The mackerel tabby pattern was the first tabby pattern in domestic cats. It is believed to have come from the African Wildcat and the European Wildcat. Both of these wild cats have a pale, striped tabby pattern. But when those breeds mixed, it made a more distinct mackerel tabby coat. At first, the mackerel tabby was common in all domestic cats. But later, other tabby patterns happened because of mutations and selective breeding of the mackerel tabby. All domestic cats have the tabby gene. But the genes of some cat breeds hide the tabby appearance. 