Hairless cat: what are naked cats and why?

Many people say that they have caressed a hairless cat and fallen in love with it: perhaps even in the case of the cat, the dress does not make the monk, or rather, the hair does not make the cat? But what are the breeds of peeled cats and why can a cat be born hairless? Is it a problem for him? Let’s see it together.

Hairless cat: how it was born

A hairless cat is the result of a genetic mutation of the “hairless” gene, a recessive gene that determines the absence of hair in the cat.

The first specimens of hairless cats were born therefore by chance, the first documented reports date back to 1800, but we cannot really know if before that date there were already naked cats, probably the answer is yes.

In the 1970s, breeders began to select hairless cat breeds, selecting hairless subjects and breeding them with other naked cats.

Hairless cat: features

In reality the hairless cat is soft to the touch, its skin seems covered with a very fine and imperceptible hair, it is not like touching our skin.

The skin of a hairless cat is defined in 3 ways:

Rubber a leather that looks almost like rubber, almost a non-slip material.
Peach, the peach skin, this case seems to caress a peach
Wax, a type of oily skin, similar to wax
Caressing a hairless cat is a special experience, the feeling is really strange, we will caress the folds of his skin, the tail that looks almost like a mouse, we will feel his musculature and his bones.

Even seeing a hairless cat is strange, it seems almost helpless, with a crazed expression, the folds on the head give it an exotic look, we can see the width of its belly if it is a fat-free cat, a long thin tail.

The hairless cat is not a cat that has problems, it is absolutely a normal cat, it plays, it rubs, it purrs like everyone else, in fact some breeds of naked cats are really affectionate and attached to their humans.

Some breeders explain how the bald cat needs more heat than a cat with fur, and dress their naked cats with rompers and dresses, while others suggest otherwise, and do not cover their cats.

Do naked cats have a hair color?
Yes, indeed, the color of the cats’ coat is also a genetic question, and even the hairless cat has the genes of coat coloration, except that the color of the coat, being missing, cannot be seen! For this reason, in feline exposures you will find breeders who speak to you about a cat without a black coat, or red, or kittens without white hair, and you will ask yourself “What are they saying?” Even the skin of a hairless cat can be of various colors, from pink to black, with darker or less dark spots.

Is the hairless cat hypoallergenic?
Not really, because our allergy is caused not directly by the cat’s hair, but by a protein contained in the cat’s saliva. Read this article to learn more. So don’t hope to adopt a hairless cat if you’re allergic, because you’ll have the same allergy symptoms as with a long-haired cat.

Hairless cat breeds

There are breeds selected by man to carry on the hairless gene and are:

• Sphynx
• Don sphynx
• Peterbald
• Elf
• Levkoy
• Child
• Kohona

Then there are some cats that appear with a partial covering of the mantle, maybe born naked, kittens without hair, and then develop a small amount of hair and are:

• Lycoi
• Devon Rex

The hairless cat par excellence: the Sphynx

The hairless cat par excellence is undoubtedly the Sphynx, whose full name is Canadian Sphynx. Breed of naked cats born around the 70s, it is now quite common in Italy and in cat shows, so it is not uncommon to be able to see and pet them.

The Sphynx is a lively and very very affectionate cat, a hairless cat that does not fear the cold, but temperature changes and drafts of air.

It is often confused with the Egyptian cat, also due to its name Sphynx (sphinx).
To learn more about the Sphynx, read the complete card.

Don Sphynx or Donskoy

The Donskoy breed comes from Russia, and it is a hairless cat very similar to the Sphynx, long considered its derivation, but in reality in the Don Sphynx the gene of nudity is dominant and not recessive.

In feline exposures you can admire three types of Don Sphynx with three characteristics of the hair or skin:

• Hairless: where the cat appears totally free of hair.
• Flock: where the cat has a residual hair not longer than two millimeters over the whole body.
• Brush: the cat has a thin, wavy coat, often bristly all over the body, over 2 mm long, with bare areas on the head, on the upper part of the neck or on the back.

Peterbald

The Peterbald cat is a hairless cat, fruit of the cross between the Don Sphynx and the Siamese. It is a very uncommon breed, and it brings together the characteristics of the Siamese, namely the liveliness, the attachment to its human and the insistent vocalization, with those of the Don Sphynx we have seen.

Elf cat

The Elf cat, a breed not recognized by all feline associations, is the result of the cross between the Sphynx and the American Curl. The result is a hairless cat with ears that curve backwards.

It has been called Elf because of its very similar appearance to an elf, and in Italy there are very few specimens, so it can reach even high prices.

It is a very sweet and affectionate cat and needs the same attention we have seen for Sphynx naked cats, as well as a regular cleaning of the ears which, being bent backwards, get dirty more easily.

It is a large cat compared to the others, and an adult can weigh up to 10 kilos.

Levkoy

Levkoy is a very recent breed that comes from Ukraine, and is the result of the crossing between the Don Sphynx and the Scottish Fold, and from the latter they inherit the particular lowered ears.

Also this type of cat is not a breed recognized by many feline associations, it seems rather that the gene that determines the lowered ears also causes other health problems, for which the breeding of the Scottish folds is discouraged by some feline associations.

Actually Levkoy is much closer to the cat breeds with slight hints of hair, like the Devon Rex, and it also has whiskers, mustaches.

The lowered ears make his expression really sweet and affectionate.

Child

A very controversial breed among hairless cats is that of the Child, the result of a cross between the Sphynx and the Munchkin, and therefore the result is a hairless cat with very short legs. One really wonders if it is so fundamental to carry out this type of characteristics for pure aesthetic appearance.

Brought as a “curiosity” in some cat shows, this breed is not yet recognized by breeders’ associations.

Kohona

The hairless breed of cat Kohona (or Kohana) is very rare and also called Hawaii Hairless, determined by a gene of nudity still different, in fact this cat is missing even the peliferous bulbs.

So the mantle of the hairless cat Kohona or Kohana is completely hairless and the feeling of caressing it will still be different. His skin is made up of many wrinkles all over his body.

It seems that this hairless cat breed was born in Hawaii spontaneously and now the selection is carried out by a California farmer, Michelle Berge, trying to cross it with the Canadian Sphynx.

Hairless cat: necessary care

As we have said before, hairless cats do not particularly suffer from the cold, but more than anything else the temperature changes. So we will have to evaluate whether covering them with a suit or not is not strictly necessary.

The cat without hair should still be washed regularly: its skin produces a lot of sebum, which goes to protect it, but after a while it is dirty and can soil even the fabrics of the house. It should be dried very well to prevent it from catching cold, with a hairdryer at low temperature and towel.

The skin of the naked cat must be protected from the sun’s rays with the special creams for animals, because it is subject to burns if the cat is very much in the sun.

And what do you think? Have you ever seen and caressed a hairless cat? Do you like? Write me your impressions in the comments!