Cat Breeds, Types, Variants and Hybrids

THE MESSYBEAST.COM CAT BREED LIST (L)

Cat Breeds (Recognized/Unrecognized, Common/Obscure), Variants, Mutations, Hybrids, Archaic/Alternate Names.

1994 - 2024 Sarah Hartwell

About the Messybeast Breed List

A - Z Breeds Index

GLOSSARY

With so many different registries with different views, the exact status of some breeds is hard to define. I have used the following terms:

Alternative Name: An alternative name still in use; might have been a proposed name while breed was being developed.
Archaic Name: Historical name no longer used.
Crossbred: Informal variety always created by crossing 2 other breeds.
Current: A currently recognised breed (means recognition by at least one registry in the world)
Experimental: Early stages of development. Some have provisional or preliminary recognition, but others do not seek or achieve registry recognition.
Extinct: No individuals of the breed exist e.g. Mexican Hairless
Fake: An attempt to decieve the public by representing a cat as something it is not.
Fictional: "Breeds" such as cabbits, squittens, Chinese Hairless and Egyptian Hairless that exist only in fiction or folklore (but people believe they are real).
Local Variety: Unrecognised distinct strain of cats found in a particular locality e.g. Buckfast Blue.
Mutation: Distinct strain that occurred through mutation; some are incorporated into similar-looking breeds (e.g. different Rex strains with the same gene mutation).
Proposed: Not even off the drawing board!
Unknown: Reported by reputable source, but with no other information, possibly a one-off.
Variant: Purebred cats that do not meet the breed standard due to hidden genes e.g. longhaired Bengals. Some are recognised in other countries under a different name.

A further region-specific classification is out of the scope of this list: Banned. In parts of Europe certain breeds are prohibited because their breed traits are considered harmful deformities. These include Manx/Cymric (spinal problems related to tailless mutation), Munchkin (dwarfism), Scottish Fold (skeletal problems), Sphynx (hairlessness is considered detrimental to the breed) and Blue-Eyed Whites in any breed (deafness).

