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If told to imagine a “typical” cat, you’re doing well if you think “tiger-striped.” That’s because the tabby pattern, with its familiar stripes, is the most common in all of catdom. It’s so dominant that even some apparently solid-colored cats can be discovered, on close inspection, to have faint stripes, especially on their heads, legs and tails.

“Tabby” is a general term for striped cats, and tabbies come in many colors and patterns — more than 40 varieties in all. Red tabbies seem to have a special following and mythology, perhaps because in male cats the red-orange gene is almost always connected with tabby markings, while in females, red-orange cats can be tabbies, tortoiseshells or calicoes. (About one calico in 3,000 is male, but he’s not your usual male, in that he carries an extra “X” chromosome, an abnormality that not only makes him extremely rare but also likely sterile.) Red tabby males are often called “ginger toms” with great affection.

Tabbies can be further distinguished by differences in the pattern of their stripes. For example, a spotted tabby has gaps in the striping pattern, making the dark color appear as spots. The most recognizable is probably the “mackerel” tabby, with parallel lines placed like the ribs of a fish — hence the name. All tabby cats carry a special mark in common, an “M” on the top of their heads.

The word “Tabby,” by the way, is thought to come from the word “Atabi,” the name of an ancient silk with a striped pattern.

Here are more fun feline facts from our book “MeowWow: Curiously Compelling Facts, True Tales and Trivia Even Your Cat Won’t Know:”

n While a male cat — especially an unneutered one — is today called a “tom,” that wasn’t always the case. Up until the late 1700s, male cats were known as “rams” (like sheep) or “boars” (like pigs). A book about cats with a character named Tom became popular in the latter part of that century; after that, male cats started being called tomcats.

n Among cat breeds, the size variation ranges from 5 to around 20 pounds. (In dogs, it ranges from less than 5 to more than 200 pounds.) From the smallest cat to the biggest, some cats are bulkier than others, but they’re still basically shaped like cats. (In dogs, consider the difference between the greyhound and the dachshund, or the whippet and the English bulldog.

About the only variation in feline body shape is the higher rumps of tailless breeds like the Manx.

n While the idea of dogs and cats at war with each other is a comedic staple, in fact almost half of people who share their homes with a cat also have a dog. These pets get along to varying degrees, from out-and-out loathing to familiar affection. If properly (as in slowly, at the animals’ own speed) introduced, dogs and cats usually at least tolerate each other well.