I Think My Cat Has A Flatter Muzzle Than My Other Two

[KalicoKitten]

Zelda's breathing has always been a bit louder than Rick and Morty's and my partner and I have come to believe that her face has a flatter muzzle? Perhaps she had some persian in her a few generations back? None of the vets we've gone to have ever even commented about it and when using a stethoscope have said her lungs and heart sound fine. She does also tend to get dust stuck in her nose and eye boogers more often than Rick and Morty as well. Could it be that her nose is indeed flatter than the average DSH? or in her case DMH? or is this a more medium hair trait? She's my first cat without short hair.

 

[KalicoKitten]

Here's a side view of Morty as reference

Although everything depends on angle and lighting so I don't know. If any of you are in the California SF Bay Area and own a Persian and a regular cat, feel free to come meet her and give an opinion.

 

[abyeb]

Both your cats are so gorgeous! I think maybe she has a slightly shorter muzzle- in the side profile picture I can see that Zelda has less of a nose break, but I don't think it's flat enough to claim Persian ancestry- even a doll face Persian would have a flatter muzzle. We also have to look at body type; Persians have a cobby body, while Zelda looks to be more intermediate. I'll be curious to hear others' opinions, though!

 

[KalicoKitten]

Both your cats are so gorgeous! I think maybe she has a slightly shorter muzzle- in the side profile picture I can see that Zelda has less of a nose break, but I don't think it's flat enough to claim Persian ancestry- even a doll face Persian would have a flatter muzzle. We also have to look at body type; Persians have a cobby body, while Zelda looks to be more intermediate. I'll be curious to hear others' opinions, though!

Thank you for always responding to my posts! I've seen you everywhere on this website and you very often give your opinion to me. I didn't think there was any Persian in her recently that's for sure. What are the different cat body shapes? I've never heard of them before; cobby and intermediate are new terms to me. Maybe she just happened to have a shorter muzzle by chance? Anyway thank you! And don't forget about Rick!

 

[abyeb]

Thank you for always responding to my posts! I've seen you everywhere on this website and you very often give your opinion to me. I didn't think there was any Persian in her recently that's for sure. What are the different cat body shapes? I've never heard of them before; cobby and intermediate are new terms to me. Maybe she just happened to have a shorter muzzle by chance? Anyway thank you! And don't forget about Rick!
View attachment 198872

"Cobby" is what we use to describe the more heavy-set look of the Persians and Exotics. Since it's kind of hard to see the Persian's body shape under all that fur, here's some pictures of Exotics (short-haired Persians) for you to look at to get a general idea: Breed Profile: The Exotic

Contrast that with the "svelte" body type of the Siamese, Oriental, Colorpoint Shorthair, Balinese, and Javanese (grouped together as "the slinky cats"); long-limbed and fine-boned: Breed Profile: The Siamese

Most cats fall somewhere between these two extremes. These are the ones we call "intermediate". Naturally, there is still much variation between the body type of these cats, contrasting an Abyssinian and American Shorthair, for example.

And oh my, Rick is so cute! His fur color and face look reminiscent of a Bengal. So maybe he has some Bengal ancestry!

 

[KalicoKitten]

"Cobby" is what we use to describe the more heavy-set look of the Persians and Exotics. Since it's kind of hard to see the Persian's body shape under all that fur, here's some pictures of Exotics (short-haired Persians) for you to look at to get a general idea: Breed Profile: The Exotic

Contrast that with the "svelte" body type of the Siamese, Oriental, Colorpoint Shorthair, Balinese, and Javanese (grouped together as "the slinky cats"); long-limbed and fine-boned: Breed Profile: The Siamese

Most cats fall somewhere between these two extremes. These are the ones we call "intermediate". Naturally, there is still much variation between the body type of these cats, contrasting an Abyssinian and American Shorthair, for example.

And oh my, Rick is so cute! His fur color and face look reminiscent of a Bengal. So maybe he has some Bengal ancestry!

Oh my gosh Cobbies are so FLUFFY! I get what you mean now, although she does look more puffy than Rick or Morty but that may be the longer fur haha. I think you may be right! Rick and Morty (brothers) are estimated to be around 14lbs at full grown so they're biiiiig boys for DSH Although I do get that two kittens from the same litter can have different fathers. I'm not quite sure of Rick and Morty's dad situation. The people we got them from on Craigslist had the mother cat, them, and their 2 sisters indoors with them so I don't know if the mom escaped or if they happened to have another male cat that was unaltered, either way I love my big boys and beautiful slightly loud breathing girl xD Zelda we know nothing about because she was found on the hood of a car by the person we got her from.

