cat coat terminology

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Elaine Jackson - 14 Oct 2004 06:30 GMT

Can anyone point me toward a pictorial reference that clarifies the terms
(tabby, callicoe, etc) used to describe cats' coats? Any help will be much
appreciated.

Peace

PS: For extra credit feel free to answer the same question for the case of dogs
as well.

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Wolf - 14 Oct 2004 12:26 GMT

Tabbys are usually striped, and calicos have differen't patches, like orange
and brown. Same goes for dogs.

> Can anyone point me toward a pictorial reference that clarifies the terms
> (tabby, callicoe, etc) used to describe cats' coats? Any help will be much
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> dogs
> as well.

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Cat Net - 14 Oct 2004 15:10 GMT

> Tabbys are usually striped, and calicos have differen't patches, like orange
> and brown. Same goes for dogs.

Calico cats are tri-colored. Sometimes called tortoise shell, sometimes
called muted-calico if their colors are not brilliant. Usually black, white
and yellow, but may be variations of those.

Calico cats are 1000 to 1 female, as a male calico is an anomaly indeed. (I
believe a male calico is referred to as Kleinfelders Syndrome. I'm not sure
of the spelling) I have three brilliant colored calicos and one muted
calico inside. I have three calicos outside, one of which is muted.

Tabby is sort of a catch-all for striped cats; either gray, shades of gray
or yellow (orange). They can be longhaired or short (Mainecoon is a long-
haired *tabby*, for example that may also be spotted
http://www.cfainc.org/breeds/profiles/maine.html).

Go to: http://www.cfainc.org/breeds.html for a list of various kinds of
cats and links to their pictures. It may take a while to go through them to
find the one that corresponds to a particular example.

--Geno <aka Catcatcher>Royer

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NuQ - 14 Oct 2004 23:15 GMT

>> Tabbys are usually striped, and calicos have differen't patches, like
> orange
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> to
> find the one that corresponds to a particular example.

I've never been to that site, thanks. I have 4 cats, but am not really a
cat enthusiast. As in, I don't subscribe to Cat Fancy magazine and go to
cat shows, etc., but I'm starting to learn more about cats in general since
I began lurking here just recently.

I see from that site that my newest cat (2 yrs ago) is a RagaMuffin! After
reading the profile, there's no doubt. He fits the profile perfectly. He's
black, though - solid. I call him (soft and furry) KeeKee. Yes, KeeKee (or
Kiki) is a girl's name and he's a boy, but that's just what came out of
mouth when I found...or should I say "he found" me ;-)

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