Sphynx cat
| Sphynx | |
|---|---|
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| Origin | Ontario, Canada |
| Breed standards | |
| CFA | standard |
| FIFe | standard |
| TICA | standard |
| AACE | standard |
| ACFA/CAA | standard |
| CCA-AFC | standard |
| Domestic cat (Felis catus) | |
The Sphynx is a breed of cat developed through selective breeding starting in the 1960s, known for its lack of coat (fur), though it's not truly hairless. The skin should have the texture of chamois, as it has fine hairs. Whiskers may be present, either whole or broken, or may be totally absent. Their skin is the color that their fur would be, and all the usual cat markings (solid, point, van, tabby, tortie, etc.) may be found on Sphynx skin. Because they have no coat, they lose more body heat than coated cats. This makes them warm to the touch as well as heat-seeking.
Sphynxes are known for their extroverted behavior. They display a high level of energy, intelligence, curiosity, and affection for their owners. They are one of the more dog-like breeds of cats, frequently greeting their owners at the door and friendly when meeting strangers.
Although hairless cats have been reported throughout history, breeders in Europe have been working on the Sphynx breed since the early 1960s. Two different sets of hairless felines discovered in North America in the 1970s provided the foundation cats for that which was shaped into the existing Sphynx breed.
The contemporary breed of Sphynx, also known as the Canadian Sphynx, is distinct from the Russian Sphynx breeds like Peterbald and Don Sphynx.
The current American and European Sphynx breed is descended from two lines of natural mutations:
The Canadian Sphynx breed was started in 1966, in Toronto when a hairless kitten named Prune was born to a black and white domestic shorthair queen (Elizabeth). The kitten was mated with its mother (backcrossing), which produced one more naked kitten. Together with a few naked kittens found later it founded the first attempt to create a hairless breed.
After purchasing these cats in 1966 and initially referring to them as "Moonstones" and "Canadian Hairless," Mr. Ridyadh Bawa, a science graduate of the University of Toronto, combined efforts with his mother Yania, a long time Siamese breeder, and the Tenhoves (Kees and Rita) to develop a breed of cats which was subsequently renamed as "Sphynx". It is apparent that the Bawas and the Tenhoves were the first individuals able to determine the autosomal recessive nature of the Sphynx gene for hairlessness while also being successful in transforming this knowledge into a successful breeding program with kittens which were eventually capable of reproducing.
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Wikipedia