Missy's Corner

Recently, I got an e-mail from Belly's adoptive mother saying "this is random but I was curious as to if any of your cats had any Maine coon cat gene in them? I am the owner of Pippin (Belly) and  he is quite massive for only being about a couple months old!"  Since Kitty and her mates were strays, we can only guess about the kittens' genetic makeup, but that question definitely got Mister and I thinking, "What could be in our babies genes?!"  On their vet records, Monkey, Savannah, and Kitty are all listed as "DSH"or Domestic Short Hair tabbies.  This "breed" along with the Domestic Medium Hair and the Domestic Long Hair are the nice umbrella terms for all cats that do not fit into a recognized Cat Fanciers Breed.  Luckily, Mister and I just started Tivo-ing a show on Animal Planet called "Cats 101," which goes through four or five different cat breeds an episode; so we decided to do some educated guessing on our cats lineage.  Little did I know just how many cat breeds there are, and most have come into existence within the last 50 years. *Just a little note, all the links in this post are to "Cats 101" videos about the breeds.*


There are some breeds that in my opinion, are absolutely ugly looking - the Exotic, the Scottish Fold, and the Sphynx are just a few- and some that are elegant looking.  There are even breeds of cats that have "curly" hair called Selkirk and Cornish Rexes, one being long haired and the other short haired, respectively. But instead of focusing on what Savvy and Monkey are not, lets get to what they possibly could be!

Let's start with Kitty because she is an easy one, an American Short Hair.  The American Short Hair cat is a long, lean, and powerfully built cat that was used as rodent exterminators on the early voyages to America.  It can be recognized by its round head, rounded ears, and short coat that comes in eighty different colors and patterns.

Next up in the game of "What's in a cat?" is Monkey;  I have "narrowed" down the possibilities to two breeds, the Somali and Maine Coon cats.  Maine Coons are known for their sheer size.  Males can weigh anywhere between 15 and 25 pounds and can reach a length of 40 inches including the tail!  The looks on people's faces when Mister or I tell someone that we have a 8 month old cat that weighs over 10 pounds is astounding.  They are also know for having tufts of fur between their toes used to keep their feet warm while walking on snow.  The Maine Coon breed is known to have above-average intelligence which makes them relatively easy to train, which I have found to be true!  I have taken up the task of training Monkey and Savannah to recognize their names and while Monkey took to it instantly, Savannah is still having trouble.  Meanwhile, the Somali cat is also known as the Fox cat, and has a really bushy tail.  The breed also features a black stripe that runs down the cat's back, large tufted ears, and a full ruff.  Their coats are ticked, which mean one strand of hair usually has up to four color variations from light to dark, and are also know to have dark rims around their eyes that make the cat look like its wearing eye-liner, as well as white patches on their chins and muzzles. Below are side by side pictures of a Somali on the left and a sleeping Monkey on the right.  See the similarity?  Also below are pictures of his Maine Coon traits, the tufted feet and length (that is an 18 inch ruler he is delightfully chewing on!).



Miss Savvy on the other hand was almost as easy as her mother to figure out, but like Monkey shows traits from more than one breed, Abyssinian, Bombay, and a hint of Havana Brown.   The Abyssinian breed is supposedly one of the oldest cat breeds known to man.  While the origins of the breed are hazy, representations of the cat can be found all over ancient Egypt.  They have broad, wedge-shaped heads and almond-shaped eyes that come in gold, green, hazel, or copper.   The Abyssinian coat is medium-length with three or four-colored ticked bands.  While the breed doesn't come in an all black color, there is a Silver Abyssinian that is considered a separate group; the undercoat is always a white color and the markings can come other colors, one being black! The breed is also known to be formidable hunters and can play with toys for hours (or in Savannah's case, until she "kills" them!)  The Bombay has a very unique voice and has almost 200 vocal tones, unlike a dog who has 90.  They are heat-seekers and are often called "Velcro cats" because they love to sleep on top of, next to, or under the covers with their people.  As for the Havana Brown in Savannah, every now and then, in the right light, I can see that her coat also reflects brown.


And there you have it folks! Those are the breeds that Mister and I believe make up our mutts! The Abyssinian, American Short Hair, Bombay, Havana Brown, Maine Coon, and Somali are all mixed up to make beautiful babies. Who knows, I found a website that does DNA testing on cats for $39 a test; maybe it would be interesting to find out if I'm really correct with my guessing!  Till next time ya'll!