BREED NAME	STATUS	DESCRIPTION
Lady O'Malley's Breed	Archaic	A late nineteenth century name for the seal point Siamese (Royal Siamese).
La-Lang	Unknown	Ancient Asian breed? No information.
Lambkin	Crossbreed	Selkirk Rex x Munchkin cross, shortlegged with dense curls.
LaMerm	Alternative Name	LaPerm x Munchkin (curl-haired Munchkin). See Skookum.
Laotian Lynx	Archaic Name	Appears to be identical to Siamese/colourpoint; breed allegedly used in early Birman/Khmer development.
LaPerm (Dalles LaPerm)	Current	Rex-type cat of American domestic shorthair type, strongly curled coat, short/semi-longhair. Dominant gene, some kittens born bald or straight haired, most will go bald and then grow the curled coat.
LaPerm x Manx Crossbreeds	Crossbreed	Tailless and bobtailed LaPerms resulted from an accidental mating between a Manx and a LaPerm. All were neutered. See also: Poodle Cat, Pudelkatze
Layanese	Crossbreed	Tonkinese x Himalayan. (Australia) Semi-longhair with mink colour. See also: Burmalayan, Himbur, Iranese, Mink Longhair, Mink Persian, Silkanese, Tibetane, Tonkalayan
Legend Cat	Crossbreed / mythical	Reputed the offspring of natural bobcat x domestic crosses and used as the basis for Pixie-Bobs.
Legend Leopard	Experimental	Experimental, registered with TICA 2015.
Leopardette	Archaic Name	See Bengal
Leopold	Experimental	Strong, powerful looking cat, bred to resemble the wild Snow Leopard. The only accepted pattern is light silver background with large black rosettes over the entire body of the cat. Medium-long, plush fur 9not silky). It should be long-bodied, not cobby, and have higher hind end when at rest. and is considered on the long side, with hindquarters higher than forequarters, though the back appears horizontal when the cat moves. Relatively large, rounded head, with small ears and slightly hooded eyes. Fairly long muzzle, but rounded with minimal whisker pad protrusion and a distinct "stop" below the eyes. Very long, thick tail.
Limau Kohlum	Extinct	Limau Kohlum (and Wild Abyssinian) were started off in 1987 by Jerry Mayes of Marietta, Georgia. He went to Singapore to find additional foundation Singapuras. As well as 2 Singapuras (Burmese expression brown ticked tabby) he found black ticked tabbies (non-Burmese expression) and red ticked tabbies. The blacked ticked tabbies were bred for a while as "Wild Abyssinians" and the red ticked cats were dubbed "Limau Kohlum" (Malay for "red cat"). Interest in these appears to have waned.
Li Hua Mao	Current	Chinese name for the "Dragon li". See Dragon Li.
Lion Cat	Archaic Name	An old Chinese name for the Persian Cat; alludes to the mane-like neck ruff.
Little American	Extinct?	Advertised by IRCA (no details) and presumed extinct following death of Ann Baker (IRCA founder). At a guess, an attempt to breed a miniature cat.
Longhair (UK)	Current	See Persian
Longhaired Cornish Rex	Variant	A breeding programme is ongoing for longhaired/semi-longhaired versions of the Cornish Rex, but so far these cats have not sparked much enthusiasm. Longhair is due to a recessive gene and longhaired cats occur naturally.
Longhaired Devon Rex	Variant	A Devon Rex with a shaggy, curly coat. Thus far it has not been seriously developed as a breed. Longhair is due to a recessive gene and longhaired cats occur naturally.
Longhaired German Rex	Variant	There is a breeding programme ongoing in Germany. Also called Angora German Rex. Longhair is due to a recessive gene and longhaired cats occur naturally.
Longhair Rex	Variant	Most longhair rexes were not perpetuated as the longhaired coat is unmanageable when affected by gene for Rex. However, semi-longhaired Rex-types are bred - LaPerm, Selkirk Rex, Bohemian Rex. See also Angora German Rex, Czech Curly Cat/Bohemian Rex
Longhair Sphynx	Fictional	April Fools Joke hoax breed.
LopEar	Extinct	See Scottish Fold, Sumxu
Louisiana Creole Cat	Archaic Name	See Munchkin.
Lowlander	Experimental	See British Longhair.
Luchsie	Extinct / Alternative name?	Cats Magazine (USA) in 1977 mentions the Luchsie - a lynxpoint longhair cat. It was alleged to be a cross between an American Shorthair and a Bobcat, but wasmore likely due to the recessive longhair gene in colourpoint cats.
Lykoi	Current	A sparse-haired mutation. Lykois are are hairless around the eyes, nose, muzzle and sparse-haired on the extremities. The hairless areas feel leathery. The coat is a 50/50 mix of coloured hair to white hair which known as roan, a colour not currently recognised by cat registries; Lykois are registered a solid colour with amelonistic hair dispersed through the coat.

CAT BREEDS TIME-LINE - A list of dates when breeds and varieties (i.e. populations which bred true) were discovered or recognised (now held on its own webpage due to the increasing size of this list).

CAT COLOURS & PATTERNS - A plain English guide to cat colours and patterns, including breed-specific colours/patterns.

About this List of Breeds and the Breeds Time-Line
This file was originally started for my own interest back in the 1980s. Information on currently recognised cat breeds is readily available in books, from registries/governing bodies (GCCF, FIFe, ACFA etc), breed societies or on the Internet. Breed recognition and breed descriptions vary between registries and countries. This "layperson's list" contains general descriptions only and is not (nor will it ever be) specific to any single registry, breed society or cat-breeding country. It will not link to, nor name, any breeder pages or cattery pages as this would compromise its independence. It comprises information and trivia from diverse sources worldwide including historical texts and personal correspondence. I wish to express my gratitude to the various contributors who have helped me keep it up-to-date.

MESSYBEAST.COM CAT RESOURCE ARCHIVE