What breed or breed mixture is my “Heavenly”

[Paula Faith1]

I got my baby through a pet group on FB. I love her so much! I love looking at her and cuddling. Can you tell me which breed or mixture she is? I’m curious. She has one dark gray spot on her head, other than that, she’s all white. As a kitten she’s cuddler who follows me around.

 

[lutece]

She's beautiful!

I would describe Heavenly as a white domestic shorthair. It's common for solid white cats to have a gray spot on the head, sometimes called a "kitten cap." This may fade as she gets older.

Most cats are not any particular breed, and are also not mixtures of breeds (unlike dogs), but that doesn't make them any less special... domestic shorthairs are great cats! Heavenly is a descriptive name for her, too... she does look like a sweet little cuddler

 

[The Goodbye Bird]

Seeing the whole body would help, as would seeing her when she's fully mature.

Most cats it's really not possible to tell if they have any pure breeds mixed into them, mainly because unlike dogs, their general style hasn't been altered too much.

With a couple exceptions like Persians and the modern Siamese family, you don't see shapes and body styles in pure breeds that are out of the range of normal in random cats; the earmarks are usually colours. So you might find a ticked tabby that has a beautifully even coat and say, "Ah, maybe that one has some Abyssinian in it," or you might rightly trace a colourpoint back to a perhaps distant Siamese ancestor. However, with a dominant white especially, you may never know.

 

[lutece]

Most cats it's really not possible to tell if they have any pure breeds mixed into them, mainly because unlike dogs, their general style hasn't been altered too much.

That's true. Most cats also simply don't have breed ancestry, because cats belonging to any breed are such a low percentage of all cats. Most owned cats are spayed and neutered... most cats that reproduce are feral.

[...] the earmarks are usually colours. So you might find a ticked tabby that has a beautifully even coat and say, "Ah, maybe that one has some Abyssinian in it," or you might rightly trace a colourpoint back to a perhaps distant Siamese ancestor.

This statement is misleading. Colors are generally not very useful in determining breed ancestry. Colors are due to simple combinations of alleles, and most of these alleles are very widespread in the domestic cat population.

People already tend to label all cats according to their colors... blue cats as Russian Blues, black cats as Bombays, van pattern cats as Turkish Vans, white longhairs as Turkish Angoras, seal point and white cats as Snowshoes, etc... but it doesn't work that way. These are colors, not breeds. Most cats of these colors are random bred without breed ancestry.

In the case of ticked tabby, heterozygous cats have more barring than homozygous cats. So a cat that has one Abyssinian parent and one non-ticked parent will actually tend to have more barring on its coat than a random bred feral cat that happens to be homozygous for ticked tabby. Ticking is also not exclusive to the Abyssinian breed. However, Abys do have distinctive head and body type, as do most pedigreed breeds.

In the case of colorpoint, 150 years ago at the dawn of the cat fancy, all pointed cats were called "Siamese"... so any pointed cat today probably has at least one ancestor that someone considered "Siamese"... but it could be 100 or more generations in the past. This doesn't make those cats "Siamese mixes" or really tell you much of anything about their breed ancestry. At this time the colorpoint gene is very widespread in the domestic cat population and is also widespread in other pedigreed breeds, including those breeds that are not specifically "pointed breeds." For example, British Shorthairs, Siberians, Devon Rex, and many other breeds can come in colorpoint... and some breeds do not officially come in colorpoint but due to the presence of the recessive allele, pointed kittens are occasionally born (for example, the Russian Blue). But it would be silly to call these cats Siamese mixes.

 

[The Goodbye Bird]

This statement is misleading. Colors are generally not very useful in determining breed ancestry. Colors are due to simple combinations of alleles, and most of these alleles are very widespread in the domestic cat population.

That's why I said, maybe. Maybe that one has some Abyssinian in it. It's a clue to their ancestry, not a solid indicator. And I did specify distant ancestor for a Siamese. Originally all pointed cats descended from a single pair, so the simple deductive answer to whether that pointed cat is related to purebreed Siamese is yes, barring more recently imported kinds.

Abyssinians are getting more of a distinct look to them now, and some of them resemble the sleeker look of the modern Siamese family, but this is a fairly recent phenomenon. A couple breeds have these distinct looks, but except for the most extreme, they're nothing compared to the fact that a Pomeranian is (species-wise) a wolf. That is one distinct-looking wolf.

So if you had a dog that had Pomeranian in it, there would likely be obvious signs. No dog really looks like a wolf, though some breeds come close.

But what is a cat's ancestor? A cat. They haven't changed much. (Sylvestris Lybica below, the African Wildcat)

This is obviously because they're perfect already.

 

[lutece]

So if you had a dog that had Pomeranian in it, there would likely be obvious signs.

