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into-the-clangen · 2 years ago

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ALLEGIENCES, YEAR ONE

LEADER: Bluestar (Altruistic, 71 moons): A short haired silver she-cat with a shoulder scar. Apprentice: Firepaw

DEPUTY: Redtail (Strict, 54 moons): A long-furred calico tom with a distinctive red tail. Apprentice: Dustpaw

MEDICINE CAT: Spottedleaf (Faithful, 32 moons): A long-furred tortoiseshell she-cat.

WARRIORS:

Halftail (Playful, 112 moons): A brown tabby tom that no longer has a tail.

Speckletail (Bold, 109 moons): A golden and white torbie she-cat.

Whitestorm (Wise, 60 moons): A solid white tom. Apprentice: Sandpaw

Tigerclaw (Bloodthirsty, 57 moons): A brown broad shouldered tabby tom with a scarred muzzle. Apprentice: Ravenpaw

Willowpelt (Patient, 57 moons): A pale gray tabby she-cat.

Goldenflower (Charismatic, 55 moons): A golden tabby she-cat.

Lionheart (Loyal, 55 moons): A large golden classic tabby tom. Apprentice: Graypaw

Frostfur (Cold, 52 moons): A solid white she-cat.

Brindleface (Compassionate, 43 moons): A pretty gray speckled she-cat.

Darkstripe (Vengeful, 39 moons): A black classic tabby tom.

Mousefur (Fierce, 30 moons): A small brown she-cat.

Runningwind (Impulsive, 27 moons): A light brown tabby tom.

Longtail (Confident, 18 moons): A pale ticked tabby tom.

QUEENS & KITS:

Swiftkit (Bossy, 0 moons): A black and white tom. Parents: Unknown

APPRENTICES:

Sandpaw (Ambitious, 8 moons): A pale ginger she-cat.

Dustpaw (Responsible, 7 moons): A brown smoke tom.

Ravenpaw (Insecure, 7 moons): A black tom with a white tipped tail.

Graypaw (Childish, 6 moons): A dark gray tom with a distinctive dorsal stripe.

Firepaw (Righteous, 6 moons): A handsome ginger tabby tom.

ELDERS:

One-eye (Strange, 126 moons): A solid white she-cat. Virtually blind and deaf.

Smallear (Strict, 124 moons): A solid gray tom.

Dappletail (Patient, 121 moons): A small black and white tom.

Patchpelt (Wise, 120 moons): A black and white tom.

#clangen #clan gen #warrior cats #thunderclan year one #newleaf

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cyromew-blog · 7 months ago

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Taglist - Pattern

Other: #glittering (event) Markings: #left mask #right mask #white nose

Patterns: #agouti #brindled #caliby #cap and sadle #caramelized #chinchilla #classic #distinct #leopard #locket #lynx #lynx point #mackerel #marbled #mask and mantle #masquerade (event) #mingled #point #spotted #tabby #ticked #torbie #tuxedo #van

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dream-cats-catalog · 6 years ago

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#cat code #rare #locket #mercury #classic tabby #distinct torbie #and white #rose pupils #topaz #ragamuffin fur body #exotic shorthair ears #stray cat tail #cutie eyelashes #moth eyebrows

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pangur-and-grim · 3 years ago

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Hey, if you're still doing coat colour analysis, I'd love your thoughts on this sweet kitty we had in at my clinic today. 7mo """persian mix""" (looked just like a dsh tbh)

She had patches of orange/tortie colouring beside distinct patches of tabby colouring, with almost no overlap. Such a beautiful coat!

the number of “Persian mixes” I’ve seen that are just random ass cats….

this guy is gorgeous though! a great example of a classic torbie (classic tabby patterning + tortoiseshell). here’s a Siberian cat with the same colouration, it really does make them look special

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themissinglynx · 5 years ago

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Warrior Cats Wiki Tortie Designs Ratings!

