Cats
strongly that the cat appears to be a tabby/spotted Oriental or a tabby/spotted sepia (Burmese)
pattern. Viewed closely, the pattern colour is heavily ticked on a paler ticked background.
This breakthrough pattern is evident from kittenhood and not the same as age-related
darkening in Colourpoint cats. It is inherited, possibly due to modifier genes that prevent the
colourpoint gene from properly inhibiting the colour/pattern on the normally pale areas of the
body.
A stongly marked seal-tabby Siamese with a breakthrough spotted pattern (looked like a
Spotted Tabby Oriental with blue eyes) mated to a Siamese produced a litter containing one
strongly marked classic tabby that looked more like a Classic Tabby Oriental with blue eyes.
The breakthrough pattern has become a problem in some Australian lines. Another example
was a lynx-point Siamese female (old-style conformation) in England that looked like a
slightly washed out tabby with blue eyes
annaabi.ee 
