Color tabby in British cats (photo)

Color tabby today enjoys quite a lot of popularity, which is not surprising. Cats of similar color scale look very unusual and beautiful. But the tabby is not just a certain pattern and color. The species and shades of its extraordinary variety. About the variety of tabby and talk in this article.

What color is called a tabby

Color tabby is very bizarre. The muzzles of these cats are decorated with exquisite marks, and the bodies are "dressed" in necklaces, bracelets, medallions, buttons, etc. A great variety of patterns is a distinctive feature of the tabby. Markings are located in different places, from different angles and can take a variety of shapes. In addition, the drawing on cats will always be unique, there are no two identical tabby colors. Even animals of one subspecies will differ in the location and brightness of the spots.

Tabby - color, characteristic of several feline peoples, among whom are the British. And now let's find out where the tabby came from and what variations of this color exist.

Where did this color come from and why is it called

The question of where the cats have come from so bizarre color, and even different breeds, will surely arise if a British kitten appears in the house. Color tabby, most likely, was inherited by domestic cats from their wild ancestors - Nubian lambs. It is from this variety of felines that all of our short-haired pets have occurred.

As for the term "tabby", there are several versions of its occurrence. The most beautiful sounds so. Somewhere in the beginning of the XVII century in England for the first time brought silk fabrics valued in weight of gold. Their drawing was very similar to cat's color and was called "tabbis". And when later began to breed cats with a similar color, they were called - tabby. In addition, cats of the same color as silk, were very expensive, since it is extremely difficult to breed them - it is difficult to obtain the desired pattern, shade and the color of the eyes combined with them.

Required elements

Color tabby, despite many variations, has a number of unchanging elements:

• Ticketing - in fact, the very figure. In this case, the hairs of the wool must be monophonic to the base.
• On the forehead of such cats, there must be a pattern resembling the letter "M", the so-called scarab sign.
• On the back surface of the ear should be located a spot that has the form of a fingerprint.
• Nose and eyes should be circled. The color of the stroke should be the same as the main color.
• Figure, if it is, necessarily includes the following elements: "necklace" - three closed strips on the chest; "Curls" on the cheeks; On the tummy there are two rows of double spots. All the drawings should be clear and saturated, and stained deep.
• There is also a characteristic eye color for the tabby - it's golden, orange and copper. If the color is silver, then the eyes of the cat should be green.

If the British blurs color, and patterns are unclear and merge with the primary color, then this is a marriage. Most likely, one of the parents was a tabby, and the other was a one-colored one.

Spotted Tabby

Spotted Briton (color tabby) must necessarily have on the forehead the letter "M"; "Necklace" on the neck; Rings on the tail, and the tip of a dark color; Bands on the feet; Stains on the tummy of various diameters; A discontinuous streak on the back, turning into spots; Nose and eyeliner. The picture should be sharp and sharp.

Spotted British cats are also called spotted, which translates as "leopard". But, in principle, all these names mean the same species. Spotted tabby is the most common variety of color. Such a kitten can be born from the parents of any tabby-coloring.

Tiger tabby (mackerel, striped)

The tiger color tabby (its photo can be seen in this article) has roughly the same standards as the above-described spotted, except that the line on the back should be clear and continuous, and on the sides should be clear, non-crossing and continuous strips. The striped British strip should begin at the ridge and go to the very feet. They should be narrow and frequent - the more often, the better.

However, when choosing such a kitten it is worth considering one important fact. Even if the selected Britons are clear and long, this does not mean that they will not stretch and become stains by the year. That is, the striped kitten can turn into a spotted cat. This is the only kind of tabby that can change so much. The remaining species remain virtually unchanged throughout the life of the cat.

Brindle color in the British is quite common, but not as much as spotted.

Marble Tabby

Marble color tabby in cats is the most beautiful, bright and complex. In addition, it is also the rarest because of the difficulties in crossing - from two marble individuals a striped or spotted kitten can be born. Such Britons wear three parallel strips on the back, and on the sides there are large closed circles, inside of which a bright spot of the spot is located. Such a drawing must not overlap or be interrupted. In addition, a marble Briton must have the following marks:

• A figure on the back of the head and shoulders that resembles a butterfly.
• Patterns on the cheeks that begin from the very corners of the eyes.
• Pattern in the form of "M" on the forehead.
• The neck and chest are decorated with necklaces - the more of them the better.
• On the tummy spots.
• Paws and tail should be ringed.
• Circles on the hips are necessarily closed.

Color is rejected if the pattern is not sufficiently contrasted, or represents residual faded lines.

A British cat has a marble color that can be identified from birth. However, the final alignment and clear drawing occur to two months. Therefore, if you want to get a real marble Briton, wait until that time, and do not take a kitten before.

Ticked Tabby

Ticked or abyssinian color tabby in British cats can be confused with monochrome, as for him uncharacteristic patterns, however, he is quite handsome. The name comes from the breed of Abyssinian cats, for which a similar color is characteristic. The color of the fur coat should be even, and the upper part of the hairs should look like a kind of "spraying". If you expand the hair of such a cat, you can see - each hair has two colors. At the same time the undercoat of a Briton will correspond to the basic color. Of all the marks characteristic of the tabby, ticked kittens have only drawings in the form of curls on the cheeks and a sign of the scarab on the forehead.

If there are stains in the color, rings or wool is not evenly dyed with two or three colors, then the individual is rejected.

The "spraying" of Abyssinian Britons has an apricot, brown and sandy-yellow hue. Despite this, the basis of this color is black.

Tone color

The color of the tabby has several tones in addition to the varieties. Here are the main ones.

Black or brown tabby - characterized by marks of saturated black. The main color is copper-brown, covering the whole body, including the chin and the lip area. The nose is brick red or black. Pads of paws of a black shade.

Chocolate tabby has marks of deep chocolate shade. The main color of the cat is bronze. Paw pads and nose can be pink or chocolate shade.

The blue color of the tabby cat is distinguished by the marks of a saturated blue color. At this basic color - slightly bluish, much lighter shade of spots. Paw pads and nose pink or blue.

Lilac tabby - characterized by marks of freakish purple. The main color is beige. Paw pads and nose are pink.

Cream tabby has labels of deep cream shade. The main color of the coat is pale cream. Pads of paws and a nose of pink hue.

In addition, there are silver tabby. Ideally, the main color of the wool of such Britons is light silver, and the pattern has a more saturated and bright color. Nevertheless, British cats of a shade of silver tabby happen and with labels of various colors: black, cream, chocolate, red, purple.