The characteristic color with a clear letter “M” on the cat’s forehead is considered the breed standard for the Abyssinian, Egyptian Mau, Singaporean, Somali and Siberian cats. For some varieties of domestic animals, this sign is recognized as a defect, and such kittens are discarded. Mystical fur coloring has given rise to legends that have nothing to do with reality.
Description of the breed
There are cats with the letter “M” clearly visible on their foreheads. It is often darker than the animal's dominant coat color. This coloring is called “tabby” and is recognized as a necessary component of the breed standard for the following cats:
- Abyssinian. Considered to be the oldest breed, it is believed to have originated in Ethiopia. 4 types of color have been recorded.
- Egyptian Mau. A medium-sized spotted animal.
- Somalia. Genetically descended from the Ethiopian, but long-haired.
- Singaporean. Bred in the 70s of the twentieth century from street cats in Southeast Asia.
- Siberian cat. Most often lives in the wild and is difficult to tame.
Tabby colors come in a variety of colors: mackerel, marbled, spotted and ticked.
BRITISH TABBY: COLOR STANDARD
British tabbies, regardless of the pattern on the coat, must have the following elements in their color (the exception is the ticked color - it has no pattern):
- the letter "M" on the forehead;
- “necklaces” on the chest;
- stripes on the paws;
- tail rings;
- one or two rows of spots on the belly;
- A contrasting tabby pattern is required;
- a light spot on each ear on the outside;
- eyeliner and nose to match the main color.
Photo: British spotted tabby cat, spotted chocolate color BRI b 24
British tabby color is based on a good contrast pattern; if it is blurred, it is rejected by experts. Most likely there was an incorrect mating, where one of the parents was a solid color and the other was a tabby.
The eye color of a British cat must correspond to the standard of the main color (most often golden, less often green or blue).
What does the letter "M" mean?
Markings on the fur are elements of a camouflage arsenal from wild relatives.
This color is not always a sign of a purebred breed. You can also find this pattern on an ordinary domestic kitten. Stripes are a sign of ancient origin; they helped the ancestors of pets hide in the bushes. It should be borne in mind that for some animals the letter “M” on the forehead is an undesirable feature, and individuals are rejected from the standard. These breeds include:
- Russian blue. Shorthair, one of the most sought after in the world.
- Burmese. It has an unusual color, thanks to which it is recognizable.
- Siamese. Short-haired, with blue eyes.
- Chartreuse. Another name is Cartesian, originally from France.
- Bombay. Black American, bred in the twentieth century in Kentucky.
- Balinese. Long-haired version of the Siamese.
How to choose a kitten
Before buying, you need to pay attention to the price, since British ones usually cost an order of magnitude more, but this is not always the case. Much depends on the purity and availability of pedigree, as well as documentary evidence
Three rules
You definitely need to hold the kitten in your arms - the quality and length of the fur are noticeably different, but you can feel this only in comparison.
Make sure that both parents belong to the same breed, that is, British kittens were born from the mating of a British cat with a cat, and also for Scots - both parents are of the same breed. To do this, you can ask for animal documents. Another important sign is the appearance, which is described above, but here too everything can be learned by comparison. The British are massive, they have a wide body, the neck is very short, it may not be visible at all, the ears are only straight
The Scots are more refined and petite, their neck is clearly visible, their paws and tail are thinner, and the expression of their eyes is slightly different. It is important to remember that even if you watch a video of how a British cat differs from a Scottish cat, it is not always so easy to distinguish these two breeds. Scots can have either straight or fold ears, but Britons are born with straight ears only! Those who decide to breed or participate in exhibitions should know that Scottish Folds are marked SFS, Scottish Shorthairs are SSS and SCS
This helps to distinguish them, because if representatives of both breeds are straight-eared, then often even professionals cannot determine the identity of the animal; in this case, only documents, pedigree and a mark in the metric will help.
There are differences between the British and the Scots, but even a professional cannot always notice them. To distinguish these two breeds, it is necessary to compare their appearance, but the most reliable option is to look at the pedigree and documents, especially if representatives of both breeds are straight-eared.
Legend of the letter
In the Middle Ages, a cat, especially a black one, could be killed as an “accomplice of the devil.” But the breed with the letter “M” was considered good. It was believed that this was supposedly the seal that the Virgin Mary put on the forehead of a certain cat who warmed the Baby Jesus in the manger on the night of his birth. Since then, the descendants of this individual have been under the protection of the Mother of God. To be fair, it should be said that in the Aramaic language, which Christ spoke, the letter that conveys the sound “m” has a completely different shape. In the Muslim world it is believed that the Prophet Muhammad was partial to these cats.
