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Sphynx
Cat
The Sphynx Cat (aka Canadian
Hairless) is a rare breed of cat with extremely little fur, or at most a
short fuzz over its body, and no whiskers (vibrissae).
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Sphynx
Cat
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pic to enlarge
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Their skin is the color their fur would be
(except that white fur means pink skin), and all the usual cat marking
patterns (solid, point, van, tabby, tortie, etc) may be found in Sphynx cats
too.
They are sometimes mistaken for Chihuahua
dogs because of their extremely unusual and, some say, un-catlike
appearance.
They are very affectionate and extroverted and like to cuddle
with their humans, other humans, and each other.
Delicate as they may appear, Sphynx cats
tend to be well-muscled and robustly healthy, with a few obvious weaknesses.
It is essential to keep a sphynx cat warm and free from drafts, especially
during kitten-hood, as they have no more protection from cold than a naked
human would.
Sphynx cats are also prone to sunburn and
sunstroke because they lack the normal protection of fur.
They tend to get
dirty and greasy, since their skin produces the same oils as a fully-furred
cat, but the oil is not spread over fur as usual.
As pets, Sphynx cats are notably
more social than "normal" cats, and happier to be handled, but
also require more maintenance including weekly bathing and ear-cleaning.
Their natural bathing habits tend to be ineffective on skin, so the owner
must compensate a bit.
Sphynx cats are not hypoallergenic,
in fact they can be even worse for severely allergic people than furred
cats.
But because they don't deposit hair on furniture or clothing, they
tend to be easier to clean up after, and therefore often less troublesome to
mildly allergic owners.
Although hairless cats have been reported
throughout history (hairless cats seem to appear naturally about every 15
years or so), and breeders in Canada have been working on the Sphynx cat
breed since the early 1960's, the current American and European Sphynx breed
is descended from two lines of natural mutations:
- Dermis and Epidermis (1975) from the
Pearsons of Wadena, MN, USA and
- Bambi, Punkie, and Paloma (1978) found
in Toronto, ON, Canada and raised by Shirley Smith.
The Sphynx cat breed is known for a sturdy,
heavy body, a wedge-shaped head, and an alert, friendly temperament.
A cat
being hairless is not necessarily a Sphynx! Other hairless breeds might have
different body shapes or temperaments than those described above.
There are,
for example, new hairless breeds, including the Don
Sphynx and the Peterbald
from Russia, which arose from their own spontaneous mutations.
Sphynx cat hairlessness is produced by an allele
of the same gene
that produces the Devon Rex,
which has only one of the usual two fur coats.
The Sphynx allele is
incompletely dominant over the Devon allele; both are recessive to the wild
type.
Sphynx were at one time crossbred with
Devon Rex in an attempt to strengthen this gene, but unfortunately this led
to serious dental or nervous-system problems and is now forbidden in most
breed standards associations.
The only allowable outcross breeds in the CFA
are now the American
Shorthair and Domestic
Shorthair. Other associations have different rules.
A well-known Sphynx is SGC
Belfry Ted Nude-Gent who is in the Austin Powers movies. He plays the
part of Mr.
Bigglesworth, Dr. Evil's cat.
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