![]() ![]() Cats homozygous for the ticked allele ( T a / T a) have less barring than cats heterozygous for the ticked allele. If the Ticked Tabby pattern gene is present, any other tabby pattern is masked. A dominant mutation, T a / t a, masks any other Tabby pattern, producing a non-patterned, or 'Agouti' Tabby, with virtually no stripes or bars. The Ticked Tabby pattern is on a different gene locus than the Mackerel and Classic Tabby patterns and is epistatic to the other patterns. 'Classic' Tabbies are cats who also possess mc, a recessive mutant gene that produces the blotched pattern. ![]() Mc is the wild-type tabby gene and produces what is called a 'Mackerel Striped' Tabby. ![]() The primary tabby pattern gene, Mc/mc, sets the basic pattern of stripes that underlies the coat. However, the O gene for orange color suppresses the aa genotype, so there is no such thing as a solid orange cat. Solid-color (black or blue) cats have the aa combination, hiding the tabby pattern, although sometimes a suggestion of the underlying pattern can be seen (called "ghost striping"). The dominant A reveals the underlying tabby pattern, while the recessive non-agouti or "hypermelanistic" allele, a, prevents it. The agouti gene, A/a, controls whether or not the tabby pattern is expressed. The tabby patterns are due to 3 distinct gene loci and one modifier: The legs and tail are more heavily barred and the pattern is variable with respect to the width of the bands. Classic Tabbies have an 'M' pattern on the head similar to that of Mackrel Tabbies, but the body markings are different, having a whirled and swirled pattern with wider stripes that make what are referred to as "butterfly" patterns on their shoulders, and usually a bullseye or oyster pattern on the flank. The uniform or nearly uniform striping around the circumference of the tail indicates feral origins in that particular cat's family tree. The most commonly identified kind of tabby, the Classic (or 'Blotched') Tabby, tends to have a pattern of dark browns, ochres, and black. Mackerel is the most common tabby pattern. Mackerels are also called 'Fishbone Tabbies' probably because they are named after the mackerel fish. Mackerels also feature a 'peppered' nose, where black spots appear along the pink tip of the nose. Often, an 'M' shape appears on the forehead. The stripes are narrow, and may be continuous or broken into bars and spots on the flanks and stomach. The Mackerel Tabby pattern has vertical, gently curving stripes on the side of the body. Spotted tabby pattern on an Ocicat Mackerel tabby White spotting of any level can also appear in combination with tabby patterns however, white is the only coat color that does not have any tabby markings. For example, Tortoiseshell cats sometimes display a pattern where the red-based and black-based tortoiseshell pattern is mixed with tabby markings. Bi-color cats can have the tabby pattern show up on the colored patches of their coat. Black and blue are colors that usually show up without tabby markings, but with some cats, a faint tabby pattern can actually be noticed. A cat's coat can be described as red tabby or gray tabby. In cat genetics, pattern is unrelated to color, and so the tabby coat pattern can show up in combination with a variety of coat colors, including tortoiseshell (Tortoiseshell Tabby cats are often called 'Torbies'). The tabby pattern is a naturally occurring feature that may be related to the coloration of the domestic cat's direct ancestor, the African Wildcat. In fact, the tabby pattern is found in many breeds of cat, as well as among the general mixed-breed population. Tabbies are sometimes erroneously assumed to be a cat breed. Common mackerel tabby, with the classic "M" on forehead, and striped patternĪ tabby is any cat that has a distinctive coat that features stripes, dots, lines or swirling patterns, usually together with an "M" mark on its forehead. ![]()
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