Variant of the tabby coat stripe pattern, in its two main forms: mackerel (fine vertical stripes, allele Ta) and blotched or classic (broad swirls, allele tb). The responsible locus is the LVRN gene (laeverin; formerly Taqpep, transmembrane aminopeptidase Q). The Ta allele is dominant over tb. It is not associated with disease.

Universal distribution in all non-solid breeds. The frequency of tb is high in breeds such as the British Shorthair and Siberian; Ta predominates in the common domestic cat. There are no reliable figures by breed in Spain; limited data.

- Mackerel (Ta): fine parallel vertical stripes on the flanks, with rings on the tail and legs\n- Blotched/classic (tb): broad swirls on the flanks and a butterfly pattern on the shoulders\n- No systemic manifestations

The inheritance of the tabby pattern was genetically characterised in the 20th century with the identification of the Ta locus, dominant over tb. In the 2010s the group of Kaelin and Lyons identified the LVRN gene (laeverin; formerly Taqpep, transmembrane aminopeptidase Q) as responsible for the difference between mackerel and blotched, through genomic association in domestic and wild cats. The finding made it possible to design the DNA test that distinguishes Ta and tb. The blotched pattern is common in breeds such as the British Shorthair and Siberian, whereas mackerel predominates in the common domestic cat. Limited data on the exact allele frequency by breed in Spanish populations.

- Know the LVRN/tabby genotype (Ta/tb) of the breeding animals before mating\n- To obtain blotched: mate tb/tb x tb/tb, or tb/tb x carrier (50% blotched)\n- To obtain mackerel, a Ta/Ta or Ta/tb breeding animal is sufficient\n- Inform the buyer that it is an aesthetic trait with no pathological value

The tabby pattern is expressed only in agouti animals (A/-); non-agouti animals (a/a) are melanistic and do not show tabby. The ticked allele (Ti) masks the LVRN pattern when present: a Ti/- cat may be Ta/Ta, Ta/tb or tb/tb underneath. The LVRN genotype is only relevant in non-Ti animals.

1. Kaelin CB, Xu X, Hong LZ, David VA, McGowan KA, Schmidt-Küntzel A, Roelke ME, Pino J, et al. Specifying and sustaining pigmentation patterns in domestic and wild cats. Science 337(6101):1536-1541, 2012. PMID: 22997338
2. Eizirik E, David VA, Buckley-Beason V, Roelke ME, et al. Defining and mapping mammalian coat pattern genes: multiple genomic regions implicated in domestic cat stripes and spots. Genetics 184(1):267-275, 2010. PMID: 19858284
3. Lyons LA. DNA mutations of the cat: the good, the bad and the ugly. J Feline Med Surg 17(3):203-219, 2015. PMID: 25701860
4. OMIA:001429-9685. Coat colour, tabby in Felis catus. https://omia.org/OMIA001429/9685/