How do I tell the breed of my cat?

BTW in the UK most cat shows have classes for household pets!

They are judged on temprement, condition and grooming.  Above all else, the judge is looking for a cat with a lovely nature.

However it must also be in good condition (not fat or thin, and muscular), and well-groomed which of course is much easier with a shorthair cat.

We can also show pedigrees as pedigree pets, judged in the same way, though once shown as a pedigree pet they can't go back to the normal pedigree classes.

All adult cats shown as pets must be neutered - under 9 months they are shown in the kitten classes.

OrientalSlave said:

BTW in the UK most cat shows have classes for household pets!

They are judged on temprement, condition and grooming.  Above all else, the judge is looking for a cat with a lovely nature.

However it must also be in good condition (not fat or thin, and muscular), and well-groomed which of course is much easier with a shorthair cat.

We can also show pedigrees as pedigree pets, judged in the same way, though once shown as a pedigree pet they can't go back to the normal pedigree classes.

All adult cats shown as pets must be neutered - under 9 months they are shown in the kitten classes.

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Quite sure the US also has HHP classes at most shows. There's are adults at 8 months though I think.

Pedigree pet - is that a pet q pedigree? we cannot show those here, pedigrees must be in the relevant pedigree class. Others are registered as pet only, not for breeding or showing.

Originally Posted by missymotus  

Pedigree pet - is that a pet q pedigree? we cannot show those here, pedigrees must be in the relevant pedigree class. Others are registered as pet only, not for breeding or showing.

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Thing the GCCF's website explains it better than i can:

http://www.gccfcats.org/hhp.html

AFAIK, once a cat has been shown as a pedigree pet it can't go back to the pedigree show bench.

Willowy said:

I kinda don't think old guys are handing out pedigreed purebred kittens in the Wal-Mart parking lot

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She does look to be of the Maine Coon type (they were developed from large shaggy-haired farm cats) but it really can't be said that she IS a Maine Coon, since that would mean that she has pedigree papers.

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Yeah, it's unlikely. What I do think probably happened is that the Maine Coon cat breed was developed from the same general breed of sturdy, large longhaired cats that your kitten belongs to; some cats from that group were developed by breeders into the predictable Maine Coon breed; the rest just kept breeding randomly, as cats tend to do, passing on their similar (but much less predictable) looks. So what she is, is probably a "cousin" to the Maine Coon.

By the way, if you are a dog person as well as a cat person, you are probably used to most dogs having an identifiable breed, or an identifiable mix of breeds; you should know that cats are different, with hardly any cats belonging to a particular breed. I think the breeders on here have mentioned that something like less than ten percent of cats belonging to a specific breed. However, because cats do breed randomly and have such a wide selection of possible traits, it's entirely possible to have, completely by chance, a cat that looks like the spitting image of a purebred (though the lookalike cat's kittens will probably not look like that breed, because it's carrying genes that don't have the right traits). It's also possible to get unique, beautiful cats that don't look like any breed at all, but are beautiful nonetheless, like a tortoiseshell cat with a face that's half black and half red, like a harlequin mask, or a pointed cat with short fur and the sturdy build of a Maine Coon, or even oddball genetic glitches like a white stripe down the back skunk-style, eyes that are two different colors, or a cat that looks for all the world like it's wearing a tiny mustache. I hang around the breeder's forum because I like genetics and biology in general, and we often get people who ask "What breed is my cat?", not realizing that most cats don't have breeds; so the best you can do is give a description of said cat's coat color and general body type (which, for your cat, is a rather beautiful blue longhaired tabby with hazel eyes, as far as I can tell with the lighting). I don't think she'll grow up to be quite as big as a Maine Coon, but she might well hit ten pounds, even as a female. She looks big for her age.

By the way, since you're new to kittens and this one's a longhair, do remember to get her used to grooming early. Get her used to being brushed and having her claws clipped while she's a kitten, and she'll tolerate it much better when she's grown. I adopted both my cats as adults, and I had to get them used to it so slowly it was ridiculous--one claw at a time, at first! Kittens are much more trainable that way.

Well, she is probably a Maine coon judging by the points on her ears and she's adorable!

For the first couple of months they weight about a pound a month

Gena