Kittens and Cats
Articles, Health & Behaviour Resources:
HAIRLESS
CATS
Copyright 2002, Sarah Hartwell
The origins of the major hairless and Rex
breeds are well documented elsewhere so I have included a
summary only. In some instances there appear to be several
versions of events, dates of origin or disagreement over some
issues. Where this is the case, I have included all relevant
information without prejudice. Other opinions are mine alone.
HAIRLESS CATS
Hairlessness is a trait which has occurred in several places at
different times. Hairless cats have been reported from Latin
America in 1830. There are reports of this
 mutation
occurring in France, Austria, the Czech Republic, England,
Australia, Canada, USA, Mexico, Morocco, Russia and Hawaii. In
addition, Devon Rexes are prone to baldness due to fragility of
the hair and some LaPerm cats are born hairless.
Mexican, Canadian & American Hairless Breeds
Although there are written accounts from the 1830's of a
Paraguayan "scant-haired cat", the first properly recorded
hairless "breed" was the now extinct Mexican Hairless (also
called the New Mexican Hairless). In 1902, a couple from New
Mexico received two hairless cats from local Pueblo Indians. It
was claimed that these were the last survivors of an ancient
Aztec breed of cat. The Mexican Hairless cats were litter-mates
and noted to be 25% smaller than local shorthair cats. They were
normally whiskered and seasonally coated, growing a ridge of fur
down the mid-back and tail during the colder seasons. The male,
not yet sexually mature, was killed by dogs and the owners
searched for a hairless mate for the female. In fact the loss
was avoidable. The female could have been bred to similarly
shaped domestic cats and the offspring back-crossed to their
mother to re-establish the hairlessness trait. The female cat
was sold as a pet and possibly exported to Britain or
continental Europe in 1903 where she was exhibited, but
apparently not bred. Even in 1902, enough was known about
livestock breeding to have made this feasible. They resembled
the modern Sphynx but were less extreme in face shape. There is
the (remote) possibility that some later occurrences of random
hairlessness trace back to this female since pet cats were not
spayed in the early 1900s.
In "The Book of the Cat" (1903) Frances Simpson reproduced a
letter written by E J Shinick to Mr H C Brooke regarding a pair
of hairless cats which had come into Mr Shinick's possession.
Brooke commented "A most extraordinary variety, of which next to
nothing appears to be known, is the hairless cat, and we cannot
do better than quote in extenso the description given by the
owner of what, if his surmise should unhappily prove to be
correct, was the last pair of these peculiar animals, a portrait
of which we give. We can only add, while deeply regretting that
Mr Shinick did not mate his cats, the earnest hope that we may
hear that he has discovered the existence of other specimens."
"In answer would say my hairless cats are brother and sister. I
got them from the Indians a few miles from this place. The old
Jesuit Fathers tell me they are the last of the Aztec breed
known only in New Mexico. I have found them the most intelligent
and affectionate family pets I have ever met in the cat line;
they are the quickest in action and smartest cats I have ever
seen. They are fond of a warm bath, and love to sleep under the
clothes at night with our little girl. They seem to understand
nearly everything that is said to them; but I have never had
time to train them. They are marked exactly alike - with mouse
coloured backs; with neck, stomach and legs a delicate flesh
tint. Their bodies are always warm and soft as a child's. They
love to be fondled and caressed, and are very playful; will run
up and down your body and around your waist like a flash.
"Nellie" weighs about eight pounds, and "Dick" weighed ten
pounds; but I am sorry to say we have lost "Dick". We have never
allowed them to go out of the house, as the dogs would be after
them. They were very fond of our water spaniel, and would sleep
with her. "Dick" was a sly rascal, and would steal out. One
night last year he stole out, and the dogs finished him. His
loss was very great, as I may never replace him. The Chicago Cat
Club valued them at 1,000 dollars each. They were very anxious
for me to come on with them for their cat shows, but I could not
go. They were never on exhibition; as this is a small city, I
feared they would be stolen. I have made every endeavour to get
another mate for "Nellie", but have not been successful. I never
allowed them to mate, as they were brother and sister, and I
thought it might alter "Nellie's" beautiful form, which is round
and handsome, with body rather long. In winter they have a light
fur on back and ridge of tail, which falls off in warm weather.
