Deformed tail or Japanese Bobtail?

[chrystalcar]

DSC02470.JPG

• chrystalcar
• Jul 19, 2012

DSC02469.JPG

• chrystalcar
• Jul 19, 2012

DSC02465.JPG

• chrystalcar
• Jul 19, 2012

Seems to have the pom pom tail, but seems longer than a pure breed (almost 4 inches, but not sure how to measure it and she doesn't let me touch it easily). The tail does sit on top her back when walking and consists of several major kinks (Z) and a J bend at the tip. She can only wiggle it at the base and its so incredibly cute to watch.She was taken to the vet very sick to where I thought she was going to die before I got her in.  I asked the vet if she thought this cat was purebred, the vet said "a Manx.?"

"She just has a common deformed tail, and happens to be calico." The cat is doing 75% better since she's been on meds and she's pregnant, the vet got that part right. Happy, but not happy about this....and yes i will have her fixed, AFTER her litter is born. What do you think? If all goes well with the future litter, what kind of tail will the kits have? Could this cat have been inbred for the tail to be deformed? What else may cause her tail to be like this? it is not broke, its fused.The cat has been such a "princess", even if she's not a pure breed, she has been more than good luck to me, though I could use the good fortune...(Japanese bobtails are said to bring good luck and fortune for anyone who's unfamiliar with the breed). Thanks for reading and look forward to all breeders/owners of JB responses 

 

[orientalslave]

I think this is simple bad luck this cat has a deformed tail.  It's possible it's the same gene as the JBT has, but many spontaneous mutations arise more than once in different places.  Haemophillia and PKD are examples of mutations that occur from time to time.

According to Wikipedia the JBT gene is recessive - the cat has to inherit it from both parents to have the pom-pom tail.  Messybeast says cats with one copy have shorter than usual tails.  If this cat has the same gene then it depends if it's widespread in the cats where she has come from and presumably mated.  OTOH the Manx gene is dominant - the cat only has to inherit it from one parent.  It will be interesting to see what tails her kittens have - please let us know - please show us the photos!

She is lovely, and she's the mi-ke colour (red, white & black) the Japanese love, but so are many other cats.  As the JBT is a very rare cat they are unlikely (in my view) to have had any influence on domestic populations.

 

[jennyr]

She looks like a lovely cat, but I agree that it is probably a one-off, and the chances of her kittens being affected are slim. Vets often have no real knowledge of breeds and call any tailless cat a 'Manx' or any large longhair a 'Maine Coon'. Good luck with the kittens and do post pictures of them when they arrive.

 

[nekochan]

Where did you get her? If she was a stray or from a shelter, are there any Japanese Bobtail breeders or any pet shops that sell purebred cats? 4 inches is too long a tail according to the standard but not all purebred cats meet the standard perfectly.

 

[chrystalcar]

This cat found me on the 4Th of July in the middle of the night, meowing very loudly across a parking lot in an apartment complex. I of course picked her up 

and then noticed her tail

. I knocked on my neighbors door and had her exam the cat because I thought she was abused, having her tail hacked off and broken

. My neighbor said her tail was supposed to be that Length

. The next day i searched "cat with short tail" and Japanese Bobtail pics popped up and looked very much like her, and described her completely. I have asked all around town, checked with shelters and pounds, posted on CL, and she is not chipped. I know my strays and most are long hair black cats, some with a little white, and even fewer tiger cats. I have lived in this town 28 years, and I never saw a cat with a tail like this. I never seen this cat around, but signs point to "stray", very sick 

(but doing better), pregnant

, not declawed, and no one has claimed her, yet.

I do think it's possible the cat got scared on the 4th with all the loud fireworks and ran from her people, may even have been traveling with people from out of town. Not sure how far a scared,lost cat would travel. But she is friendly(lap cat) and came running over to me like I was the first human she had seen in days. She is a very clean, smooth, soft cat, and i think someone is missing her.

Also, she's pregnant, would that have made her wonder off?

I have located one breeder in the two states I'm around,  JBT are uncommon for this area.

I am still wondering how to exactly measure the tail. The cat acts like it is sensitive, almost causing her pain to touch it, but then wiggles and wags it like nothing.

 

[Willowy]

She looks very Japanese, even in the face. Most of the street cats in Japan have some degree of kinkiness (:lol3 to their tails, and that's what she looks like to me (a Japanese street cat). Of course, if you live in the U.S., finding a stray Japanese street cat is less likely than finding a stray purebred JBT! I'm sure the gene can pop up anywhere, though. She's pretty, for sure! Her kittens should be lovely. Be sure to post pics when they're born!

 

[bigperm20]

Yes, the story of the advent of the JBT and the emperor requiring them to run loose in the streets is fascinating. That must have been one hell of a rat problem.

If it were a JBT, the color patern you have (calico), or what they call "three color" is the cat to have. I think someone else mentioned that in a previous post.