I was talking with a friend about the pixels drawn of torties on the wiki and just wanted to take a moment to appreciate each one. I’ll be judging them based on how realistic they are and how much I like them as a design.

To the person or people who drew/colored the pixels, this isn’t really a critique or bashing of your designs - a few of them I quite like! I’m just doing this for fun and to amuse myself for an hour and a half.

Alright, all the tortie kitties arranged by the Futhark, let’s go!

FIRCONE

this looks less brindled and more like an abuse of the airbrush tool. not bad otherwise. realism - 8/10 design - 6/10

FIERCE

the red part’s too gold and the brindling doesn’t look like brindling. realism - 4/10 design - 3/10

FINCHPAW

ewwwwwww..... that’s not how brindling/mottling works. at least it’s proportional to the amount of white. realism - 3/10 design - 1/10

FERNSHADE

the red looks too brown to be a proper tortoiseshell. not bad though. realism - 6/10 design - 8/10

ROBINWING

this is fairly pretty. but it’s not a tortoiseshell I mean, one could explain it away as a brown and cream silver shaded torbie, but that’s not what they were going for. still pretty. realism - 5/10 design - 10/10

REDTAIL

the ginger patches are too distinct for a tortoiseshell with no white. not a bad color combination, though. realism - 7/10 design - 6/10

CORIANDER

pretty good! just a little bit bigger dapples and it’s perfect! realism - 9/10 design - 7/10

CHERRYTAIL

ew. the dappling isn’t proportional and the red is too yellow. realism - 3/10 design - 2/10

HAWK

pretty, but not a tortie. just a pretty brown tabby. realism - 6/10 design - 9/10

HOPWHISKER

brindling is only on torties, not calicos. realism - 5/10 design - 7/10

NUTMEG (no not that one)

not bad. there could be a bit more red on the back though. realism - 8/10 design - 7/10

IVYTAIL

ewwww... she looks like a dog... realism - 2/10 design - 1/10

JUNIPER BRANCH

.......... this has to be a joke. realism - 0/10 design - 2/10

PEANUT

looks muddy. realism - 4/10 design - 3/10

PATCHKIT

not great. normally there’s more black than red, but the white should balance it out. realism - 3/10 design - 2/10

PETALDUST

hm! not bad! a little too even, but not bad! realism - 9/10 design - 7/10

POPPYFROST

*see her mother’s entry* realism - 5/10 design - 8/10

POPPYCLOUD

if there was a white belly, the dappled patches would be justified. all around, the colors are nice and with just adding white, they’d look more realistic. nice! realism - 7/10 design - 7/10

SUNSTRIKE

ignoring the mandatory “white spot on head”, this ain’t bad. the red just needs brightening up a little because again, it looks too brown. realism - 7/10 design - 6/10

SWEETPAW

she looks like a koi. why does she look like a koi? realism - 5/10 design - 4/10

SHELLFUR

ewwwwww realism - 1/10 design - 1/10

CINDERS

she looks like a dog. why? realism - 4/10 design - 6/10

SPARROW FUR

too small and too spread out of patches for a calico. that’s not a tortie. realism - 6/10 design - 4/10

SPOTTEDPELT

*see spottedleaf’s entry*

SPOTTEDLEAF

not bad, actually pretty close, but the the white on the back is what ruins it. realism - 7/10 design - 5/10

STORKKIT

this ain’t bad. that ginger patch looks a bit big though. realism - 9/10 design - 9/10

SORRELTAIL

that’s.... not how white-spotting works. the colors, while semi-unrealistic, aren’t unappealing. realism - 5/10 design - 8/10

SOL

not bad, not bad. the brindling looks very nice, but isn’t quite proportional to the amount of white. realism - 8/10 design - 9/10

SONGPAW

ah! a dilute tortoiseshell! not bad! realism - 9/10 design - 6/10

TURTLECRAWL

not great. almost has a persian look to her and I don’t like it. realism - 6/10 design - 3/10