Not as obvious as you think. There have been numerous studies showing that visual breed identification in dogs is inaccurate and misleading. Here are a couple of links you might find interesting:

Visual Breed Identification - National Canine Research Council

Research has consistently shown that visual breed identification is very often inaccurate. Research also indicates that even experts have very little agreement when visually determining breed.

www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com

What Breed of Dog is That?: Dog Breed Identification » What Breed of Dog is That? » Shelter Medicine Program » College of Veterinary Medicine » University of Florida

How to Find Out What Kind of Dog You Have While many people and pet owners like to know “what kind of dog is that?” just to satisfy their own curiosity, dog breed designations have also been used in an attempt to predict future behavior, match pets to families, find lost dogs, and even to…

sheltermedicine.vetmed.ufl.edu

Dogs are different from cats... dogs generally do have breed ancestry, even dogs with many generations of mixed breeding... while most cats simply don't have breed ancestry at all. But even with dogs, visual breed identification isn't very accurate. Distinctive features are lost or changed in the course of cross breeding more quickly than you might expect.

 

[lutece]

Abyssinians are getting more of a distinct look to them now, and some of them resemble the sleeker look of the modern Siamese family, but this is a fairly recent phenomenon. A couple breeds have these distinct looks...

I don't know if you have been in a show hall recently, but Abys have had a distinctive appearance for many decades now, and really stand out from other cats in type. They are slender and long legged, but in a completely different way from the Siamese and other "slinky" breeds. Most pedigreed breeds have distinctive type, and honestly, many breeds have become more extreme at this time than their breed standard requires... a few breeds are more moderate in type, but that is not the majority.

 

[jefferd18]

That's true. Most cats also simply don't have breed ancestry, because cats belonging to any breed are such a low percentage of all cats. Most owned cats are spayed and neutered... most cats that reproduce are feral.

This statement is misleading. Colors are generally not very useful in determining breed ancestry. Colors are due to simple combinations of alleles, and most of these alleles are very widespread in the domestic cat population.

People already tend to label all cats according to their colors... blue cats as Russian Blues, black cats as Bombays, van pattern cats as Turkish Vans, white longhairs as Turkish Angoras, seal point and white cats as Snowshoes, etc... but it doesn't work that way. These are colors, not breeds. Most cats of these colors are random bred without breed ancestry.

In the case of ticked tabby, heterozygous cats have more barring than homozygous cats. So a cat that has one Abyssinian parent and one non-ticked parent will actually tend to have more barring on its coat than a random bred feral cat that happens to be homozygous for ticked tabby. Ticking is also not exclusive to the Abyssinian breed. However, Abys do have distinctive head and body type, as do most pedigreed breeds.

In the case of colorpoint, 150 years ago at the dawn of the cat fancy, all pointed cats were called "Siamese"... so any pointed cat today probably has at least one ancestor that someone considered "Siamese"... but it could be 100 or more generations in the past. Thisdoesn't make those cats "Siamese mixes" or really tell you much of anything about their breed ancestry. At this time the colorpoint gene is very widespread in the domestic cat population and is also widespread in other pedigreed breeds, including those breeds that are not specifically "pointed breeds." For example, British Shorthairs, Siberians, Devon Rex, and many other breeds can come in colorpoint... and some breeds do not officially come in colorpoint but due to the presence of the recessive allele, pointed kittens are occasionally born (for example, the Russian Blue). But it would be silly to call these cats Siamese mixes.

The truth is that these cats can have purebred heritages, but since their shapes have not been dramatically altered it is difficult to pinpoint just by looking at them.

 

[lutece]

The truth is that these cats can have purebred heritages, but as you mentioned, since their shapes have not been dramatically altered it is difficult to pinpoint just by looking at them.

Yes, that's correct. Most cats don't have traits that tell us anything definite about breed ancestry, so the best we can do is generally to describe the cat and note that breed ancestry is statistically unlikely. We can't rule out breed ancestry entirely, but in most cats we also can't see any real evidence of breed ancestry, even if there is a superficial resemblance (typically because of color and hair length).

 

[jefferd18]

Yes, that's correct. Most cats don't have traits that tell us anything definite about breed ancestry, so the best we can do is generally to describe the cat and note that breed ancestry is statistically unlikely. We can't rule out breed ancestry entirely, but in most cats we also can't see any real evidence of breed ancestry, even if there is a superficial resemblance (typically because of color and hair length).

i hit the wrong button.

 

[Paula Faith1]

Thank you!

 

[jefferd18]

That's why I said, maybe. Maybe that one has some Abyssinian in it. It's a clue to their ancestry, not a solid indicator. And I did specify distant ancestor for a Siamese. Originally all pointed cats descended from a single pair, so the simple deductive answer to whether that pointed cat is related to purebreed Siamese is yes, barring more recently imported kinds.

Abyssinians are getting more of a distinct look to them now, and some of them resemble the sleeker look of the modern Siamese family, but this is a fairly recent phenomenon. A couple breeds have these distinct looks, but except for the most extreme, they're nothing compared to the fact that a Pomeranian is (species-wise) a wolf. That is one distinct-looking wolf.

So if you had a dog that had Pomeranian in it, there would likely be obvious signs. No dog really looks like a wolf, though some breeds come close.

But what is a cat's ancestor? A cat. They haven't changed much. (Sylvestris Lybica below, the African Wildcat)

This is obviously because they're perfect already.

Thank you! You are the one person who has answered these posts that truly gets it.

