r/IDMyCat Jan 15 '26

Meta Read if you're about to make a 'what breed is my cat' post.

67 Upvotes

I'm not a mod but just thought there should really be a wiki article or pinned post on the sub and similar ones to explain this and prevent further redundant posts. I hope this will help to inform at least some people about cat genetics.

This can be a confusing thing to understand, especially if you're new to cat ownership and more familiar with dogs, but believe it or not, 97% of all cats do not have any breed ancestry!

The short of it is that an animal 'breed' is a manmade concept that comes from generations upon generations of selective breeding to achieve a specific temperament and appearance until the offspring reliably always present those traits. A pedigree is the documentation of this.

Since cats have not been bred for a specific prupose or job, and most have not been selectively bred to look the way they do, the vast majority do not have any breed and these cats are either referred to as Domestic Long-hair (DLH) or Domestic Short-hair (DSL). Domestic Medium-hair/Domestic Semi-longhair is also a thing but these cats are genetically DLH.

These cats are sometimes colloquially referred to as 'mixed breeds' but this term is technically incorrect and misleading as it implies Domestic cats are simply of mixed ancestry of multiple breeds, when in reality this isn't the case at all.

True 'mixed-breed' cats are likely even more uncommon than purebred ones, since purebred cats are a fairly niche and mostly hobbiest thing, their breeding is usually very restricted and these cats would not usually have the opportunity to breed with non-breed cats unless an unfixed pedigree escapes.

So unless your cat has a pedigree or you know it is the product of a cat that does have papers, it is almost certainly a Domestic Short-hair or Long hair.

Non-breed cats can definitely resemble certain cat breeds! But as they were not specifically bred to look that way and they likely would not pass on all of those traits to their offspring, they are still not actually that breed.

There are however names for and interesting genetic causes behind every limitless coat pattern variation, fur type, eye colour and every other physical trait of non-breed cats, so if you want a more distinctive label for your feline friend than just 'Domestic Short/Long hair' there certainly will be one, but asking for it's 'breed' isn't going to get you a real answer.

I hope this helps some people and I can certainly provide sources if anyone wants them, but I just couldn't find all of this concised well in one single article.

ETA: Somehow I didn't notice my phone was autocorrecting DLH to DHL throughout this whole post so edited to correct that šŸ˜‚


r/IDMyCat Oct 01 '21

Meta [Modpost] Please remember to mark your posts as "solved" if you think you've found the breed.

6 Upvotes

As the title says, if you think you've found out what breed the cat is, please mark it as solved! All you have to do is type "solved" in a comment and it'll mark your post as solved. If you're unsure but it seems right, type "psol" and it'll be marked as Potentially Solved.


r/IDMyCat 2h ago

Open Can someone ID my friend’s cat?

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11 Upvotes

I was guessing domestic shorthair


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open True ragdolls?

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255 Upvotes

Hi guys my two boys (brothers) are 7 years old. I’ve always wondered what breed they are as everyone has told me they are not 100% ragdoll because their eyes aren’t true blue they’re like a mint green (which I love personally they’re so majestic). When I bought them I was told they were pure ragdolls, I seen their mom and dad and the dad definitely looked ragdoll but not sure about the mom.I really want to dna test them lol but before I do any ideas??


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open Need help with kitten ID

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12 Upvotes

coworker had a litter and said they’re a Maine coon, I’m thinking it’s a longhaired tabby.


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open siamese? DSH?

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13 Upvotes

alright this is my chonky boy. he is 2 and we’ve always been told he’s a siamese. every vet i’ve been to has told me he looks like he’s mixed with maine coon due to his size and face shape. (his nickname is Ron Perlman per my brother)

his paw pads are pink if that means anything. he doesn’t really have the characteristics or personality of a siamese. he is loud and bossy but likes to be left alone. he’s also 18 pounds and VERY long. so i’m thinking he’s just a DSH with the pattern

added pics of his brother at the end for size comparison lol


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Possibly Solved Cookies and cream paws?

