How Much Is That Tabby In The Window? Quiz

Answer:

It is interesting to note that the term tabby is believed to have originated from the Arabic "attābiyya" which is an area in the city of Baghdad that was famous for its striped cloth. The word "attābiyya" became the French word "tabis", which meant a rich watered silk, and eventually evolved into "tabby", meaning striped silk taffeta. The cloth became known as "tabby" in England by the 1600s, and a cat with a striped coat was called a tabby cat by the 1690s.

So, what makes a tabby cat's coat pattern? Well, first, most tabbies have a very distinctive marking on their foreheads; it looks like a letter "M", as seen in the cover photo. A tabby also has stripes around its eyes, cheeks, back, legs, and tail. These patterns are believed to have been caused by genes that are present in both domestic and wild cats today.

The classic tabby coat pattern, also called blotched or marbled, will display the prominent "M" on the cat's forehead, however, rather than stripes or spots, the markings on its body are described as swirls resembling a bullseye. It does include three stripes along the ridge of the cat's back, and a lighter colored pattern between its shoulder blades which is described as a butterfly pattern. The stripes on its legs are thicker and more pronounced. Experts estimate that 80% of all cats today have the recessive gene that can produce the classic coat pattern. Many American Shorthairs have this type of coat pattern.

A mackerel, also called a fishbone or striped tabby, has the "M" marking on its forehead, as well as stripes near its eyes and on its cheeks as seen in the cover photo. Its body is literally covered in stripes that typically curve along the sides. These stripes may be continuous or short, and may change into spots or short bars on its stomach and upper legs. The mackerel tabby's tail and lower legs, however, are striped. This type of tabby coat is considered to be the most common, so it can be found in many different breeds of cat; some examples of breeds include Domestic Shorthairs, European Shorthairs, and Maine Coons.

Ticked tabbies typically do not appear to have very many stripes; what they do have is described as ghost striping as it is very faint. While they may still have a faint "M" on their forehead and other faint markings elsewhere on their body, their coat is described as having more of a salt and pepper appearance. The individual hairs on their coat, described as agouti, have two or more different colors. While many different breeds may have this coat pattern, it is mostly associated with Abyssinians.

Many scientists believe that the spotted tabby design is caused by a gene that kind of separates the stripes, causing them to appear as small or large spots, sometimes called rosettes, instead. Spotted tabbys still have the "M" on their forehead, and typically do have stripes on their legs, face, and tail. Both sized spots are apparent on breeds such as the Ocicat and Egyptian Mau.

The ginger, also known as an orange or red tabby, is a color variation of the coat pattern. It is typically a mixture of red, orange, or ginger with white along with the usual "M" marking on the face. About 3/4 of ginger cats are male. Many different breeds of cats have the ginger coat pattern, including Persian, Bengal, and Munchkin.

A cat with a patched coat pattern has the characteristics of the tabby coat pattern, and another, usually calico or tortoiseshell, pattern. Tortoiseshell cats have a coat pattern that is reminiscent of the design on a tortoise shell and are typically orange and black. Cat lovers commonly call them torbies. Torbies display both patterns due to their genetic makeup. Cornish Rex cats are among those cats that can be considered torbies. Calico cats have three different colors in their coat pattern, but can also show a tabby pattern as well. They are usually called calibys, and can include both American and British Shorthairs.

As I'm sure you have noticed, the incorrect choices - standard, miniature, medium, toy, and teacup - are all choices used to describe size variations in poodles.