Tabby: what color are cats, what does it look like, 45 photos

History of the Asian Tabby Breed

The Asian tabby originated in England. Its origin story began in the 20th century. The idea was to breed a cat that would be as beautiful as the Abyssinians, but with a strong build and a friendly disposition.

It was decided to cross a chinchilla and a Burmese cat. The resulting hybrid was combined with the Abyssinians, and this is how the Asian variety turned out. At first there were only 3 shades of wool - silver, brown and light. Later, a huge variation of colors arose.

The first kittens were presented in 1982. The tabby was officially recognized only after 8 years.

Interesting!

The Asian tabby only became a separate breed in 1990. Since then, kittens have been bought all over the world.

Breed cost

The price of an Asian tabby depends on several factors. First of all, the kitten’s parents and their external and physical characteristics play a role. Breeders especially value kittens with an ideal, correct skull structure and no spots on the surface of the fur. Accordingly, such kittens are more expensive than others in the litter.

It is also worth considering that such cats can participate in exhibitions, and if the kitten’s parents were prize winners, then the cost increases significantly. The kitten will be accompanied by a passport with information about the parents.

• The average cost of a regular kitten starts from 1000 rubles.
• Rarely do people give away kittens of this breed for free.
• The price of an Asian tabby cat is not stable and can depend on a number of reasons.

Appearance description

These are stable, animals with pronounced muscles. Smooth contours and cheeks make them even prettier.

Weight

The Asian tabby is a breed that can weigh between 4 and 7 kg. These are medium sized cats. Females are miniature and graceful. Cats are stronger, heavier, and often gain excess weight.

Length and shape of limbs

The limbs are strong and proportional. The end of the legs has an oval shape. The pads on the paws are soft.

The tail is straight, tapering to a point. Usually its color is more intense. There are several color options, where the tail is in no way different from the main mass of hair. A brush consisting of guard hairs may form at its tip.

Head shape

The head looks like a rounded wedge. In profile you can clearly see the pronounced chin. Cats stand out with their cheekbones and cheekbones. The muzzle is wide. The nose is small, even in profile.

The ears are large and spaced apart. The end of the ears is rounded. Small brushes may form. They are not a vice.

Interesting!

A characteristic feature is the design of a scarab on the forehead.

Eye color and shape

The eyes are large and located far apart. The upper eyelid is oval, the outer corner looks up. The lower eyelid is round. The inner corner is directed towards the bridge of the nose. If the description does not match reality, the cat is not allowed to exhibit.

Eye color varies from bright yellow to amber. Green-eyed cats are also not allowed to participate in exhibitions; the shade is considered a vice. Interestingly, merle cats have brighter irises.

The edges of the eyelids are highlighted in black. Thanks to the contrasting stroke, it creates the feeling of eyes lined with pencil. This further emphasizes the expressiveness of the muzzle. The photo shows a common eye color.

Wool

The Asian tabby is a breed of short-haired cat. The hairs are thin and grow thickly. The fur is close to the surface of the skin. There is practically no undercoat. The fur is soft to the touch, especially if you brush your pet regularly. Guard hairs are not expressed.

Interesting!

The peculiarity of the breed is the bright shine of the fur. Often there are dark colors that, combined with shine, resemble dark smoke.

Constitution

Cats have a strong body with rounded and smooth outlines. The chest is powerful, protruding forward in a semicircle. The pelvis is massive. The muscles are strong and clearly defined. The back is straight. Hips and shoulders are in line. The tail is of medium length.

Voice

The Asian tabby is proud and silent, practically does not meow, which confirms the description of the breed. In extreme cases, it may demand food. He prefers to resolve other issues in silence.

Lifespan

Asian shorthairs have strong immunity. They rarely have allergic reactions to food or medications. She has no hereditary diseases. Life expectancy is 15-20 years.

A preventive medical examination is carried out annually to immediately identify chronic diseases, describe them, cure or prevent them.

Possible defects of the breed

Defects have little effect on the beauty of animals, but do not allow them to participate in exhibitions. Strict rules do not accept even small flaws.

Vices of the Asian Tabby:

1. Piebald color. Very light coat throughout the body without pronounced saturation is poorly valued at exhibitions. In this case, the tail should be slightly darker than the main color.
2. Blurred pattern on the fur. This rule especially applies to marbled colors.
3. Cryptorchidism - the testicles are located behind the scrotum in males.
4. Knots or kinks in the tail. They appear during injury or form in the womb. You can easily buy a kitten with a crooked tail and not notice it. At a young age, the nodes are faintly palpable, but become obvious as they grow older.
5. Long wool. The Asian tabby is a short-haired cat.