SPOTTED TABBY, LEOPARD COLOR BRITISH
According to the standard, the spotted color of the British must contain the letter “M” on the forehead, “necklaces”, stripes on the paws, rings on the tail, spots on the belly, a contrasting pattern, eyeliner and nose.
The British spotted cat can also be called Spotted tabby or leopard, which, in principle, is the same thing. The color must invariably include: the letter “M” on the forehead, “necklaces”, stripes on the paws, rings on the tail, spots on the belly, a contrasting pattern, eyeliner and nose, all according to the standard. The spotted color is the most common of all tabby colors. The British spotted cat looks elegant and looks like a leopard, which is why it received this second name for the color. British spotted kittens can be born from parents of any tabby color. Eyes can be copper or green (green eye color is characteristic of golden and sometimes silver colors).
BRITISH TABBY CATS: TYPES OF COLOR
In British tabby cats, the main tone - the color of the coat - is light (for example, red, chocolate, lilac, etc.), but the pattern is made in a dark color (black, blue, red). The colors of British tabby cats (or tabby/tabby) are encoded with the numbers 22/23/24/25, which are added after the main color color.
British tabbies can be of the following types:
- black ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI n 25/24/23/22 (BROWN TABBY);
- blue ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI a 25/24/23/22 BLUE TABBY;
- lilac ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI c 25/24/23/22 LILAC TABBY;
- chocolate ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI b 25/24/23/22 CHOCOLATE TABBY;
- cinnamon ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI o 25/24/23/22 CINNAMON TABBY;
- fawn ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI p 25/24/23/22 FAVN TABBY;
- red ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI d 25/24/23/22 RED TABBY;
- cream ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI e 25/24/23/22 CREAM TABBY;
- silver ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI s 25/24/23/22 – SILVER TABBY;
- golden ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI y 25/24/23/22 GOLDEN TABBY;
- tortoiseshell ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI 25/24/23/22;
- bicolor ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI 25/24/23/22;
- color-point ticked/spotted/striped/marbled BRI 25/24/23/22.
GENETICS OF COLOR
The tabby pattern is due to the A gene - agotti.
You can often hear the phrase from. What does it mean? — Genetically, all cats (yes, all cats, of all breeds and species) have a pattern on their body, but the magic gene “not agouti” hides the pattern on the body.
Color formula:
AA - a tabby cat (with a pattern), she will always give birth to kittens with a pattern, regardless of the color of the second sire;
Aa is a tabby cat (with a pattern), she will always give birth to kittens with and without a pattern (plain);
BRITISH - TABBY COLOR: SPOTTED, BRIDGE (STRIPPED), MARBLE
Here are photos of British cats, cats, tabby kittens. British tabbies are spotted, striped (brindle), marbled.
British tabby, photo of chocolate silver ticked British kitten BRI bs 25
Photo of a British tabby kitten: lilac ticked BRI c
British tabby cat, photo of golden ticked Briton BRI ny 25
Photos of British tabby kittens: red ticked color BRI d 25
British tabby cat, photo of red silver color BRI ds 25
British cat tabby color, photo of cream silver ticked color BRI es 25
British spotted cat cinnamon BRI o 24
British brindle kitten, photo red British BRI d 23
British brindle (striped) tabby cat, photo of a chocolate tabby British kitten BRI b 23
British tabby (tiger) cat, photo of black silver British tabby BRI ns 23
British spotted cat, photo of blue spotted tabby color BRI a 24
British tabby, photo of lilac spotted British tabby kitten BRI c 24
British tabby, photo of tortoiseshell spotted color BRI f 24
British tabby cat, photo of chocolate spotted British kitten BRI b 24
Leopard tabby color, photo of golden spotted British kitten BRI ny 24
British tabby, photo of tortoiseshell tabby color BRI q 23
Marbled British kitten, photo of chocolate marbled British kitten BRI b 22
British merle kitten, photo fawn harlequin color BRI p 22
Marbled British cat, photo cinnamon marbled color BRI o 22
British tabby cat, photo cream tabby color BRI e 22
British marble on silver, photo red marble British tabby BRI ds 22
British kitten, photo of marbled chocolate color BRI b 22
British merle cat, photo lilac merle British tabby BRI c 22
British merle kitten, photo of black golden merle BRI ny 22 64
British black marbled on silver, photo of tortoiseshell silver British kitten BRI fs 22
British blue marble, photo of black blue marble British tabby kitten BRI a 22
British merle cat on silver, photo of black merle British tabby color BRI ns 22 64
Silver merle Briton, photo of British merle color on silver tabby BRI ns 22
British tabby, photo color point tabby color BRI a 33 21
British cat black marbled bicolor, photo of color black silver marbled bicolor tabby BRI ns 03 22