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17 Upvotes

Obviously domestic short hair. I’m more interested in knowing why her seal point is interrupted with a marble-like pattern. She’s got stark white on her 3/4 paws, nose, chin, and tail. She’s very small, 9 pounds soaking wet.
I plan on doing a genetic test at some point. All I’m going to get is a nice letter saying she’s mixed with a little of everything.


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open My kitten is HUGE possibly some sort of mix?

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130 Upvotes

I adopted my kitten (Thomas) from a shelter on June 11th of this year. He was only 1.5lbs and about 4-6ish week old range (the shelter said he was 8wks, but he still had blue kitten eyes and his front teeth had not erupted yet). My family got an 8ish week old kitten (Milo) at the exact same time and he was 3lbs. Here is a comparison of their growth.

6/11:
- Thomas 1.5lbs
- Milo 3lbs

7/22:
- Thomas 5.5lbs
- Milo 4.2lbs

Today 8/30:
- Thomas 7lbs
- Milo 5lbs

Milo, my family’s kitten, is now about 5months old (age markers: his adult canine teeth have come in) and Thomas, my kitten, is about 3 months old (age markers: no adult teeth have come in yet)

I’m not certain if this is normal for DSH to be this large already, as he is already the size of my late 1yr 8month old cat (he sadly passed away so young from bobcat fever earlier this year), but i have grown up around cats my entire life (my mom is a vet) and have never seen a young kitten grow so fast and so large by this age. He also has a very distinct coat pattern that i’ve never really seen before in any cats i’ve owned.

I’ll attach some photos!
Photo 1 & 2: 4ish weeks 1.5 lbs
Photo 3: Thomas @ 4ish weeks 1.5lbs next to my 10lbs chihuahua
Photo 4: Thomas @ 3ish months 7lbs next to my 10lb chihuahua
Photo 5-9: Thomas @ 3ish months 7lbs
Photo 10 & 11: smoke point hair in a stripe down his back

Unique body characteristics:
- Back legs slightly longer than front legs, his head is lower than his tail when standing
- smoke point stripe down his back
- solid spots on body
- stripes on tail, face, and legs
- obviously quite large
- low hanging belly while standing
- bright and vibrant green eyes
- he has a worried look to his eyes sometimes

Unique personality traits:
- Fascinated with water
• Dips paws into water bowls
• Dips his legs into my bath while i’m bathing to try and figure out how to get in
• I set him in about 1in of water and he did mot really care, just jumped out to follow me
- Scared? Or hasn’t figured out how to jump, he will mostly climb up on things if they are over 2ft off of the ground
- Extremely vocal, but will scream instead of meowing (MAAAAAAAHHHH MAAAAH MAAH MAAAAAH vs MEOOW MOW MEOW) and will chirp if he wants something and it’s constant
- Extreme energy (typical of pretty much all kittens tho)
- Will be at the door to greet us when we get home from work
- Incredibly intelligent
• Tries to open doors
• already has a daily routine
- Constant head butts
- Insanely curious and will chew up anything
- snuggle bug
-purrs constantly

Any help would be amazing as to why my kitten is so massive!! Thanks in advance šŸ«¶šŸ¼šŸˆ

edit: ALSO if you see his nuggets do not worry, he was to small to neuter at adoption so they scheduled us out to neuter him 3months later and his appointment is this tuesday


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open what breed is my 4 month old kitten

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3 Upvotes

ps she loves laptops


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open What breed is he ??

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7 Upvotes

So recently got this handsome sweet boy, but just wanted to confirm what he actually is? The people who had him previously said he’s a mink ragdoll but he doesn’t really look like other ragdolls?


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open Possible Maine coon mix?

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2 Upvotes

I’ve recently adopted an approx. 2 month old kitten a few days ago, but in wondering if she’s a mix Maine coon or just a domestic long hair. But she’s quite big already for 2 months and she weighs approximately 2KG.
I’ve attached some pictures.


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open What do you think the scrungly guy is?

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17 Upvotes

I got this 4 year old from the local shelter. He is severely underweight, matted, and covered in flea dirt. He only weighs 6.5lbs, but so full of love. I recently found out about Dollface Persians, and he kind of looks like one.