 

[KalicoKitten]

Hey abyeb ! I just learned Ragdolls have shorter noses than average cats. Maybe that's why her nose is flatter and breathing is more audible? We do think she might be part ragdoll actually, but obviously not full because she doesn't have blue eyes. She flops over and almost never moves when we pick her up haha

(Obligatory picture of cat mentioned in comment)

 

[Columbine]

Cobby types aren't always ultra fluffy. British Shorthairs are another quintessentially cobby breed, and their coats are quite different to the Exotics

This is my old British Blue boy (Shadow) with my DSH girl (Asha)- quite nicely showing the differences between the two. Asha's a little on the cobby side, but nothing like to the same degree


I'd definitely get your girl's breathing checked out though. Sometimes noisier breathing can be down to face/nose shape (especially snoring when asleep!), but it could be a sign of some medical issue that needs attention. Always better to be safe than sorry where breathing is concerned

 

[abyeb]

Hey abyeb ! I just learned Ragdolls have shorter noses than average cats. Maybe that's why her nose is flatter and breathing is more audible? We do think she might be part ragdoll actually, but obviously not full because she doesn't have blue eyes. She flops over and almost never moves when we pick her up haha
View attachment 199676
(Obligatory picture of cat mentioned in comment)

She doesn't resemble a Ragdoll either; her fur is too short and not thick enough, and she doesn't have that same moderately stocky body. Ragdolls are colorpointed cats, so she would be closer to a RagaMuffin, but she's not big enough for that either. The flopping over thing is a characteristic of SOME Ragdolls and RagaMuffins, but not all. I talked to an exhibitor at a cat show who said that her Ragdoll has never done that. And my Charlie, a Domestic Shorthair who clearly doesn't have any Ragdoll in him occasionally flops over when picked up. Every cat is an individual I guess.

I agree with Columbine, too, Zelda's muzzle might be slightly shorter than the average cat, but it's far from being brachycephalic, which is usually what causes the breathing problems, so I'd say a vet appointment would be a good idea.

 

[KalicoKitten]

She doesn't resemble a Ragdoll either; her fur is too short and not thick enough, and she doesn't have that same moderately stocky body. Ragdolls are colorpointed cats, so she would be closer to a RagaMuffin, but she's not big enough for that either. The flopping over thing is a characteristic of SOME Ragdolls and RagaMuffins, but not all. I talked to an exhibitor at a cat show who said that her Ragdoll has never done that. And my Charlie, a Domestic Shorthair who clearly doesn't have any Ragdoll in him occasionally flops over when picked up. Every cat is an individual I guess.

I agree with Columbine, too, Zelda's muzzle might be slightly shorter than the average cat, but it's far from being brachycephalic, which is usually what causes the breathing problems, so I'd say a vet appointment would be a good idea.

Female Ragdolls can weigh anywhere from 10-15 lbs. Using the double the weight at 4-5 months estimate she'll be just about 11lbs which is well in the weight range. But hey, Ragamuffin females can weigh between 8 and 13lbs which is even closer to her estimated adult weight. And while I've had a vet look her over before and say she's healthy, I suppose I could ask my teacher (he's a vet, I'm in a vet tech program,) to look her over again (he wasnt the vet that looked her over the 1st time so a 2nd opinion is better

 

[KalicoKitten]

Cobby types aren't always ultra fluffy. British Shorthairs are another quintessentially cobby breed, and their coats are quite different to the Exotics

This is my old British Blue boy (Shadow) with my DSH girl (Asha)- quite nicely showing the differences between the two. Asha's a little on the cobby side, but nothing like to the same degree
View attachment 199678

I'd definitely get your girl's breathing checked out though. Sometimes noisier breathing can be down to face/nose shape (especially snoring when asleep!), but it could be a sign of some medical issue that needs attention. Always better to be safe than sorry where breathing is concerned

Thanks for the clarification! Always love to learn more about cats. Her breathing isn't audible unless you're less than a foot away from her face, I just noticed that it isn't completely silent like my other two's. I will get a vet to check her out again though to get a 2nd opinion.

I've just learned that some cats an have more nasal tissue than others and still be perfectly healthy and fine. She definitely doesn't seem to have trouble breathing and is playful and active. Her breathing has been like this for as long as we've had her so I don't think it's a URI or anything like that (especially because there's no puss or anything that would be an external indicator that anything is wrong), but I'll keep this thread updated when I can get her checked out. I am a college student so money's a bit tight so, I'm going to wait and see if my teacher who's a vet can check her out on one of our lab days. It doesn't seem like an immediate concern since she's been looked over by a different vet a couple of times and deemed healthy.

 

[Summercats]

KalicoKitten
My guy seems to have louder breathing than normal, when he purrs, is excited and when sleeping (he snores). I also wonder about a distant relative that gave him a bit shorter muzzle. He is not deformed like the extreme Persians but it is short.

 

[di and bob]

Allergies may be a factor too. I have a lovely longer haired red boy taht has a shorter muzzle just like yours and he snores loudly and has allergies evident in his nasal and eye discharge at times. He also grooms a lot and seems 'itchy' at times.

 

[KalicoKitten]

Hey all so we had feline restraint lab today and once we were done my teacher, the vet, looked over Zelda, he says he's not concerned with her breathing and that she looks perfectly healthy. He too thinks she might be at least part ragamuffin. Also, all the kitties were super well behaved and my class mates, even the dog people, absolutely adored them.

 

[Columbine]

That's great news