UPDATE Need help identifying cat breed

[Nevilledog]

Last edited Sun Dec 23, 2018, 11:31 PM - Edit history (2)

We've been having a visitor the past couple weeks. This enormous cat has shown up in our backyard and we've now discovered he/she has been staying the night in our garage. This cat is easily twice the normal size of our tuxedo cat (13lbs) and is pure muscle. Any ideas on the breed?.








This cat is really big..... hubby can try to weigh and measure.



UPDATE

Okay..... So we put a collar with a note on it and just received a call from a lady the street over. Seems this cat does not have a home and has been somewhat taken care of by a couple people with food for the past 3 or 4 years. They call him Tab Hunter. He hasn't had a place to go in the cold so I'm glad he figured out our doggy door and can sleep in the garage. Question is, what do we do now?. We're not keen on an outdoor only cat as we spent about 9k on vet bills to fix Gary after she was hit by a car ( she had also adopted us about 2 1/2 years ago after having been abandoned). Can this cat become an indoor cat now or should we leave things be and feed it and provide shelter?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. No particular breed.

Some of them just get big, like people. Maine Coons are quite large but they have long fur. This guy is just a big, well-fed mixed-breed cat.

[Nevilledog]

7. It's got the sweetest little meow too.

Some college kids across the street moved and we think left some cats behind. We're not sure if he/ she has a home anymore. Very sweet, very submissive to our cat. We're gonna put a collar on it with a note saying "If this is your cat, please call us and let us know!". Hubby has already adopted this cat in his mind, but I'm kinda hoping he/she's not homeless because Gary, our tuxedo, does not seem to like other cats.

I'm really nervous about integrating another cat into the household.

[rownesheck]

30. I have a giant

male cat (18 lbs, looks like Russian blue) who has a tiny little sweet meow that doesn't seem like it should come out of his massive body!

[pansypoo53219]

33. i have/had 1/2 wild mystery pa, house pet cats. his brother & basil were chunky big boys,

the sister is a 10lb cat. 1 kitten female was quite skinny. my brother's big boy was a HUGE kitten in the litter. i can't prove it, but i think part maine coon. basil had short very thick fur. like a smooth collie. he could have maine coon blood.

my basil + my brother's kitten were the same size as adults. he is similar to basil.

[Freddie]

2. Looks like just a "regular" cat to me

Some do get really big. The late Freddie (my DU alias) was 18+ lbs. I’m thinking a fixed male as males tend to be bigger but he doesn’t have the puffy cheeks that an unfixed one usually has. Is he friendly? Maybe somebody’s cat that wandered off?

[Nevilledog]

10. Very friendly....very sweet.

Very fast too. Sucker just grabbed a bird right outta the air. Did drop the bird when hubby yelled. Bird flew away thankfully.

[Thekaspervote]

3. Maine coon and Norwegian Forrest cats are the 2 most common larger breeds

His head has more the shape of the Norwegians - wrong coat....nothing else puts me in the mind of either of those breeds. Pretty guy thou!

[spooky3]

27. Agree. Those also have long fur but the pictured kitty does not. Looks like your basic tabby

to me, and probably well-taken care of at his home.

[Sanity Claws]

4. He looks like an ordinary domestic short haired cat to me, assuming he has a tail.

Does he have a tail? I can't find it in these photos. Manx cats' hind legs are longer than other cats but I don't think they are considered to be bigger than domestic cats.
The big cat breeds that I know of, Norwegian Forest and Maine Coon, are long-haired. I don't know of any really large short-haired cat breeds.
People vary tremendously in size. Think of a basketball player and a gymnast. Perhaps this guy is just a giant among DSH cats.

[Nevilledog]

8. Yup. Long and striped.

[jpak]

5. That is a Big Sweet Kitty

Last edited Sun Dec 23, 2018, 01:51 PM - Edit history (1)

That needs a good home...

[Nevilledog]

9. Shhhhh.....hubby will hear you.

[yellerpup]

6. We have one just like this baby.

Adopted him at 3-1/2 weeks after a rescue/hoarding situation and HE JUST KEPT GROWING. Sometimes when breeders are trying for a style (short legs, long hair, etc) they will breed in genes from larger wild cats and get a larger cat. They pray for a pussycat personality and that's one we got. Our neighbor took his littermate and got a big cat with a feral temperament. The kitty in your yard looks like a sweetheart.

[hlthe2b]

11. not specific breed, but known as a tabby because of the pattern and domestic short hair

because, well,, obvious...

Nice cat though.

[Iliyah]

29. Agreed, Tabby mixed.

What ya call a mutt (moggy).

[safeinOhio]

12. If you can get it to spit in the test tube and have $69

you get a DNA test.

[Nevilledog]

13. I'll rely on DU's collective wisdom.....lol

[safeinOhio]

14. Getting a big cat to spit in a test tube....

makes that a good idea.

[Boomer]

15. Ways to check whether it's homeless

Most counties have a Lost and Found Pets page on Facebook, where you can post a notice. Lost cats tend to stay within about a 10-block radius (or less) of their original home, so anyone who has lost their cat is most likely quite local.

Take the cat to a vet clinic to get checked for a microchip.

And lastly, file a report with local Animal Control, who may have a record of someone reporting a lost cat.

Once you've done due diligence and still have no one claiming it, well, you've got a new pet!

[Nevilledog]

18. Our first step....

We put a collar on it with a note saying please let us know this is someone's cat.

[spooky3]

28. This is very good advice. nt

[Nay]

16. What a fine boy!

[Nevilledog]

19. How do we know it's a boy??

[Nay]

36. Just a guess, from the size. nt

[Doreen]

17. You have yourself a purebred

Mixed breed Domestic Short Hair. 😁 😺 Very pretty kitty.

[LiberalLoner]

20. Face looks a bit like Maine Coon

My rescue kitty is a Maine Coon mix, has the long fur and sweet meow and is about three feet long and 25 lbs. or so. Maine Coons are known to have a very sweet little voice and sweet disposition.

Maybe your kitty has just enough Maine Coon to make it large but not enough to give it the long fur?

Just speculating.

[Major Nikon]

21. Felis catus domestica

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

23. Reclassified Felis silvestris catus

to reflect the fact that it's just a subspecies of small wildcats.

[Major Nikon]

24. It's all Greek to me

[LeftInTX]

22. Dirty cat!! - lol

He likes the dirt!!

[Nevilledog]

25. This cat loves to roll in everything....lol

[centrarchus]

26. manx cat

[Blue Owl]

31. Tabby mix

Had a couple -- great cats!!!

[Laffy Kat]

32. Can you get him to a vet to see if he's chipped and neutered?

That would be a good first step. He looks like a wonderful cat, though. Do you think your kitteh would like a brother?

[Mr. Quackers]

34. Ol' Alley Cat

I'd name him "Ernst"

[WePurrsevere]

35. Yes, an outdoor cat can become an indoor one...

Working in rescue and taking in dumps on our old defunct farm we've had very good luck converting them.

It's so very wonderful to see someone caring enough about a 'stray'. If s/he doesn't have a home and you want to give them one I'd suggest getting them to the vet for a check, shots, neutering, etc ASAP.