Description of appearance

Males and tabby cats have a strong build and medium size. Moreover, males are slightly larger than females. The weight of adult pets ranges from 4 to 8 kg. The breed from Asia meets the following standards:

• massive body with prominent muscles;
• developed sternum;
• wedge-shaped head with clear outlines;
• wide nose, medium size;
• the ears are erect, large, with rounded tips;
• almond-shaped eyes have a yellowish color;
• the coat is short, there is no undercoat;
• the tail is narrowed towards the end and has a medium length;
• paws of medium size and oval shape;
• the muzzle has pronounced cheekbones.

The Asian Shorthair cat comes in a variety of colors. The most common options:

1. Spotted. On the body, in addition to the peritoneum, there are dark spots.
2. Mackerel (tiger). The fur has vertical stripes resembling the pattern of a tiger skin.
3. Marble. On the back and sides of the animal there are dark stripes and spots that organically intertwine with each other, forming an attractive marble pattern.
4. Ticked (agouti). The coat has a single color and only the tail, paws and muzzle have stripes.

However, tabby cats may have white spots on their paws and neck.

Coat color

There are several basic colors, but any color can be used. There are blue, cream, red, purple, black and other shades. The main thing is the presence of the tabby pattern, after which the breed is named.

brindle tabby

Vertical stripes are placed parallel to each other. The brindle color has a pronounced dark chocolate or black color. The color is also called “mackerel”, because The fish carcass is just as striped. The red and smoky tabby looks very beautiful with this color. The smoky shade, together with the stripes, looks like the color of the British.

ticked

The fur is monochromatic. Thanks to ticking, beautiful iridescence is formed on it. This is a color in which each hair has several shades. The guard hair has a base of one color, and the tip is colored in a contrasting shade. The cats have a noble appearance, the color seems to have been applied with powder. Black, cream, red, smoky colors are more common.

Interesting!

The dark color of the tabby is nicknamed “black smoke”. He is in great demand among breeders.

Spotted

The spotted color is characterized by the presence of a large number of small spots of dark color. They are scattered in a chaotic manner. There are cats with large and wide spots. They are clearly visible on the light fur, which is clearly visible in the photo.

Sometimes the spots match the color of the main coat, and when mixed, they look like smoke. For a purebred spotted tabby, this coloring is considered a defect.

Marble

The stripes are located on the sides. They are absolutely symmetrical and have the shape of spiral strokes. Sometimes the pattern looks like stains on marble. This color is more common than others. There are many varieties of marble colors, each of them is unique.

Character and habits of the Asian tabby

Despite their docile nature, Asian tabbies are cats that can fend for themselves. The pet is sensitive to the owner’s requests and cannot tolerate shouting or rude tone.

Friendliness

The Asian tabby has a personality that makes it stand out from the rest of the cat crowd. They are very friendly, active and playful. At the same time, they spend most of their time in a calm state, without disturbing their owners. They communicate easily with people and are not afraid of hands. They love active games together. They require a lot of attention. They are indifferent to strangers.

Individuals of this breed get along well with each other, both same-sex and opposite-sex. They do not divide territory and do not fight for leadership. They love their companions and gently ingratiate themselves into their trust.

Important!

Representatives of this breed do not like to be left alone. If the owner is often away from home, you need to get the pet a partner.

Curiosity

Animals love to conquer new heights, climb different surfaces, and hide in secluded places. The owner is recommended to provide the cat with space to play with scratching posts, houses, hammocks, etc.

Good disposition

An Asian tabby is a cat whose breed description always includes a note about a good character. They lack the vindictiveness inherent in ordinary cats. Even if the owner has done something wrong, he will not find wet slippers or tattered shoes.

They are patient with children and allow themselves to be petted. If a child pulls a tabby's tail, the cat will try to hide rather than put out its claws. Still, you shouldn’t test your pet’s endurance.

Developed intelligence

This is a highly intelligent breed that understands prohibitions and instructions the first time. Cats are even trainable. A special feature of cats is their sensitivity to intonation and mood.

Important!

Animals have a sensitive character and react sharply to screams and spanks. Such behavior on the part of the owner greatly harms their psyche. It is important to calmly resolve issues without giving vent to emotions, even when your favorite pot is broken.

Attachment to people

Kitties do not single out any of the family members; they love everyone in their own way. An intelligent animal will find an approach to any person, even if that person does not like cats. An Asian tabby cat that easily bonds with the person who feeds it. Therefore, even a short separation from them is not recommended. When traveling, it is better to leave the cat at home, visiting every 1-3 days.