The truth is that these cats can have purebred heritages, but since their shapes have not been dramatically altered it is difficult to pinpoint just by looking at them.

 

[Paula Faith1]

Yes, that's correct. Most cats don't have traits that tell us anything definite about breed ancestry, so the best we can do is generally to describe the cat and note that breed ancestry is statistically unlikely. We can't rule out breed ancestry entirely, but in most cats we also can't see any real evidence of breed ancestry, even if there is a superficial resemblance (typically because of color and hair length).

 

[Paula Faith1]

She's beautiful!

I would describe Heavenly as a white domestic shorthair. It's common for solid white cats to have a gray spot on the head, sometimes called a "kitten cap." This may fade as she gets older.

Most cats are not any particular breed, and are also not mixtures of breeds (unlike dogs), but that doesn't make them any less special... domestic shorthairs are great cats! Heavenly is a descriptive name for her, too... she does look like a sweet little cuddler

Thank you!

 

[Paula Faith1]

She's beautiful!

I would describe Heavenly as a white domestic shorthair. It's common for solid white cats to have a gray spot on the head, sometimes called a "kitten cap." This may fade as she gets older.

Most cats are not any particular breed, and are also not mixtures of breeds (unlike dogs), but that doesn't make them any less special... domestic shorthairs are great cats! Heavenly is a descriptive name for her, too... she does look like a sweet little cuddler

Thank you!

 

[jefferd18]

Thank you!

She is a beautiful and angelic looking baby. Heavenly fits her.

I have a white kitty too who is 18 years old, I named her Vail, after Vail, Colorado. I found her in the snow right outside my house- she looked like a little snowman. White cats are just in a league of their own.

 

[Paula Faith1]

Seeing the whole body would help, as would seeing her when she's fully mature.

Most cats it's really not possible to tell if they have any pure breeds mixed into them, mainly because unlike dogs, their general style hasn't been altered too much.

With a couple exceptions like Persians and the modern Siamese family, you don't see shapes and body styles in pure breeds that are out of the range of normal in random cats; the earmarks are usually colours. So you might find a ticked tabby that has a beautifully even coat and say, "Ah, maybe that one has some Abyssinian in it," or you might rightly trace a colourpoint back to a perhaps distant Siamese ancestor. However, with a dominant white especially, you may never know.

 

[Paula Faith1]

She is a beautiful and angelic looking baby. Heavenly fits her.

I have a white kitty too who is 18 years old, I named her Vail, after Vail, Colorado. I found her in the snow right outside my house- she looked like a little snowman. White cats are just in a league of their own.

 

[jefferd18]

I

I thought you might find this interesting.

WHITE CATS & GOOD LUCK
In many myths and fables, black cats are regarded as harbingers of bad luck. It seems the reverse is true too: In many countries, white cats are seen as a symbol of good luck, and are believed to represent purity and positivity in many regions as well.

WHITE CATS & BAD LUCK
That said, in some regions, white cats are the ones that a supposed to bring bad luck and trouble (depending on when and how you come across them). For example, chancing upon a white cat on your way to work can supposedly predict upcoming unemployment or problems in your job.

WHITE CATS & CHILDREN
A superstition in North America believes that white cats and babies should not be together as your feline may feel threatened by the purity and innocence of the child, and may place a curse on your baby. However, in some Mediterranean countries, when a white cat takes a liking to a child, it is considered to be a sign that the child will grow up to be a good person and achieve great things.

WHITE CATS & MONEY
In Russia, white cats are considered to be good for your wallet, and having a white cat in your home is supposed to bring money into your household. If someone else’s white kitty pays you a visit, this is usually seen as a sign that money and prosperity are about to knock on your door!

In the UK., however, it is the total opposite. Having a white cat enters your home is considered to be an indication of tough times ahead, and a white cat that’s leaving the house is believed to bring all the luck out with him. Yikes.

WHEN A WHITE CAT CROSSES YOUR PATH
If a black cat crossing your path means bad luck, what about white cats? Well, the superstitions surrounding this can vary from region to region, but it is generally viewed as good luck to meet a white cat on the streets, and even more so if you say hi to them and get a “meow” in return!

WHITE CATS HOLD GRUDGES
In England, white cats are thought to be able to hold a grudge for years, and it’s considered extremely unwise to offend or annoy a white feline! However, showing kindness to a white cat by offering him treats or food will get you the blessings of the cat and will bring good luck to you for the rest of your day.
thought you might find this interesting.

 

[The Goodbye Bird]

She's still very young. More pictures help though. Normal body. Normal shorthair coat. The only things I notice are a very, very slightly wide nose bridge, small ears for a kitten (though I could be wrong, again she needs to mature more), a high forehead and a delicate snout, and an aptitude for chess.

Anything could be in her really, though breeds of the group that originated in Wonderland and on the opposite side of the looking glass are famous for their ability to play chess.

(Ragdolls can have smallish ears, wide set eyes and high foreheads.)

However, this would be the inaccurate visual breed identification Lutece was talking about. If you told me there was a purebreed cat mixed into her and forced me to bet it's what I'd bet, but if you gave me the choice I just wouldn't bet.