Cat Breeds

The GCCF (Governing Council of the Cat Fancy) recognise 40 different cat breeds in the UK. The British Shorthair was the most registered in 2024, with 6,415 registered. This is followed by the Ragdoll (3,043 registered), Maine Coon (2,612 registered) and Siamese (844 registered).

The easiest and quickest way to find out the breed of your cat is likely to head to your local vet. They can examine your cat’s physical attributes and behaviour, and give you the most likely breed or mix of breeds for your cat.

For something more definitive, you can get a DNA test for your cat. Usually you can buy a kit online where you will swap the inside of your cats mouth and send it off to a lab for examination. Pet DNA kits can tell you your cats breed, as well as any potential health markers, and even your cat’s ancestry.

Other ways to discover your cats breed include cat breed apps, these use AI to identify the breed from a photo, but the results may not be accurate. Or you can get some books or look online and do your own research to make it a bit more fun. Consider your cat’s size, coat, the shape and size of their ears, their tail length and thickness, and even their face shape and eye colour.

Tabby is a coat pattern rather than a breed, and can be found on many cat breeds and mixed breeds. From Maine Coons to Bengals, then off to moggy cats (mixed breeds), there are lots of varieties of cat breed that can have a tabby coat.

The universal marking is the ‘M’ on their forehead, but the pattern itself can include swirls, stripes or spots (broken stripes), they can also have dark lines running around their eyes making it look like they have eye-liner on. There are four main types of tabby pattern:

• Mackerel - thin, tiger-like stripes that run vertically down the cat’s body
• Classic (also known as ‘blotched’) - thick, bold bands in a swirl pattern. This can look like a butterfly or bullseye.
• Spotted - thin stripes have broken up and look like spots, similar to those of a leopard.
• Ticked - you may now see the stripes or spots on their body, but their individual hairs are ‘agouti’, which can give a bit of a salt and pepper effect. Commonly seen on Abyssinian cats.

Agouti hair is make up of several bands of colours.

There are several breeds that can be black and white, including the British Shorthair, Maine Coon, or Ragdoll. It is also common on mixed breed, or ‘moggy cats’.

If you cat looks like its off to a formal event, it likely has a tuxedo coat pattern. Not a breed, tuxedo cats are usually mostly black, with white chest and feet.

The smart and striking Maine Coon is considered the biggest domestic cat breed. They’re powerful and muscular, with big fluffy coats, and tails at least as long as their body. These friendly giants hold records for their size.

There are lots of cat breeds well known for being affectionate, some of which are more needy than others!

Ragdolls are widely known for their loving and docile nature, they form strong social bonds and love their humans. Other affectionate breeds include Siamese, Maine Coon, Sphynx, Burmese, and Persian - but there are many more!