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open maine coon??

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0 Upvotes

hello does anyone know if he might be part maine coon?? genuinely people keep asking me and i have no idea, i work at unnamed pet store and on July 24 a lady came in w him and he was only a few days old. she said she found him in the street by himself & she didnt know how to properly care for a kitten. long story short i took him home and bottle fed him- hes currently 5 weeks old and doing very well, gets along w my 2 big dogs and is so freakin sweet and loving to everyone! i just wanna know if hes maine coon bc sometimes he looks like it but i know that domestic longhairs are often mistaken for them bc similar features and all that! his name is atticus :) pics go from most recent to oldest btw

note****HE WAS NOT PURCHASED FROM A BREEDER GUYS!!! he is a rescue!! a lady brought him into my work when she found him on the street with a gash in his neck when he was only a few days old & he had to be bottle fed. i do not believe in buying from breeders either way. all my animals are rescues or from the shelter. ADOPT DONT SHOP ALWAYS!!!! and maybe read the whole post before commenting. also- yes i am aware that there are no mixed breeds with cats.


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open BLH X BSH or something else?

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0 Upvotes

Here is my beautiful girl Mimi. I love her with all my heart. She is said to be bsh x blh, but I thought somewhat Persian? Any ideas? Thank you


r/IDMyCat 1d ago

Open Is my cat a munchkin?

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2 Upvotes

r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open ID this cat I found on the street

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19 Upvotes

r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open My late cat

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11 Upvotes

My best friend died almost 3 years ago now and I miss him everyday. He was a unique looking cat and everyone I showed him too had a comment to make about his appearance. My mom said for sure his mom is Siamese but I wouldn’t trust her for sure. He’s slender and long and tall. His fur is medium and grey/silver/brown. In person u could see very subtle dark gray markings on his head and tail. His ears are large. He was nice and playful till the end and lived until 20/21! Sorry for the mid pictures. I’m not good at cat ā€œbreedsā€ and idk how I would label him


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open What type of cat do you think my rescue is?

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13 Upvotes

r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open What is her breed?

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2 Upvotes

r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open Does my cat have a twin or is this the same cat?

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2 Upvotes

r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open Short tail and small frame, polydactyl!

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43 Upvotes

Our cute 10 year old girl has extra thumbs and a cute tabby coat! However, she has a shorter than average tail and is generally small overall. She’s at her vet recommended weight which is around 7.5 pounds. She has a cute round face despite her age, and we just wonder if she’s just naturally a smaller cat or if it’s on purpose (given that she’s polydactyl).


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Possibly Solved What are their Coat Names, and does anyone know the possible genes?

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14 Upvotes

I've had the Coat question answered already in a different subreddit, but would like to double check!

They're British Shorthair - Maine Coon Mix, their parents are pedigreed (Mother BSH, Father Maine Coon) does that make them a Mix breed or are they still considered Domestic Shorthair? And does that mean, they possibly carry Longhair Genes from the father or did the Mothers gene completely take over?

I've been asked by a local breeder on facebook if I'd possibly breed them with their British Longhair stud because they're after the looks of my girls, so I wanna know if there's anything visibly special a breeder would want from them (they know they're not 100% British Shorthair, so I doubt they're after the breed since the Kittens wouldn't be pedigreed).


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open His name is Winston

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7 Upvotes

Quite a small stout cat, he is only a year old. His fur texture isn’t the same as a normal short hair, it is kind of poofy instead of sleek.
He was dumped here in Azerbaijan outside my apartment complex and although there are a lot of street cats, they do love purebreds here.


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open What is he?

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19 Upvotes

Hi!! This little guy wandered on my porch a few weeks ago and has since become a member of the family! However i have no idea how old he is (maybe a kitten bc his paws are huge) he is gigantic but looks small when standing, he’s the sweetest baby in the world tho!


r/IDMyCat 2d ago

Open What will Minnie look like when she's older?

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12 Upvotes

Also if you can determine her coat!!