7 breeds of hairless cats

Many cats shine a beautiful and abundant coat, which gives them an attractive wild aspect. However, some feline breeds stand out exactly the opposite: the absence of hair. This curious appearance often awakens different feelings in people. While some admire them for their peculiar beauty and highlight the advantages of having a hairless animal, such as facilitating household hygiene or being less likely to cause allergic reactions in their owners, some people come to feel fear or certain discomfort just by seeing a photo of a “stripped pussycat”.

Perhaps you have already had or know someone who lives with a bald cat, but few people know that there are different races that preserve this characteristic. To discover the 7 breeds of hairless cats which are known today, invites you to continue reading this new article.

Why do some cats have no hair?

Currently, it is known that the absence of hair is the result of a natural genetic mutation. Actually, it is assumed that a new naked feline race can be born every 15 or 20 years. As in most feline breeds, the baldness gene is rare and recessive, so hairless cats are often very expensive. In addition, they require specific care to conserve the health of their skin and of their entire organism, mainly in the face of climatic adversities such as cold, rain, incidence of solar rays, wind, etc.

The discovery of some manually painted ceramic objects revealed that the ancestral “peels” of the current breeds of hairless cats already lived next to the pre-Columbian civilizations. So far from being a fad of our contemporary times, nude cats have been with humanity for many centuries.

Although the appearance of all these feline breeds seems to reveal the total absence of hair, in reality, most of these kittens have a very thin layer of small millimeter hairs, which is imperceptible to the naked eye. However, when caressing a bald cat, we can feel this very fine and soft fluff covering its body. And in some cases, when exposed to the cold, these cats can develop a more noticeable coat in certain regions of their body, such as tail or legs.

The “bald” gene is also present among canines, mainly in those with Latin American origins, such as Peru’s famous hairless dog. And if you want to meet the peeled dogs, be sure to visit our article “5 dog breeds without hair”.

Hairless feline breeds: the sphinx cat

The sphynx race is the most famous of all the breeds of hairless cats, and also the first to be recognized as an independent race. The Sphinx cat is originally from Canada, although its name is a tribute to the Egyptian goddess Bastet, whose silhouette was quite similar to that of these pussycat.

The absence of hair can give the impression of fragility, but sphynx have a strong body, with well-developed muscles, and are usually very healthy. In addition, they stand out for their medium size, large ears and eyes in shades of green or blue. What we should take into account before choosing them as a pet is that they require a lot of care with the grooming of their skin to avoid the excess of oiliness and associated skin disorders.

His appearance is often strange to some people, but his character is truly charming. They are kind and affectionate felines, owners of a very balanced temperament. If you are interested in adopting a sphinx cat, we recommend you to know our tips to bathe your hairless pussycat.

Elf cat (elf cat), the biggest of all

This is one of the most curious feline breeds in the world, considered one of the strangest breeds of hairless cats. In addition to their baldness, elf cats carry their name in homage to their particular ears, that naturally bend back. Its striking physical characteristics are the result of crossing between two other races: the sphinx cat and the American curl.

It is a very young breed, which stands out for its size and robustness. An adult elf cat can weigh 10 kilos without presenting symptoms of obesity, being the largest cat without hair.

Cat donskoy

Donskoy cats are also known as Don sphynx. This original race of the villages on the banks of the River Don, in Russia, is so similar to the sphinx cats that, for many years, it was believed that they descended. It took a few years of genetic research to reveal that they are independent races. An important difference in their genetic characteristics is that the baldness gene, in the Donskoy breed, is dominant, whereas in sphinx cats it is recessive.

The character of a Don sphynx is similarly tempered, but tend to be more sociable, resulting in an excellent pet for homes with children and other felines.

Ukrainian Levkoy

This breed comes from Ukraine and is also quite recent. Although some specimens were already seen at the beginning of the 2000 years, the Ukrainian levkoy was recognized and consolidated as a race in the year 2011. Born from crosses between the scottish fold breed and donskoy cats, which explains their absence of hair, their great physical endurance and also their ears folded forward. As well as their ancestors, they demonstrate a calm and sociable character, being very faithful to their family.

Child

The bambino has very particular physical features, such as short legs, looking quite different from the other races of hairless cats. Its appearance is easily explained when we know that this pussy is from cross between the sphinx cat and the munchkin breed. It is a young feline breed, having been recognized just over 10 years ago. In addition, their skin is drier than that of other bald cats, therefore, they usually require simpler care to stay healthy.

Cat peterbald

This race originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, emerged during the 90 decade as a result of crosses between the Donskoy and Siamese races. Its fine and elegant features give it a particular oriental appearance, being easy to distinguish it from the other hairless feline breeds.

When they are babies, peterbald cats have a very thin layer of millimeter hairs, which is falling over the years. As well as the bambino, its skin is drier, not needing as much grooming as the sphinx cats.

kohana

The kohana cat, also known as the Hawaiian cat, emerged on the island of Hawaii in the early 2000 years. Nevertheless, the race still it has not been officially annealed. So far, it is supposed to result from a natural mutation of the sphinx cat, but this hypothesis has not yet been scientifically proven. In addition to the total absence of hair, Hawaiian cats have many wrinkles distributed throughout their body, being another of the strangest hairless cat breeds.

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