TURTLEKIT

that’s not a tortie. realism - 4/10 design - 2/10

TURTLE TAIL

why does she look like a koi? realism - 6.10 design - 7/10

TWIST

again, ignoring the “mandatory weird white lightning mark”, this isn’t half-bad. just a little more black could do it. realism - 7/10 design - 4/10

TAWNYPELT

for the name “tawny”, why isn’t she tawny brown and tawny cream? nevermind, while this design looks nice, the proportions of white to dappled-ness isn’t quite equal, which knocks this design down a peg. realism - 7/10 design - 5/10

BUMBLE

that’s not how brindling works and the red is too brown. realism - 5/10 design - 4/10

BRINDLECLAW

looks more mottled, but not bad realism - 7/10 design - 9/10

BRACKENPELT

that’s not a tortie. realism - 3/10 design - 4/10

BETSY

WHY DO THESE CALICOS LOOK LIKE KOI?! realism - 6/10 design - 6/10

BLOSSOM

the tufts of other colors shouldn’t be there. otherwise a good design. realism - 5/10 design - 6/10

BLOSSOMFALL

ignoring the “integral to design petal white patches”, this isn’t a bad dilute tortoiseshell design. the red patches need to be larger to match the amount of white though. realism - 5/10 design - 6/10

MARIGOLDKIT

too bright and the patches are too distinct. realism - 3/10 design - 1/10

MILKWEED

IS THIS...?! NO. NO. AN ACTUALLY REALISTIC DESIGN?! NICE JOB WHOEVER DID THIS! ....and she’s not even described as tortoiseshell. classic. realism - 10/10 design - 9/10

MAPLESHADE

that’s not how white-spotting works... white can’t just appear on the back! realism - 4/10 design - 6/10

MALLOWTAIL

rather pretty. a little too brown though. realism - 6/10 design - 8/10

MOSSFIRE

looks like someone bleached out the red spots. pattern’s right, just not the color. realism - 3/10 design - 1/10

MOSSHEART

what’s with tortoiseshells and looking too muddy? realism - 4/10 design - 3/10

MOSSPELT

the red part looks a little too brown, the patches are too distinct for the amount of white given, and the white on the tail doesn’t really seem plausible, but overall, not a bad design. realism - 6/10 design - 7/10

MORNINGFLOWER

not bad, not bad. the red part’s just a little too golden though, but still, not bad. she looks like a brindled torbie. realism - 8/10 design - 8/10

LARKSPLASH

looks like she rolled in mud. realism - 2/10 design - 2/10

LARKSONG

well! a nice cat and a plausible one! great job, whoever designed this! realism - 10/10 design - 10/10

LEAFSHADE

...... this is not a tortoiseshell. realism - 2/10 design - 1/10

LEAFSTAR

BEHOLD, A BROWN AND CREAM TORTIE! once again, not intended to be a tortie.... hmm realism - 9/10 design - 7/10

OLIVENOSE

ooh! a dilute tortie! very cute! realism - 10/10 design - 9/10

DUSK NOSE

not bad, not bad at all. very stylized and close to realism, but not quite realistic. realism - 8/10 design - 10/10

DAWN RIVER

looks muddy. realism - 4/10 design - 3/10

DAPPLETAIL

this is actually a pretty nice design, but that’s not how white-spotting works and the cream is too light. if the black was gray or the cream was ginger, I wouldn’t complain. realism - 4/10 design - 9/10

DAPPLED PELT

not bad. not bad at all. realism - 9/10 design - 8/10

DEWY LEAF

barrel on legs here looks too brown. needs more ginger/red. realism - 7/10 design - 5/10

#lynx speaks #shenanigans #ranking #warrior cats #warriors #tortoiseshell #tortie #dilute tortoisehsell #not bad guys #props to how much art goes into this #kudos to all of ya

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thelaketerritories · 4 years ago

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ADOPTABLES

Here are all of the current available adoptables. If you would like to apply for one, use the same form you would use to apply for a regular character. We are not accepting applications for the kits--they are reserved for second characters, but they are still on this list anyway.