Asian tabby kittens

If adults are reasonable and obedient, then Asian tabby kittens are the complete opposite. Up to 1 year the animal remains overly active and clumsy. They will happily ride on the curtains, chew the owner's hands and knock over all the pots.

To minimize losses, you should teach them to play with toys from an early age and not allow them to bite their hands. Kittens are immediately accustomed to trimming their claws, combing them, and going to the veterinarian.

Keeping a cat at home

When considering the description of the Asian tabby, it is worth paying great attention to its stay in the house. There is no need to walk this breed often; they are quite comfortable at home, in a secluded place. To increase comfort, it is recommended to make a house for your pet that can be insulated for the winter.

• For the winter, this house must be insulated, because this breed does not have an undercoat.
• Particular attention should be paid to the food; it is recommended to choose only high-quality food, while focusing on the kitten’s lifestyle and its daily activity.
• If you don’t have enough experience to determine it yourself, you need to seek help from a veterinarian.

You also need to carefully control the amount of food; you should understand that kittens do not understand how much they need to eat, so they try to eat as much as possible.

If this aspect of nutrition is not controlled, it can lead to obesity and diseases of the pet's cardiovascular system and gastrointestinal tract.

Maintenance and care

The pet requires standard care. High-quality maintenance and order in the house significantly prolongs the life of a pet.

Check-in

It is important to provide in advance in the house:

• sleeping area with a warm blanket and bed;
• food area with clean water, dry/wet food;
• play area with climbing frames, balls, scratching post;
• a clean tray that will always be freely available.

It is better to immediately remove precious souvenirs, vases of flowers, jewelry, and household chemicals from the shelves. Hide needles, threads, pins. The entire apartment must be absolutely safe for the new household.

It is also worth considering that maintaining a pet will cost a certain amount. They need to buy food, litter, toys, etc.

Hygiene

The pet is regularly looked after. Also, maintaining hygiene reduces the risk of developing diseases.

Ear cleaning

Cats' ears are cleaned every week. Over time, wax, dirt and dust accumulate in them, which can cause ear infections and even hearing loss.

The procedure is carried out using a cotton swab and ear lotion, which is sold in a veterinary pharmacy. You can wipe your ears with chlorhexidine or chamomile infusion. Cleansing is carried out with light movements, without plunging deep into the auricle.

Important!

Do not wipe your ears with alcohol, it dries out the delicate skin greatly.

Teeth cleaning

To maintain dental health, the animal is fed dry food. If, on the recommendation of a veterinarian, a more thorough cleaning is needed, purchase a special gel and a cat toothbrush. Also, every 3-5 days, cats wipe the corners of their eyes.

Nail trimming

Once every 2-3 weeks, animals have their nails trimmed. The procedure protects home textiles from damage. If the claws grow and curl inward, taking on a strong, ossified shape, they will begin to prick the delicate surface of the paws.

Bathing

The Asian tabby does not tolerate water treatments. If the animal does not attend exhibitions and has not rolled around in the mud, it is possible not to injure it by bathing. Cats are clean and lick their own fur. It is enough for the owner to keep the floors clean in the house so that the pet does not roll around in the dust.

It is forbidden to bathe a tabby after vaccination. After surgery, it is important to wait until the sutures have completely healed.

Important!

The delicate skin of an animal reacts sharply to human household chemicals. Rash and dandruff may appear. You can only bathe your cat with special products from a veterinary pharmacy.

Nutrition and diet

The Asian tabby is in good health, the cat does not have allergic reactions, and has no problems with the gastrointestinal tract. Usually standard food for purebred cats suits her.

It is better to choose premium food or holistic food. They contain essential microelements, vitamins, and have a natural composition. The following foods are especially popular:

• Savarra;
• Acana;
• Grandorf.

When a pet is fed with store-bought food, no additives are required, everything is taken into account by the manufacturer. The fur becomes healthier and shiny. Striped and spotted breeds even take on richer patterns.

If you cook food at home, it is important to maintain the proportions and balance of elements, calculating them manually:

• 80% of the serving is boiled chicken, turkey, rabbit;
• carrots and cauliflower, boiled or raw, are added to the meat;
• 1-2 times a week you can give your pet boiled trout without bones;
• Once a week you can add a few drops of vegetable oil to the menu, especially if your pet has constipation;
• boiled water should always be in a visible place, it should be renewed daily;
• It is recommended to place sprouted grass next to water;
• it is important to provide your pet with buckwheat, millet, and rice porridge;
• sometimes low-fat cottage cheese is introduced;
• let's say low-fat kefir, sour cream, cream.

