A mysterious cat approaches

[nickirows]

A former feral cat, rehabilitated to be a semi-feral house cat. She enjoys sleeping, spontaneous biting, inopportune cuddling, viciously destroying her toys, making adorable chirping noises (usually while playing), and then sleeping some more. Since I'm no expert in cat breeds, not by a long shot, I'm deferring to you experts in helping me identify what breed she most resembles, simply to sate my own curiosity. Also, because domestic short-hair just doesn't have as fancy a ring to it, y'know? Any tips on how to describe her coloring would be appreciated too. I theorized lynx-point but as I said, I'm not confident. Thanks for your help!

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• nickirows
• Mar 1, 2017

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• nickirows
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• nickirows
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[1CatOverTheLine]

Your cat is a lovely Domestic Short Hair with some clear Siamese ancestry somewhere in her past.  If she were mine, I'd name her, "Missy," and would find a nice playmate for her named, "Belle," who would then bond with her and ignore me almost completely.

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[nickirows]

 
Your cat is a lovely Domestic Short Hair with some clear Siamese ancestry somewhere in her past.  If she were mine, I'd name her, "Missy," and would find a nice playmate for her named, "Belle," who would then bond with her and ignore me almost completely.

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It's rather late here so I must admit I just had a small heart attack and a brief, disconcerting moment in which I wondered whether psychic abilities were truly real.

Then I saw your username and returned to reality.

With regards to the Siamese ancestry, that's what the rescue center said as well; it was much more pronounced when Missy was a bit less... well, chubby. She was underweight when I received her and look quite Siamese, as her ears were in even larger proportion to her head.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

It's the same measure of late here as well, though much more northerly.

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[Kieka]

A lynx is a tabby pointed which she is not. She is a calico pointed if I am not mistaken. Possibly dilute calico but I am not super confident when it comes to calicos.

Doesn't sound as fancy but is much less common. Only females can be calico (okay males can too if they have an extra X but then they are sterile and it is very rare) as color is linked to the X chromosome and it takes an orange and black chromosome to be calico. Both are dominate color gene but it takes two X for orange to be solid orange and orange overwrite black but usually black overwrite everything. Creating a genetic quandry that the genes sometimes solve by just turn on off randomly. Where she is orange the black is essentially shut off and where she is black the orange is essentially shut off. Cat color genetics on orange color is fascinating. Add on the gene for piebalding that gives the white patches. Add on all that the pointed gene which effectively mutes her entire coat and just darkens her where she is colder. AND the pointed gets weaker as she ages so she will darken as she get older with exposure to cold and simple age. Overall she is a unique and fascinating example of coat genetics.

All of that though relates to her coloring not her breed. Breed is the DSH but in the cat world more description is given to coat than breed when you get outside of the purebred. That is why you hear people say the have a black cat, orange tabby, lynx point, etc. They aren't saying breed but coat description. It just is too hard to guess breed without some obvious features or documentation because cats are so close to natural state in general. Also, many purebreds come from naturally occuring body types and colors so without document it is difficult to say if a specific cat is from the breed or just a look alike moggy (kinda like mutt).

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 
It's rather late here so I must admit I just had a small heart attack

Silent myocardial ischemia,

Perhaps I'm just one day upstream o' ya;

I pray that one day

I'll be carried away,

But until then, I'll simply daydream o' ya.

Sounds like a Wednesday Addams limerick.

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[Kieka]

Your cat is a lovely Domestic Short Hair with some clear Siamese ancestry somewhere in her past.  If she were mine, I'd name her, "Missy," and would find a nice playmate for her named, "Belle," who would then bond with her and ignore me almost completely.

.

That too. I get overly wordy and excited with the color genetics.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

Only females can be calico (okay males can too if they have an extra X but then they are sterile and it is very rare) as color is linked to the X chromosome and it takes an orange and black chromosome to be calico.

Males gotta have XX to carry the Oo,

With Klinefelter syndrome, it's fertile a go-go.

Well, almost always....

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[StefanZ]

I see the others see a point in her.  This was one of my questions:  what are her eye color exactly, also the color of her tail and ears.  Ie if tail and ears are  darkish.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

This image, if you enlarge it, shows the Siamese eye colour quite clearly, I think.

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[nickirows]

A lynx is a tabby pointed which she is not. She is a calico pointed if I am not mistaken. Possibly dilute calico but I am not super confident when it comes to calicos.

