The most successful of the hairless cats, the Sphynx, is not completely hairless; but, covered with short, silky, “peach fuzz” down. Without hair to absorb the oil that is produced by the empty hair follicles, these cats need to be rubbed down daily with a chamois.
The hairless cats of today can – usually – be traced back to a longhaired cat from Toronto, Canada which gave birth to successive litters of hairless kittens around 1978.
One of these was bred to a Devon Rex in Europe & produced hairless kittens which became the foundation stock for today’s Sphynx. This breed is recognized by the TICA. There was a hairless male cat born in 1966, but his line died out.
The skin exhibits colors in the same patterns that most cats exhibit the colors on their fur. All colors and patterns, including pointed, white, black and tortoiseshell are seen. The eyes are large & slightly slanted & the ears are very large, open and wide. The head resembles the Siamese head; being slightly longer than wide. The Sphynx can weigh between 8 and 15 pounds. They are normally playful and mischievous.
We are pleased to welcome Mr. Meowgi to our practice!
