Sphynx Cats

A pale Sphynx cat with its distinctive wrinkly skin

A cheeky Sphynx cat trying to look out the window

A Sphynx cat with ginger soft down on its nose and ears

History

The Sphynx cat is famous for its hairless bald look. This is caused by a random genetic mutation. This mutation has happened throughout the history of domestic cats but it wasn’t until 1966 that someone actively tried to breed hairless cats. This breed started its development in Toronto, Canada when a hairless kitten was born to a black and white short domestic housecat. This hairless kitten was named Prune and was mated with its mother to produce another hairless kitten. These kittens were called Canadian Hairless Cats. Mr. Ridyadh Bawa, a science graduate of the University of Toronto along with the help of his mother a Siamese breeder used these kittens as the foundation to a new breed. They gained breed recognition but had this status revoked in 1971.

In 1975 and 1978 several more hairless kittens were born. ‘Epidermis’ and ‘Dermis’ from Minnesota, America and ‘Bambi,’ ‘Punkie’, and ‘Paloma’ from Toronto, Canada. These cats were placed into the Sphynx breeding programme. These kittens were mated with devon rex’s and the Sphynx breed today can be traced back to these unions. The Sphynx name was given to the breed due to their resemblance to the Sphinx statue in Egypt. The International Cat Association has recognised this breed for over 20 years.

Behaviour

This cat is known as the velcro cat due to their love of being a lap cat. This is an extremely friendly and affectionate breed. They are very playful and love nothing more than to cuddle up with their owner. They are also very intelligent cats and are inquisitive. Sphynx cats can be very dog like and will greet their owner and strangers at the door.