Tabby Or Bengal?

[Monetcat33]

This is my friend's cat and she says it's part Bengal? Isnt it a tabby?

 

[abyeb]

“Tabby” refers to a coat marking, not a breed in itself. I would describe this handsome kitty as a brown classic tabby Domestic Shorthair. They do resemble a Bengal in some ways, so it’s possible that they have a Bengal somewhere in their ancestry.

 

[StefanZ]

Yes I agree. This classic tabby hasnt the typical bulls eye. The marbles reminds a little a marbled bengal.
So the money betting is on a tabby. But it cant be ruled out some bengal ancestry. A granddad?

 

[lutece]

Here is where I am seeing the "bullseye" StefanZ , it looks like a typical one to me! It's roughly circular and has a slash through the middle of it, like most classic tabby bullseyes. I'm not seeing Bengal influence in this handsome fellow, so if there is Bengal in his ancestry, I would say it's pretty well hidden. Maybe his owner was looking at pictures of marbled Bengals online and thought his classic pattern looked like theirs?

I would describe him as a brown classic tabby domestic shorthair. Most cats are not any particular breed.

 

[lutece]

I notice that frequently in this group, if the classic tabby bullseye is not very obvious, people wonder if it indicates Bengal "marbled pattern" rather than a classic tabby pattern. However, there is naturally a lot of variation in the classic tabby bullseye marking. Here are some brown classic tabby American Shorthairs to demonstrate some variations... note that the American Shorthair is selectively bred for the the best and clearest classic tabby pattern (and some of these are top show winners), so in random-bred domestic cats you would expect to see even more irregularity and variation than this! We know for sure that none of these cats have Bengal ancestry influencing their pattern, as they are pedigreed American Shorthairs.

 

[Monetcat33]

Got another photo of it, does this mean anything?

 

[war&wisdom]

Got another photo of it, does this mean anything?

Just that your friend has a beautiful classic tabby tabby domestic shorthair!

 

[lutece]

I agree, that looks like a beautiful classic tabby domestic shorthair

Here's a video about cat domestication, that also talks about the spread of the classic tabby pattern through the domestic cat gene pool. It's one of the oldest and most studied mutations in the domestic cat. You may find it interesting!
Cat domestication: From farms to sofas

 

[Khaleesi71]

Our baby is 5 months old and 7lbs already. Cute markings but I’m guessing just tabby. She sure walks like a wildcat and has longer back legs. We adore her

 

[Japiem]

Our boy was sold to us advertised as a Bengal cross and with the vet certificate confirming this. After seeing this thread I am now thinking he is actually a tabby looking at his picture it seems he has a sort'a bullseye? What do people think?

 

[lutece]

Our boy was sold to us advertised as a Bengal cross and with the vet certificate confirming this. After seeing this thread I am now thinking he is actually a tabby looking at his picture it seems he has a sort'a bullseye? What do people think?

He's a lovely cat!

He does seem to have a typical classic tabby pattern with bullseye. Without more information about his ancestry, I would describe him as a brown classic tabby domestic shorthair.

When you say that the vet certificate confirmed that he is a Bengal cross, do you mean the vet wrote "Bengal cross" on his health certificate?

 

[Japiem]

He's a lovely cat!

He does seem to have a typical classic tabby pattern with bullseye. Without more information about his ancestry, I would describe him as a brown classic tabby domestic shorthair.

When you say that the vet certificate confirmed that he is a Bengal cross, do you mean the vet wrote "Bengal cross" on his health certificate?

Looking back through the papers now it is infact on the Record of Vaccination from the vet of the seller that it states "Breed - Bengal Cross" So there is no "official" certificate, birth or otherwise that states his breed in our possesion.
He was advertised as a Bengal cross but we bought him soley on the fact that he is mega handsome and purred the moment he laid eyes on us.

 

[lutece]

Looking back through the papers now it is infact on the Record of Vaccination from the vet of the seller that it states "Breed - Bengal Cross" So there is no "official" certificate, birth or otherwise that states his breed in our possesion.
He was advertised as a Bengal cross but we bought him soley on the fact that he is mega handsome and purred the moment he laid eyes on us.

Vets can't determine a cat's breed, they generally just write whatever the owner tells them. Probably the seller told them he was a "Bengal cross" and that's what the vet wrote down.

If you want, you could ask the seller if they know anything more about your cat's ancestry. The question would be: does he have a known, documented Bengal ancestor, or were they just guessing based on the appearance of his parent(s)? Many people assume that any spotted or classic tabby cat has Bengal ancestry.

In any case, domestic shorthairs are perfectly fine cats... and in fact, it can be advantageous to have "domestic shorthair" on his records, because it will typically save money if you ever get pet insurance. Either way, it doesn't change the most important fact that he's your handsome sweetheart

 

[lucho]

Wow, so similar to Pimenta! Handsome dude!

 

[Caspers Human]

Look on your cat's forehead. The letter "M" shaped marking on a cats forehead is a strong indicator of a tabby.

If you see an "M" on a cat's forehead, it's at least a 50% indicator of a tabby, even if there are other patterns mixed in.
Even if you have a tortoiseshell-tabby mixture ("Torby") you are still likely to see that distinctive marking on the forehead.

From what I see in your picture, your cat (your friend's cat) looks like a classic tabby to me.
A really nice looking classic tabby, too!

If your friend wanted a distinctive name for this kind of cat, it wouldn't be wrong to say it was a "Cheshire Cat!"

The Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland had bold stripes, was mischievous, grinned a lot and had a habit of disappearing.
Your cat certainly has the stripes of a Cheshire Cat! Like most cats, I'm sure your friend's cat can be mischievous and can disappear in an instant. Does the cat grin?

Even at three out of four, I'd have no problem calling your cat a Cheshire Cat.

 

[Gaiamarb.]

Good afternoon, I bought this puppy as the daughter of a Benga and a Marble....can anyone tell me if it is really possible? I think they are more spotted than a descendant of some of these.

 

[Maurey]

Good afternoon, I bought this puppy as the daughter of a Benga and a Marble....can anyone tell me if it is really possible? I think they are more spotted than a descendant of some of these.

A marble pattern and a rosetted Bengal can’t have a mackerel pattern kitten — mackerel pattern is dominant over classic/marbled, and a Bengal needs to be genetically marbled to have rosettes. You were lied to, sadly. The kitten is most likely a DSH black mackerel tabby of no particular breed.

 

[Gaiamarb.]

Um padrão de mármore e um Bengal com roseta não podem ter um gatinho com padrão de cavala - o padrão de cavala é dominante sobre o clássico/marmoreado, e um Bengal precisa ser geneticamente marmoreado para ter rosetas. Você foi enganado, infelizmente. O gatinho é provavelmente um gato malhado de cavala preta DSH de nenhuma raça específica.
[/CITAR]
Infeliz

 

[StefanZ]

Good afternoon, I bought this puppy as the daughter of a Benga and a Marble....can anyone tell me if it is really possible? I think they are more spotted than a descendant of some of these.

Which one is which? A couple of pics are for sure some sort of bengal, but some seems to be a domestic tabby... Are the first pics your new kitten, and later on the parent??

 

[Meowmee]

Good afternoon, I bought this puppy as the daughter of a Benga and a Marble....can anyone tell me if it is really possible? I think they are more spotted than a descendant of some of these.

Your kitten looks like a dlh mackerel brown tabby, what a cutie she may have some forest cat ancestry. She does not look bengal to me. The other three cats look like bengals. A rosetted and a marbled.