctive autumn colored tabby stripes as well. So, as the female has two chances, the cells can select either color resulting in varying patterns. That means a female has two chances for color variations, whilst a male has one.įor a male tortoiseshell to occur, it needs to have a rare XXY allele.Įach cell will express a different form of the chromosome, which is random. Females receive an XX chromosome, whilst males receive an XY. This type of tabby cat has two colors: black or brown plus orange or red. The tabby cat was a term used by the 1700s to describe cats with a distinctive pattern. When this silk arrived in Britain, the pattern was likened to a cat’s coat, and the name tabby evolved from the word atabi. This is a word used to describe striped silk. The name tabby may have come from the Middle Eastern word atabi. The ticked pattern is the most subtle of the tabby patterns. There’s no pattern on the coat of a ticked tabby. The legs sometimes have bands of stripes or spots. On these cats, they have light and dark colorings on each individual hair. Tortoiseshell cats are patched tabbies with two colors. The patches come in brown, red, orange, black, or brown. The mackerel tabby is a very common type of domestic cat. The mackerel tabby has the classic M marking on its forehead. One thick stripe lines the back of the cat. They also have bands of stripes along the body. These tabby cats have rings around the tail and legs. The patterns are random series of stripes and shapes, with the distinctive M on the forehead.īreeds include the American Shorthair, Bengal, Birman, and Siamese. This is a cat with a blotched appearance. There are 5 types of tabby cat patterns with different tabby markings. Two recessive alleles create a ‘solid’ color cat with no tabby pattern. The agouti gene will dictate if the tabby cat will show a pattern.Ī cat gets two alleles that are either dominant or recessive. Modern-day tabbies have the genes for creating patterns from the African wildcat.īreeding in the 19th century helped influence the more ‘attractive’ variations of tabbies.Īll tabbies have three genes responsible for their patterns. This species used the ‘tabby’ coat for survival purposes and to blend in with the environment. The tabby descended from the African wildcat. The Tabby Cat Pattern Is Inherited From Wildcats It can be present in a lot of breeds, it’s not a ‘breed’ as such. This pattern can come in a variety of colors, stripes, and blotches due to variations in genetics.Īs far back as ancient Egypt, tabby cats existed. A Tabby Cat Is a Pattern Not a BreedĪ tabby cat is a cat with a distinctive coat pattern. I am not a veterinarian and I recommend seeking the advice of a vet for any further questions relating to your cat’s health.
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