Doesn't sound as fancy but is much less common. Only females can be calico (okay males can too if they have an extra X but then they are sterile and it is very rare) as color is linked to the X chromosome and it takes an orange and black chromosome to be calico. Both are dominate color gene but it takes two X for orange to be solid orange and orange overwrite black but usually black overwrite everything. Creating a genetic quandry that the genes sometimes solve by just turn on off randomly. Where she is orange the black is essentially shut off and where she is black the orange is essentially shut off. Cat color genetics on orange color is fascinating. Add on the gene for piebalding that gives the white patches. Add on all that the pointed gene which effectively mutes her entire coat and just darkens her where she is colder. AND the pointed gets weaker as she ages so she will darken as she get older with exposure to cold and simple age. Overall she is a unique and fascinating example of coat genetics.

All of that though relates to her coloring not her breed. Breed is the DSH but in the cat world more description is given to coat than breed when you get outside of the purebred. That is why you hear people say the have a black cat, orange tabby, lynx point, etc. They aren't saying breed but coat description. It just is too hard to guess breed without some obvious features or documentation because cats are so close to natural state in general. Also, many purebreds come from naturally occuring body types and colors so without document it is difficult to say if a specific cat is from the breed or just a look alike moggy (kinda like mutt).

That was super interesting to read! I am not an expert in cat genetics, but I do also consider myself to be a "a nerd" so I really enjoyed reading that, thank you!

I told Missy, but she was not quite so interested to hear it.

I am curious though, what makes a cat "tabby-pointed" as opposed to "calico-pointed"? I am not super familiar with the different points. It was my understanding that the former involved striping, and the latter involved... splotches? Missy does have some striping on her tail, and a few on her back that I don't believe are dark enough to show up on my camera, haha. But her splotches are definitely more pronounced, I agree.

 

[nickirows]

 
Silent myocardial ischemia,

Perhaps I'm just one day upstream o' ya;

I pray that one day

I'll be carried away,

But until then, I'll simply daydream o' ya.

Sounds like a Wednesday Addams limerick.

.

Well, it is Wednesday, so that is fitting.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 
Well, it is Wednesday, so that is fitting.

...and hopefully not, "full of woe."

.

 

[nickirows]

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• nickirows
• Mar 1, 2017

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 
I am curious though, what makes a cat "tabby-pointed" as opposed to "calico-pointed"? I am not super familiar with the different points.

Caught this in re-reading.  "Points" refer specifically to the colouration of the ears, mask, feet and tail.  In pointed cats, they should be approximately the same colour and / or pattern.  Properly, "pointed" breeds include Himalayan, Birman, Javanese, Siamese, Ragdoll, Balinese, Snowshoe, Colourpoint Shorthair, Tonkinese and Oriental Longhair.

Did I miss anyone, Kieka?

Edit: Yeah, I did.  Wichian Mat - the original "apple head" Siamese is now recognised in some show circles, and "Siamese," describes only those sharp-featured anorexic kitties which appear to be related to Triangle Man - and Triangle Man hates Particle Man....

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[nickirows]

 
Caught this in re-reading.  "Points" refer specifically to the colouration of the ears, mask, feet and tail.  In pointed cats, they should be approximately the same colour and / or pattern.  Properly, "pointed" breeds include Himalayan, Birman, Javanese, Siamese, Ragdoll, Balinese, Snowshoe, Colourpoint Shorthair, Tonkinese and Oriental Longhair.

Did I miss anyone, Kieka?

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I should have you all inspect one of my mom's cats, Oliver, who we've long-theorized to be a red-point ragdoll breed, or at least highly related to one. He has quite clearly defined points, unlike poor Missy, who's an amalgamated mess.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

 
 an amalgamated mess.

"...said Sophia with a touch of disgust in her voice...."

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[1CatOverTheLine]

 
I should have you all inspect one of my mom's cats, Oliver, who we've long-theorized to be a red-point ragdoll breed, or at least highly related to one. He has quite clearly defined points, unlike poor Missy, who's an amalgamated mess.

U.C. Davis does inexpensive and reliable DNA (from swabs).

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[StefanZ]

 
I should have you all inspect one of my mom's cats, Oliver, who we've long-theorized to be a red-point ragdoll breed, or at least highly related to one. He has quite clearly defined points, unlike poor Missy, who's an amalgamated mess.

Yes, she is a combo of point, tortie, white, tabby.  -  ah yes, diluted is she too, she isnt not black, but blue, thus diluted.    Lotsa of different genes comined.   You could have a museum of cat genetics, and have her as your sole example explaining every feature.  

But yeah, your extra explanation and pic is the last firesure proof  she is a point, not just seems to be one.