I Am Baffled!

[Hoosier Mama]

I know that Kricket is a Tabby with White - but what exactly is the pattern? I have always thought Mackerel - but his stripes are not consistent or solid. Is there such a thing as a 'broken' Mackerel? There are no swirls, so I ruled out Classic. Occasionally, I see spots ( LOL, on my cat and not floating in the air), and at other times I think there is some Ticked pattern. Can he be a conglomeration of patterns?

 

[abyeb]

Yes, you are absolutely correct- stripes that separate into spots is called broken mackeral tabby. Kricket is very handsome!

 

[Mystikal kitten]

I'm letting the staff advisors answer that. I can tell you your kitty is very handsome. Love him and he'll show you the exact same.

 

[Hoosier Mama]

Yes, you are absolutely correct- stripes that separate into spots is called broken mackeral tabby. Kricket is very handsome!

Thank you! It just seems that every time I look at him I see a new or different pattern! LOL He just turned three on April 22nd. Some of the pictures are from when he was between 2 and 4 months, a couple from a year ago, and some are from today. He is, as you can imagine, spoiled rotten!

 

[Mystikal kitten]

Aren't most kitties? I know the ones in my household are especially Midnight.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

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Just out of curiosity, what's his length and weight?

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[Hoosier Mama]

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Just out of curiosity, what's his length and weight?

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Trying to measure him is like trying to put a square peg in a round hole! LOL He want to play with the measuring tape!
I gave it my best shot and, from nose to base of tail is 22 inches. From tail base to tip is 18 inches, and floor to shoulder is 12 inches. He weighs just a meager 14.2 pounds (6.44kg). I know the weight is accurate as of his wellness check-up 3 weeks ago. The length and height measurements could be a little off one way or the other because he won't stand still! He just turned three April 22nd.

 

[StefanZ]

A very handsome guy, if he were a girl I would call the cat for pretty!

Yes, there is such as broken mackerel tabby, and its probably what he is. Why probably?? On the very last photo he looks definitely as a spotted.

Our problem is, the exact pattern is often difficult to see on longhaired cats. Its usually much easier on shorthairs.

If it were really important, you could surely take a DNA sample. The mackerel gene (including broken mackerel) and the spotted tabby gene are different. Or simply shave him before the high summer, so you would see the pattern more exactly. Quite a few people do shave their longhairs when its really hot, so its not that peculiar.

For the moment, I dont know for sure, even if its me whom is the staff advisor and even supposed to be the resident expert.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

Kricket is a gorgeous Interrupted Mackerel, and his facial conformation suggests that there's a bit of Norwegian Forest Cat somewhere in his ancestry. At almost six and an half kilos and three years old, it's quite possible that he's still growing, as some of the giant breeds - and especially the NFC - will continue to mature through age 5. 22 inches from nose to the base of the tail gives us a general measurement from nose to tail tip of just under one meter.

I asked because there's quite a bit about his structure that reminds me of my little Bob, the NFC:

including the ruddiness around the ruff and bib. Bob's just about fully grown, having just gone through his fifth year growth spurt, finishing out (I think) at 110.6cm and 15½ kilos, which is approximately equal to five cans a day.



Kricket really is stunning - especially the evenness of his coat pattern. We should see more of him on TCS.

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[Hoosier Mama]

Kricket is a gorgeous Interrupted Mackerel, and his facial conformation suggests that there's a bit of Norwegian Forest Cat somewhere in his ancestry. At almost six and an half kilos and three years old, it's quite possible that he's still growing, as some of the giant breeds - and especially the NFC - will continue to mature through age 5. 22 inches from nose to the base of the tail gives us a general measurement from nose to tail tip of just under one meter.

I asked because there's quite a bit about his structure that reminds me of my little Bob, the NFC:

View attachment 180113

including the ruddiness around the ruff and bib. Bob's just about fully grown, having just gone through his fifth year growth spurt, finishing out (I think) at 110.6cm and 15½ kilos, which is approximately equal to five cans a day.



Kricket really is stunning - especially the evenness of his coat pattern. We should see more of him on TCS.

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He has the wedge head, high cheek bones, and slightly concave bridge of the nose profile that indicates a MC, whereas a NFC has a flat forehead and a straight nose profile. He has the ruff, but even though the ear tufts and lynx tips are present, they are minimal. His tail is more long and it tapers to a bushy end. He also has the MC coat - being sleek and uneven, shorter around the shoulders and longer at the hindquarters and underbelly. His paws are large and heavily tufted. He isn't an active, kitten-like MC, but more laid-back and lazy like a Forrest cat, but that could be attributed to his DSH 'brother' who is the more aggressive 'alpha'. Kricket is more affectionate and submissive.
I never had any intentions of showing or breeding (he's neutered), so it doesn't really matter to me what 'breed' he is. On his vet records, he is listed as a domestic medium hair, because I never got papers with him due to the circumstances he was obtained (his owner/breeder passed away and her son [a fellow co-worker] disposed of all her 'cat papers' as he blatantly disliked cats and just wanted to get rid of them.
There is the possibility he could be mixed, as I saw photos of other cats in her home that were clearly not MC. So, my biggest curiosity was his coat pattern - I'm not going to shave him to find out. I could always have an Ancestry and DNA test done but, since it's not urgent, I'll forego that, too.

Thanks for the replies. They pretty much confirmed what I was thinking and, for now, I will consider him a Brown Broken-Mackerel Tabby with White.

 

[abyeb]

I do agree with 1CatOverTheLine , that Kricket does give an impression of an NFC mix. NFCs have a head shaped like an equilateral triangle, MCs have a more broad head. I'll attach a link to the breed standards for both breeds for you to peruse, but please note that Kricket would be a mix, so he won't match up perfectly to either standard. I do think that his head shape is more in alignment with an NFC.

http://cfa.org/Portals/0/documents/breeds/standards/norwegian.pdf

http://cfa.org/Portals/0/documents/breeds/standards/maine.pdf

Although, I suppose it doesn't really matter that much if he's a MC or NFC; Kricket is handsome, and he knows it.

 

[StefanZ]

Did vet wrote he is a mediumhair? I suppose he saw him in the summer halfyear. Their winter fur is usually longer. Also the fur tends to grow more on adults. At this moment Kricket is a longhair.