UTA = Up to Adopter

THUNDERCLAN

Stats UTA but Almond is big and stronk

Personality: Mostly UTA, though he's definitely a big softie. He could either be genuinely level-headed or just good at appearing that way.

History: His parents were Oakpad and Pumpkinpatch, both of whom... had their fair share of issues. Despite what an anxious wreck the two of them were, he somehow grew up to be a relatively relaxed and even-headed warrior (at least, on the outside). He has two kits, Fidgetkit and Acornkit. (i havent decided about a mate so if you're interested we could decide on something for them together!)

Appearance Desc: A large, bulky brown and ginger torbie tom with thick fluffy fur and green eyes. He has a white underbelly.

Acornkit | 4 moons | Gender and sexuality up to adopter | Kit |

Stats/traits UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Acornkit was born to Almondfur (other parent undecided), alongside their sibling Fidgetkit.

Appearance Desc: A rather large brown classic tabby kitten with dense fur and yellow eyes.

SHADOWCLAN

Rookswoop | 27 moons | Female (specifics UTA) | Sexuality UTA | Warrior

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: Tigermask and Shimmerpetal’s sister, personality can be mostly UTA but keep in mind: her mother coddled her post death of their father because she looked like him, which could or doesn’t have to affect the sisters’ relationships with each other as well as her mother

History: Key events follow similarly to Tigermask’s, but little details can be thrown in to flesh her out.

Appearance Desc: Black molly with bright green eyes

Shimmerpetal | 27 moons | Female (specifics UTA) | Sexuality UTA | Warrior

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA, but keep in mind her mother was distant from just her and Tigermask post their father’s death. Could affect her relationship with her sisters and her mother, but doesn’t have to.

History: Key events must occur like in Tigermask’s history, but little details to flesh her out can be added.

Appearance Desc: Pretty ginger tabby molly with dark green eyes

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: Mostly up to adopter. She has been noted to be over protective of her daughter Glowpaw and secretive of her father. Though she doesn’t stop the rumors that spread around about Glowpaw’s father.

History: Up to Adopters. She had Glowpaw when she was 22 moons old, so keep that in mind.

Appearance Desc: A cream and white molly with amber eyes

Stats/Traits: UTA

Personality: UTA, but is likely to be spoiled.

History: Born of Beantoe and an unknown sire, sibling of Burrkit.

Appearance Desc: Long furred chocolate mackerel tabby with under half white spotting.

Stats/Traits: UTA

Personality: UTA, but is likely to be spoiled.

History: Born of Beantoe and an unknown sire, sibling of Bearkit.

Appearance Desc: Curly furred chocolate mackerel tabby with under half white spotting.

Stats/Traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Born to Orchiddapple, sibling of Magpiekit

Appearance Desc: A dilute tortoiseshell kit with large golden eyes.

Stats/Traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Born to Orchiddapple, sibling of Thrushkit

Appearance Desc: A white-spotted black kitten with green eyes.

WINDCLAN

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: UTA Became mates with Silkflower right after his warrior ceremony and then had their son, Rainpounce, a few months later. About 4 moons ago, Silkflower recovered from an illness her mother died from. Silkflower is currently pregnant with their second litter.

Appearance Desc: A dark grey tom with amber eyes and a white chest Art Ref:

Stats/Traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Was born and raised by Silkflower and Stormfur. His parents were young when he was born, but they were excellent parents and gave him the best life possible. About 4 moons ago, his mother Silkflower had recovered from an illness that killed his grandma. His mother is currently pregnant with her second litter.

Appearance Desc: A dark grey tom with amber eyes and a white chest.

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Grew up with Rainpounce and was mentored by his mother Silkflower. Rest is up to adopter

Appearance Desc: A silver tabby molly with golden eyes.

