Tabby Cats

The tabby cat is the best known type of cat. Indeed, tabby cats are the most common of domestic cats. In fact, the tabby pattern is believed to be the pattern of the cat's wild ancestors.

Tabby is not a cat breed. It is not a color either. In fact, the tabby pattern occurs in different cat breeds and it comes in different colors. Tabby is a pattern.

Tabby patterns

The tabby pattern may include swirls, stripes, whorls, and spots. There are four tabby patterns: the classic, the mackerel, the ticked, and the spotted.

Classic (or blotched) tabbies are one of the most common. This type of tabby will have swirls and clearly defined stripes all over the body. Usually, a thick band or stripe will run all the way from the neck to the tail.

Mackerel tabbies are also very common. Many in fact believe that this is the original pattern dating back to the wild African cats. The mackerel pattern will display vertical stripes at the sides of the body and rings around the legs and tail.

The spotted pattern is said to be a different version of the mackerel pattern. In this pattern, the stripes are broken into big spots all aligned in a single file.

Ticked tabbies are very interesting. At first glance they don't seem to be tabby cats at all. They don't come with the usual whorls, swirls and stripes. They would appear to be of a solid color. Upon a closer look, however, you will see that the fur of ticked tabbies has stripes and swirls.

Tabbies also come in different color variations: you will find red tabbies, silver tabbies, and brown tabbies - to name a few. The tabby pattern also occurs in different cat breeds, including the Bengal, the Bombay and the Egyptian Mau.

© Claudia Escobar is a cat lover who loves anything cat-related. For more on tabby cats and gift ideas for cat lovers visit her site at http://www.cat-lovers-gifts-guide.com. If you would like to reproduce this article please feel free to do so, provided that you publish the article in its entirety and include this resource box.

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