Tabby or Sokoke??

We live out in a rural area and noticed a very unusual cat hanging around the house.  At first he appeared to be wild and wouldn't come near us.  It looked like he had had a broken hind leg at one time that did not heal correctly, or possibly a birth defect. We started setting out food, went inside and the cat would eventually come up and eat like he was starved to death. 

We'll, we became attached to this cat and named him "zazzy."  We fed him for about 6 months before he would let us even get near him.  To make a long story short, he now lives with us and is a very loving, affectionate pet.  Zazzy has been to the vet to get his shots and wormed and they told us he was already neutered.  The vet's assistant couldn't really tell us what breed he is, she mentioned maybe part Bengal and tabby.

We are trying to figure out what breed he is, and while researching I came across a picture of a Sokoke who looks just like my Zazzy.

What do you all think?

Zazzy2.jpg

• zazzys mom
• May 18, 2013

View media item 159686

Tabby pattern it is, sure. Sokoke? Hardly, it is an very unusual breed.  If you shall fancy it to be a purebred, so easier to fancy with a Bengal.

A striking, beautiful cat, with the rather unusual blue eyes...

Sometimes you get rewarded for your good deeds already in this life down here!  

Good luck!

Btw, I happened to found a probable pic of a early Sokoke in an old museum pic:


http://www9.vgregion.se/vastarvet/objekt.aspx?id=GNM_989_1

Hmm, most cats (95% +) have no breed heritage at all. It would be extremely rare to find a purebred as a stray. BUT. . .he certainly doesn't look like an average cat. And, being neutered, that means he was owned by someone before and was either lost or dumped. So I think it's absolutely possible he's a purebred. Now, Sokoke are super rare, and apparently the only color that can have blue eyes is Snow, which is even more rare. So I doubt that he is a Sokoke. Bengals are extremely popular, unfortunately with irresponsible breeders too. So it would be far more likely to find a stray Bengal. The colors that can have blue eyes are Lynx and Snow Mink. Or are his eyes pale green? They look blue in one pic and pale green in the other. But pale green seems to be a common eye color for Bengals anyway.

Did the vet scan him for a microchip? How's his leg now?

What a gorgeous cat!!! He's just beautiful.

Are you a fan of The Big Bang Theory? My daughter is, and named one of her cats Zazzy 

"His name is Zazzle, because he's zazzy!" :lol3:

Yes, Zazzy's eyes are blue and we do get many comments on how unusual his markings are.  His leg is the same as when we found him, which makes me think maybe he was born that way.  You can kind of see in one of the pictures how it juts out at a strange angle.  It does make him somewhat unbalanced and he can be a rather clumsy cat at times, but Zazzy is a wonderful pet. 

The vet's office did scan him for a chip and there wasn't one. 

We did name him after Zazzles on The Big Bang Theory!  One of my favorite episodes!

OMG I am no cat expert but I just had to say I love ur Kitty! He is so gorgeous and those eyes r stunning! I love how he has blue eyes and no white.

Really amazing looking cat. I think he for sure looks like he may be part exotic with his markings. I was watching a video on the   Savannah  breed and I think he looks a bit like one with his markings and size -the tear drop mark on his face is one of the attributes they list (). Also looks like a bengal () or an ocicat.  I think because these are all domestic mixes blue eyes do occur in these breeds. Usually when people ask what breed a stray cat they found is, it is domestic, but your cat really does look unusual. I also have heard that because exotic breeds can be difficult they do sometimes get abandoned and because they are very expensive there are quite a few BYB. I do not think he is a sokoke though because there are supposed to be less than 100 in the world according to something I read. 

a few blue-eye bengals: http://s978.photobucket.com/user/Galaxystream/media/edited cats/bengal-cats-sherhan-011.jpg.html

http://www.pureblissbengals.co.uk/queen-steps-snow-bengal-kittens-for-sale.html

http://www.wnybengals.com/images/glimmer3.jpg

I think you might quite possibly have a Bengal on your hands.

Regardless, this is a stunning, stunning cat!

Thank you all for the pictures and comments!  I do think our beautiful Zazzy is probably a Bengal, based on the pictures and information you all have provided.  I must admit I have learned a wealth of information from this site!   

tabbys can be different colors different patterns but  they are known for the M in their four heads i will attach pictures I do not know much about the other breed beautiful cat though hope this helps

Hi
Beautiful cat and very lucky to have found a loving home!

I am a Sokoke breeder and I can with 100% certainty say it's not a Sokoke.
Can't say what he can be since I don't know enough about other breeds to claim anything.

Kadzonzo* 

Kadzonzo said:

 
Hi
Beautiful cat and very lucky to have found a loving home!

I am a Sokoke breeder and I can with 100% certainty say it's not a Sokoke.
Can't say what he can be since I don't know enough about other breeds to claim anything.

Kadzonzo*

Click to expand...

What are you saying about that museal photo further up in the thread?   Early Sokoke or Another natural borne cat??

Sorry - I don't understand what you mean with "social" or which picture you are referring to. You'll have to excuse me but english is not my native language.

Wow. He is stunning, regardless of his breed!

Ahh, didn't see the kitten at first :-)  Saw where the picture was taken 1924, in Congo, The picture is located in Sweden so easy for me to understand:-)
It's very difficult to say in a picture like this one. I know there have been cats found in Tanzania that rally looks a lot like Sokokes. There has been dna-tests done that have shown no relation to Sokokes. But, who knows if they have spread in a different direction?! It could also be a Sokoke look-alike - or it could be a Sokoke... We will never know about this little one. Looking at the breed standard I would say the ears are too small and too far appart - but you would need to see several really good pictures of the whole body to give a proper answer. Sorry...

he's gorgeous! you're stoked, I hope you keep him.

My first guess would be Bengal