Infernohowl | 15-25 moons | Gender and sexuality UTA | Warrior |

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: Wild, cocky, and head-strong, Infernohowl can be hard to get along with at times. They're always looking out for their Clan, though, even if their intensely competitive nature makes it seem otherwise.

History: UTA

Appearance Desc: A red cat with darker paws and stripe down their back, and a cream underbelly. They have yellow-blue heterochromia.

RIVERCLAN

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA. But, for reference, Lavenderdust was a very stubborn molly who refused to take 'no' for an answer. She had a hot temper and a biting tongue, but also had a softer (and evidently sentimental) side. You're free to change their suffix, but, keep the prefix Gleam-, please! She was named after Lavenderdust's sister, Glaciergleam.

History: Mostly up to you! Gleambright was born in a litter of three kits (Gleambright, Shinedusk, and Salmonleap) to a Riverclan warrior named Lavenderdust and an unknown rogue. After their mother passed, Salmonleap left the clan to explore the world before it was too late for them.

Appearance Desc: Ginger and white cat with green eyes and soft fur

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA. But, for reference, Lavenderdust was a very stubborn molly who refused to take 'no' for an answer. She had a hot temper and a biting tongue, but also had a softer (and evidently sentimental) side. You're welcome to change their suffix, but, please keep their prefix Shine-! They're named after Lavenderdust's brother, Roseshine.

History: Mostly up to you! Shinedusk was born in a litter of three kits (Gleambright, Shinedusk, and Salmonleap) to a Riverclan warrior named Lavenderdust and an unknown rogue. After their mother passed, Salmonleap left the clan to explore the world before it was too late for them.

Appearance Desc: A grey with ragged fur and brown eyes.

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA, but most likely very protective.

History: Foster monarch of Dawnpaw in Riverclan, possibly lost kits before taking her in.

Appearance Desc: Thick but short furred, muscular tabby with distinctive orange eyes.

SKYCLAN

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Born to Beechleef and Nimbleflower along with littermates Poisonstar and Geckofoot

Appearance Desc: White tom with black spots and yellow-green eyes

Stats/traits: UTA

Personality: UTA

History: Born to Beechleef and Nimbleflower along with littermates Poisonstar and Stoatspots

Appearance Desc: Cream tom with brown spots and blue eyes

#adoptables #allegiances #info #tlt #the lake territories

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cutshawsnidowoa · 5 years ago

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The 5 Tabby Cat Patterns

The post The 5 Tabby Cat Patterns by Catster HQ appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren't considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com.

People sometimes call the average domestic cat a tabby, but tabby is not a cat breed — it is actually the pattern of kitty’s coat. And it happens to be the most common of all the feline coat patterns. Technically speaking, no matter what colors or markings you see on your cat, all felines possess the tabby cat gene. Other cat colors or patterns may hide those tabby markings, but they’re always present.

First, some tabby basics:

Sometimes you can see those faint tabby markings on a solid-colored cat who is sitting in the bright sun. And have you ever seen a solid red or orange or cream cat without the familiar tabby markings? You won’t, because the gene that makes a cat red or cream also makes the tabby markings visible.

All tabbies have thin pencil lines on their faces, expressive markings around the eyes, and a distinct letter “M” on their foreheads. Some believe the “M” is for Mau, the word for “cat” in ancient Egypt. Others think the “M” stands for Mohammed, who loved tabbies. Still others believe it is the blessing of the Virgin Mary.

There are five types of tabby coat patterns, each possessing its own unique markings. We’ve listed them below alongside photos of each.

See if you can figure out which tabby your cat is:

1. Classic Tabby Cat

The classic tabby has bold, swirling patterns along his sides — much like a marble cake.

This tabby is called a “blotched tabby” in some regions. The pattern of circular smudges on the classic tabby’s body closely resembles a bullseye.

