Unknown Breed

Unknown breed is a practical label for a domestic cat whose ancestry has not been identified or documented. Most cats described this way are mixed-breed household cats rather than unregistered examples of a pedigree breed. They may be shorthaired, longhaired, large, small, tabby, pointed, black, calico, bicolor, or any of the many coat patterns found in Felis catus. A color pattern, bobtail, folded ear, or long coat can suggest a breed influence, but it does not prove one.

For adopters, shelters, and veterinary records, the useful information is the individual cat's age, temperament, health status, coat length, and reproductive status. DNA tests may offer clues, but cat breed ancestry is harder to interpret than in dogs because many pedigree breeds are recent and many traits occur naturally in random-bred cats. Care should be planned around the cat in front of you: nutrition, vaccines, parasite control, microchipping, enrichment, and spay or neuter decisions matter more than assigning a decorative breed name.

Colors: Bi-Color, Bicolor, Black, Black and White, Black Grizzled, Black Roan, Black Shaded, Black Silver, Black Silver Marbled, Black Silver Spotted, Black Silver Spotted Tabby, Black Silver Tabby, Black Smoke, Black Spotted Tabby, Black Tabby, Black Tipped, Blue, Blue and White, Blue Bi-Color, Blue-Cream, Blue-Cream Point, Blue-Cream Shaded, Blue-Cream Tipped, Blue Lynx Point, Blue Lynx (Tabby) Point, Blue Marbled, Blue Mink, Blue Mitted, Blue Patched Tabby, Blue Point, Blue Point and White, Blue Shaded, Blue Silver, Blue Silver Marbled, Blue Silver Spotted, Blue Silver Tabby, Blue Smoke, Blue Solid, Blue Spotted, Blue Spotted Torbie, Blue Tabby, Blue Tipped, Blue Torbie, Blue Tortie, Bronze, Bronze Spotted, Brown, Brown Mackerel Tabby, Brown Marbled Tabby, Brown Patched Tabby, Brown Shaded, Brown Spotted Tabby, Brown Tabby, Brown Tabby and White, Brown Ticked, Brown Torbie, Brown Tortie, Calico, Calico Van, Cameo Smoke, Champagne, Champagne Mink, Champagne Point, Champagne Solid, Charcoal Marbled, Charcoal Spotted, Charcoal Spotted Tabby, Chinchilla Silver, Chocolate, Chocolate Lynx Point, Chocolate Point, Chocolate Shaded, Chocolate Silver, Chocolate Tipped, Chocolate Tortie, Chocolate Tortie Point, Chocolate Tortie Shaded, Chocolate Tortie Tipped, Cinnamon, Cinnamon Silver, Classic Tabby, Colorpoint, Cream, Cream and White, Cream Lynx Point, Cream Point, Cream Shaded, Cream Smoke, Cream Tabby, Cream Tipped, Deep Red/Orange, Dilute Calico, Dilute Tortoiseshell, Ebony, Fawn, Fawn Silver, Fawn Silver Tabby, Fawn Smoke, Fawn Tabby, Flame Point, Frosty (Ermine), Golden, Golden Tabby, Gray, Harlequin, Lavender, Lavender Silver, Lilac, Lilac Cream, Lilac Cream Point, Lilac Cream Shaded, Lilac Cream Tipped, Lilac Lynx Point, Lilac Point, Lilac Shaded, Lilac Tipped, Lynx Point, Mackerel Tabby, Marble Tabby, Mi-Ke (Calico), Mink, Mink Marbled, Mink Spotted, Mitted, Natural Mink, Natural Point, Natural Solid, Pink, Platinum, Platinum Mink, Platinum Point, Platinum Solid, Pointed, Red, Red and White, Red Lynx Point, Red Point, Red Shaded, Red Silver Tabby, Red Smoke, Red Tabby, Red Tipped, Ruddy, Sable, Seal Bi-Color, Seal Lynx Point, Seal Mitted, Seal Point, Seal Point and White, Seal Silver Tabby Point, Sepia, Sepia Agouti, Sepia Marbled, Sepia Spotted, Shaded, Shaded Cameo, Shaded Golden, Shaded Silver, Shell, Shell Cameo, Shell Golden, Silver, Silver Marbled Tabby, Silver Patched Tabby, Silver Spotted, Silver Spotted Tabby, Silver Tabby, Silver Torbie, Smoke, Smoke and White, Snow Marbled, Snow Spotted, Spotted Tabby, Tabby, Tabby and White, Tawny, Ticked Tabby, Torbie, Tortie and White, Tortie Lynx Point, Tortie Point, Tortie Shaded, Tortie Smoke, Tortie Tipped, Tortoiseshell, Van, Van Pattern, White, White and Black, White and Blue, White and Cream, White and Red, White and Tabby, White and Tortie, White with Odd-Colored Eyes