Tabbies explained

[Kay]

After Yola asked me about Joshua's colour I thought I would explain about our stunning Tabbies.

There are two genes responsible for Tabbies. The first is the Tabby gene which dictates what pattern of Tabby the cat is. The patterns are, in order of dominance, Mackerel, Classic and spotted. ALL cats have the Tabby gene.

The second gene is the Agouti gene and it is this gene that is responsible for the Tabby pattern, which ever one it maybe, showing through. Basically the Agouti gene works by altering the pigmentation in the hair shaft and in doing so allows the tabby markings to be visible. This is due to a protein being produced which prevents the colour on the hair shaft being produced correctly causing light bands of red/cream to be created. Depending on the Tabby pattern gene will determine the pattern in which these bands show through.

The red series cats have a problem with this process in that the Agouti gene still tries to do its job by producing the red/cream bands but due the coat already being red/cream this is much harder to do. This is when you can get a beautiful solid red/cream with no Tabby markings that is in fact a true Agouti Tabby and at the other end of the scale, as in Joshua's case, you can get a stunning red/cream Tabby that is not an Agouti Tabby. These 'fake tabbies' are known as non-agouti tabbies.


Hope this is of interest especially to Yola ;)

[angieh]

Thanks for that info, Kay. I take it the same genetic rules apply to moggies as well as pedigree cats? I have never kept a pedigree, but years ago my Smudge's kittens (all B&W) seemed to have tabby stripes only visible in certain light, as kittens, but these faded.

[yola]

It is indeed of interest Kay. I know nothing about feline genetics and find it quite baffling! Thank you so much for the explanation - your doing so in layman's terms makes it very easy to understand.

So Myshka, who is a pure cream and has no tabby markings whatsoever is infact an Agouti Tabby :D

[Kay]

Thanks for that info, Kay. I take it the same genetic rules apply to moggies as well as pedigree cats? I have never kept a pedigree, but years ago my Smudge's kittens (all B&W) seemed to have tabby stripes only visible in certain light, as kittens, but these faded.

Yes Angie the same genetic rules apply to all cats regardless of their pedigree or lack of it ;). The slight markings you saw in Smudge's B & W kittens were just ghost markings which fade as you noticed.

It is indeed of interest Kay. I know nothing about feline genetics and find it quite baffling! Thank you so much for the explanation - your doing so in layman's terms makes it very easy to understand.

So Myshka, who is a pure cream and has no tabby markings whatsoever is infact an Agouti Tabby :D

Glad it was easy to understand, Yola. I can get a bit carried away with feline colour/pattern genetics :roll:.

Myshka maybe an Agouti Tabby or may not. Without DNA testing for the Agouti gene you can't tell for certain with the red series cats of which cream is the dilute colour. This is where it becomes awkward. :shock:

[yola]

Myshka maybe an Agouti Tabby or may not. Without DNA testing for the Agouti gene you can't tell for certain with the red series cats of which cream is the dilute colour. This is where it becomes awkward. :shock:

LOL!! Ok, now you've lost me :roll:

[Kay]

LOL!! Ok, now you've lost me :roll:

Sorry ;)

Basically in all the colours, except the red or cream cats, if there are visual tabby markings then the cat is a true or Agouti Tabby. Due to the colour of the red/cream cats a true Agouti Tabby may or may not display the markings and a Non-Agouti cred/cream cat may show markings.

To produce an Agouti Tabby at least one parent must be an Agouti Tabby. :shock:

[dandysmom]

Thanks for that, Kay, quite a bit clearer than the article I mentioned in your other thread about the agouti gene. Genetics is fascinating but very very difficult.

[Kay]

Thanks for that, Kay, quite a bit clearer than the article I mentioned in your other thread about the agouti gene. Genetics is fascinating but very very difficult.