2. Mackerel Tabby Cat

A mackerel tabby has narrow stripes that run in parallel down her sides. This is what some people refer to as a “tiger cat.” The body has narrow stripes running down the sides in a vertical pattern.

Ideally the stripes are non-broken lines; evenly spaced. They branch out from one stripe that runs along the top of the cat’s back down the spine, resembling fish skeleton — which is why the term “mackerel” is used to describe it.

3. Spotted Tabby Cat

A spotted tabby has spots all over his sides. These spots can be large or small, and sometimes appear to be broken mackerel stripes. They can be round, oval or rosettes.

Often, a mackerel tabby with a broken pattern resembles a spotted tabby. It is not known whether these spots developed from a mackerel tabby or come from a separate gene.

4. Ticked Tabby Cat

A ticked tabby cat (sometimes called Abyssinian tabby or agouti tabby) does not have the traditional stripes or spots on her body, and may not, at first, seem to be a tabby. However, like all tabbies, this coat pattern has tabby markings on the face and agouti hairs on the body.

What are agouti hairs? If you look up close at the lighter parts of a tabby’s coat, you will see that the individual hairs are striped with alternating light and dark bands, known as the agouti hairs. The ticked pattern is displayed prominently in Abyssinians but also appears in mixed breeds.

5. Patched Tabby Cat

This is the term used to describe a tortoiseshell (also called tortie) tabby. In the typical form, there are separate patches of brown tabby and red tabby on the same animal.

A tortie who also carries the tabby gene is often called a torbie. Patched tabbies can show any one of the above four distinct tabby patterns. The markings are usually more apparent on the legs and head.

Thumbnail: Photography by Shelagh Duffett/Thinkstock.

This piece was originally published in 2015.

Read more about cats and fur patterns:

The Science Behind the Fur: What Makes Black Cats Black

7 Genes That Control Your Cat’s Fur Color

The Difference Between an Albino Cat and a White Cat

from Catster https://www.catster.com/cats-101/tabby-cat via IFTTT

#Catster

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qvenbvtch · 7 years ago

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ThunderClan Allegiances

(copy pasted from Into The Wild pretty much)

Leader:

Bluestar- A blue she-cat, tinged with silver around her muzzle and pale green eyes. 6/9

Deputy:

Redtail- A small red mackerel tabby tom with a distinctively fluffy tail and green eyes [trans]

Apprentice, Dustpaw

Medicine cat(s):

Spottedleaf- A beautiful dark tortoiseshell she-cat with a distinctive dappled coat. Mismatched blue and yellow eyes

Apprentice, Ravenpaw

Warriors:

Patchpelt- A black bicolour tom with green eyes

Lionheart- A red classic tabby tom with thick fur like a lion's mane and green eyes

Tigerclaw- A big, dark brown mackerel tabby tom with unusually long front claws and amber eyes

Whitestorm- A big white tom with black points and yellow eyes

Darkstripe- A sleek dark brown classic tabby tom.

Longtail- A pale brown mackerel tabby tom with dark black stripes and green eyes

Runningwind- A swift dusty brown mackerel tabby with pale yellow eyes [Genderfluid]

Willowpelt- A very pale torbie she-cat with unusual blue eyes

Mousefur- A small dusky brown she-cat with hazel eyes

Brindleface- A pretty silver spotted tabby with green eyes

Apprentices:

Dustpaw- A dark brown mackerel tabby tom with yellow eyes

Ravenpaw- A small, skinny black cat with a tiny white dash on their chest, and white-tipped tail and green eyes [Non Binary]

Queens:

Frostfur- A white she-cat with blue eyes

Speckletail- A pale brown mackerel tabby

Goldenflower- A dilute mackerel torbie she-cat with green eyes

Kits:

(GoldenXPatch: 4 moons)

Swiftkit- Black bicolour tom with yellow eyes

Greykit- A long-haired blue tom with faint tabby classic stripes and yellow eyes

(RedXRunning: 2 moons)