Grooming

Short-haired breeds shed without the owner noticing. Externally, cats look the same as they did before molting, and short hairs are not so noticeable on the floor and furniture. Preventive combing is carried out once a week.

During the molting period, animals are combed daily. The procedure protects against tangles, makes the cat’s appearance presentable and its fur smooth. Striped and spotted breeds look more neat after brushing, because... the pattern becomes visible.

For combing, it is better to use a furminator or a rubberized glove. All tools are sold at the pet store.

Care instructions

Many purebred pets have an innate tendency to a large number of diseases. This is due to the fact that breeders raise kittens exclusively for sale; for most of them, external data is much more important than the health of the kitten.

• Therefore, immediately after purchasing a pet, you need to take it to an appointment with a veterinarian, he will conduct a detailed examination and prescribe several vaccinations that will help protect the pet from various types of parasites.
• Anti-worm medications will also be prescribed, which are given to the kitten at intervals of 10 days until the parasites are completely eliminated, only if they were detected during examination. Medicines may also be prescribed to prevent their occurrence.

The issue of sterilization is not so pressing at present, because there are drops and tablets on sale that reduce the sexual desire of animals during the period of exacerbation. This allows you to avoid serious health and hormonal problems.

Cat diseases

Asian tabbies do not have hereditary diseases. With age, there is a risk of developing problems with the joints, genitourinary system, and heart. The reason may be:

• lack of minerals;
• unbalanced diet, junk food;
• lack of communication with people, constant loneliness, which provokes apathy and even depression in the animal.

A common problem at a young age is colds. To avoid them, the animal is protected from drafts, the floors are covered with carpets, and a warm place to sleep is created.

Asian tabby breeding

Kittens can be considered sexually mature from 6 months. It is recommended to wait until 1 year of age before mating. Usually the offspring consists of 4-6 kittens.

If a kitten is purchased for breeding, it is important to carefully examine the animal. There should be no creases on the tail, the pattern on the fur should be clearly visible. The eyes and nose should be clean and the gums should be pink. It is not always possible to see minor defects in photos from the breeder, so it is important to conduct a personal inspection.

You should ask the breeder for a passport with vaccinations and pedigree. The breed must be purebred, otherwise there is a risk of genetic abnormalities.

Photos and videos of Asian tabby: from kitten to adult

The Asian tabby cat breed in the photo may resemble an Abyssinian or British cat. These are the progenitors of tabbies, this is not surprising.

Tabby cats are aristocratic cats that will fit perfectly into a calm family with or without children. They will make excellent company, will not distract you from your work, but will always wait for you to get home from work. The main thing is to give them enough attention and the tabby will definitely reciprocate.

Video:

Video: Asian tabby - a real companion

Video: Asian Tabby

History of the origin of the Asian breed

global $ads_google;
//data-ad-slot=”2475549904″ $ads_google = empty($ads_google) ? false : true; ?> if ($ads_google == false) {?> $ads_google = true; ?> } ?> It was no coincidence that the world saw Asian tabby cats. Their appearance is the result of the persistent, painstaking work of felinologists. Scientists have decided to create a new breed of domestic cat with an athletic, but at the same time graceful physique. They should be proud and majestic, but not questioning themselves.

The British made their dream come true in the early 1980s. The blood of three outstanding “parents” flows in the veins of these marvelous creatures. First, a short-haired, muscular Burmese cat was crossed with a Persian chinchilla with a long snow-white coat. The grown-up hybrid was mated with an Abyssinian who loves water, and then again with a Persian.

Everything turned out just as the cat lovers had imagined - the result was an animal with the structure of a Burmese, the character of an Abyssinian ancestor and the gloss and restraint of a Persian aristocrat. However, the Asian cat inherited all the best features from this lovely trio. The combination of their varied colors gave the world of cats several new species of one group: smoky, Burmilla, Asian with even color, tabby and Tiffany.

Ten years later, in the 90s, the Asian tabby received recognition from serious world felinological organizations (among them was WCF). Initially, these cats had only 3 coat colors: plain, thick brown, and silver. However, today, thanks to the efforts of breeders, everyone can find a pet with a fur coat they like.

The breed is successful in many countries, although in the CIS countries Asian cats are just beginning to conquer breeders. But in Russia these animals are practically never found and are extremely difficult to buy. Accordingly, this rare feline is worth, according to various sources, from several tens of thousands of rubles to a thousand dollars. The owner of this amazing creature can be called lucky. But the Asian tabby is not only a luxury item, but also a gentle, loyal friend that no amount of money can buy.