No problem Eileen. Some of the articles written are extremely confusing aren't they. Glad mine was a bit easier to understand. :)

[niki71uk]

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll349/niki71uk/DSC00113_edited.jpg


http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll349/niki71uk/toby.jpg


i wish i knew wot my 2 were kay:roll:

[Kay]

i wish i knew wot my 2 were kay:roll:

The top is a Brown Mackerel Tortie Tabby............

And this bottom one appears to be a Brown Classic Tabby but I could do with a side view ;)

[dandysmom]

Whatever they are they're both gorgeous, Niki!

[niki71uk]

he's mostly black:roll:

[Kay]

he's mostly black:roll:

Definitely a Classic pattern Brown Tabby ;)

[niki71uk]

yup,the top one,her mum was small and all black,her dad they think looks like her,as they have only seen him from afar

[Kay]

yup,the top one,her mum was small and all black,her dad they think looks like her,as they have only seen him from afar

If her mum was all black then dad had to be a red tabby to produsce a tortie tabby kitten. So dad isn't the cat they think he is :shock:

[niki71uk]

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

[Kay]

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Naughty mummy :oops: :oops: :oops:

[niki71uk]

she was very stripey looking when younger.not so much now,and she was 2 in march

[Kay]

She is gorgeous xx

[niki71uk]

the other one he was 15 in october

[Kay]

the other one he was 15 in october

Awww bless him. He is really handsome.

[dandysmom]

If her mum was all black then dad had to be a red tabby to produsce a tortie tabby kitten. So dad isn't the cat they think he is :shock:

Kay to get a dilute like Leia, am I correct in assuming one parent had to be blue and the other cream? Or could they have been red/black and the dilute gene came into play? Just curious .....

You're very kind to answer our questions! :D

[niki71uk]

kay in the pic of the 15 yr old,he was actually about 6 in that pic lol,i dont really have an up to date one

[Kay]

Kay to get a dilute like Leia, am I correct in assuming one parent had to be blue and the other cream? Or could they have been red/black and the dilute gene came into play? Just curious .....

You're very kind to answer our questions! :D

Eileen Leia's parents could have been blue & cream, red & black both carrying dilute, blue & red the red carrying dilute or black & cream with the black carrying dilute :shock:

Hope this helps.

[Kay]

kay in the pic of the 15 yr old,he was actually about 6 in that pic lol,i dont really have an up to date one

I did think he looked rather young for a 15 year old :?

[dandysmom]

Thank you so much for that, Kay, much clearer now, I actually understand that!

[Kay]

Thank you so much for that, Kay, much clearer now, I actually understand that!

So glad it was easy to understand. Just a shame it can't be pinpointed any narrow than that ;)

[dandysmom]

The Messy Beasts genetics page is written for people who are a lot more knowledgable about it than curious moggy owners like me! You should write for them!

[Kay]

The Messy Beasts genetics page is written for people who are a lot more knowledgable about it than curious moggy owners like me! You should write for them!

Don't think I would be technical enough for them :lol:

[dandysmom]

But people would understand it Kay! Most Messy Beast is for serious breeders that need this as it's very valuable to them in their programs; just confusing to pet owners. Thanks again.

[Kay]

But people would understand it Kay! Most Messy Beast is for serious breeders that need this as it's very valuable to them in their programs; just confusing to pet owners. Thanks again.

Believe me a lot of serious breeders don't have a clue about the genetics behind there cats or understand the level of the articles written on Messy Beast :roll:. If those type of articles are taken as gosple then a lot of Colourpoint breeding programs would fail. Those type of articles stae that when you mate a Colourpoint to a Colourpoint carrier then the resultiing litter will be 50 % Colourpoint & 50% Colourpoint Carrier :roll:. On paper this works out but in reality the chance of a Colourpoint kitten is more likely to be about 25 - 30%. The practice of using Colourpoint Carriers has drastically reduced the number of Colourpoints born. Obvious to me as the self gene is dominant over the recessive Colourpoint gene.... but there again what do I know ;).

[dandysmom]

I have learned so much here !! :)