Being nursed by Goldenflower so Redtail can resume his duties

Sandkit- A pale red classic tabby she-cat with pale green eyes

Thornkit- A pale red mackerel tabby tom with green eyes

(FrostXLion: 1 moon)

Cinderkit- A pale blue classic tabby she-kit with pale green eyes

Brightkit- A small tortoiseshell and white she-cat with blue eyes

Ryekit- A small brown classic tabby tom with green eyes. (Brackenfur)

Elders:

Halftail- Big brown tabby tom with half a tail and yellow eyes

Smallear- A blue tom with very small ears. The oldest tom in ThunderClan. Amber eyes

One-eye- A pale blue she-cat, the oldest cat in ThunderClan. Virtually blind and deaf. Previously named Whiteflower

Dappletail- A pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat and pale green eyes

#thunderclan #allegiances #shadow!fire #au #warrior cats

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ssteezyy · 7 years ago

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The Terrific Tabby Cat

Tabby cats, also referred to as tiger cats, are cats with a coat featuring a pattern of distinctive stripes, lines, dots or swirling patterns. Tabby cats have pencil like lines on their faces, and almost all tabbies have markings shaped like the letter “M” on their foreheads. Tabby is not a breed. The tabby pattern is found in domestic cats as well as many purebred cats. The tabby pattern looks very similar to the coloration of the domestic cat’s ancestor, the African wildcat.

There are several different types of tabby patterns, and tabbies come in colors ranging from grey to brown to orange.

Classic tabby

The classic tabby pattern has large blotches and swirls that end in a circular pattern at the sides that almost looks like a bullseye. Classic tabbies are also called “blotched” tabbies.

Mackerel tabby

The mackerel pattern is what most people refer to as “tiger stripes.” The body has narrow stripes running down the sides. They branch out from one stripe along the top of the spine, looking very similar to a fish skeleton, which is how the name “mackerel” came about.

Spotted tabby

Spotted tabbies feature oval or round spots all over. The spots can be solid or broken. The Bengal pattern is a good example of a spotted tabby.

Ticked tabby

Ticked tabbies don’t look like tabbies at all at first glancebut a closer look at individual hairs will show that they are striped with light and dark colored bands, also known as agouti hairs. This ticked pattern is most prominently seen in Abyssynian cats, but is also seen in domestic cats.

Patched tabby

Cats with random tri-color patches are known as tortoiseshell cats (torties). If the tri-color markings follow any of the tabby patterns such as mackerel, spotted, ticked or classic, they are often referred to as torbies.

Where did the term tabby come from?

The English term “tabby” comes from a translation of the French word “tabis,” which means “a rich striped silk.” The term may also originate from the Arabic “attabiya,” after a neighborhood of Baghdad where such a cloth was first made,

How tabbies got the M on their foreheads

There are several legends about how tabbies got their distinctive forehead markings. The most popular tells us that the baby Jesus was cold in his manger, and Mary asked all the animals to come and keep him warm. The animals all stood as close to the manger as they could, but the baby Jesus was still cold, so a small tabby cat jumped into the manger and curled up next to Jesus. Mary was so grateful that she made the mark of her own initial on the kitty’s head so the world would forever be reminded how a tabby saved Jesus from the cold.

A second legend claims that Mohammed had a tabby named Muezza who once save his life by slaying a snake that had crawled up his sleeve. When it was time to attend prayer, the cat had fallen asleep on the sleeve. Rather than disturbing the sleeping cat, Mohammed cut the sleeve off his garment. From that day on, all tabbies were born with an M on their foreheads to remind the world that Mohammed loved cats.

Tabby cat personality

Tabbies have a reputation for being laid back, calm and more sociable. They’re also said to be very affectionate, and relaxed to the point of being lazy.

This article was previously published on Answers.com with the title “The Fabulous Tabby Cat” and is republished with permission.

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