They stand the cold weather the same as other cats. They are not
like the hairless dogs, whose hide is solid and tough; they are
soft and delicate, with very loose skin.
"Nellie" has a very small head, large amber eyes, extra long
moustache and eyebrows; her voice now is a good baritone, when
young it sounded exactly like a child's. They have great
appetites, and are quite dainty eaters - fried chicken and good
steak is their choice. Have never been sick an hour. The
enclosed faded picture is the only one I have at present - it is
very lifelike, as it shows the wrinkles in its fine, soft skin.
"Dick" was a very powerful cat; could whip any dog alone; his
courage, no doubt, was the cause of his death. He always was the
boss over our dogs. I have priced "Nellie" at 300 dollars. She
is too valuable for me to keep in a small town. Many wealthy
ladies would value her at her weight in gold if they knew what a
very rare pet she is. I think in your position she would be a
very good investment to exhibit at cat shows and other select
events, as she doubtless is the only hairless cat now known. I
have written to Old Mexico and all over this country without
finding another. I would like to have her in some large museum
where she would interest and be appreciated by thousands of
people." E J Shinick, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 3rd,
1902
Sadly, the Mexican Hairless was lost through lack of a breeding
programme. There was reputedly a pair in Europe, but whether
these were genuine Mexican Hairless or a new mutation was
unproven. Hairless kittens (Bald Cats) appeared in in France
(1932) but failed to thrive. In April 1935, the magazine "Vie A
La Campagne" (Life in the Country) carried pictures from a 1932
cat show in Paris which had featured two hairless cats called
"le chat nu" (the naked cat) shown as curiosities by Professor E
Letard. The naked cats had been born to two different domestic
females in the same household in 1930 though both died without
reproducing in 1931. This suggests a degree of inbreeding
allowing a recessive gene to be expressed. Some later reports
refer to the French Sphynx being "resurrected" , but this would
refer to the resurrection of hairless cats in general, not to a
French strain. The French Sphynx (Le Chat Nu) never became an
established breed in its own right.
Vie A La Campagne also reported the occurrence of a hairless
kitten born to a shorthair female in Fęz, Morocco as well as
occasional sightings of hairless cats in parts of Western
Europe. The Journal of Heredity had two pictorial features of
hairless cats. One (in 1930s?), nicknamed the "cat-dog", was
born to a housecat in Wilmington, North Carolina. It was
apparently born with open eyes, no whiskers and a precocious
ability to crawl (characteristics said to occur in modern Sphynx
cats). In 1938, veterinary professor E Letard reported two
hairless kittens born to two Siamese cats in Paris, France but
this may have been a re-reporting of the 1930s cats. The other
Journal of Heredity report was of three hairless kittens born to
a Siamese in Paris in 1950. The other six kittens in the litter
were normally-furred. The hairless Siamese kittens were examined
over several months by Professor Letard and reported to have
whiskers and varying degrees of hairlessness; also the amount
and type of hair changed during their first six months. When
they were interbred, three more hairless kittens were produced,
but there are no records of further breedings using these
hairless cats so the mutation was lost.
It was reported (in 1966, probably referring to the 1950s
kittens)
that Professor Étienne Letard of L'Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire
d'Alfort in France had "resurrected" the breed of bald cats and
it was noted that there were a few examples in Europe and
America. The cats were reported as not born completely bald. The
kittens had very light hairs which have scarcely thickened by
the growth of a slight down during the first two months. After
the kittens are weaned, this down falls away to leave them
completely smooth. At the time, they are described as sensitive
to cold, unaesthetic and not much admired by cat lovers and
having only a technical interest. The report noted that the
mutation had been fixed, but the breeding of bald cats was a
flirtation for the specialist and did not have a great future.
The modern Sphynx (Canadian Hairless) may be advertised as the
hairless cat from the scrolls of antiquity, but it derives from
Canadian cats of either the 1960s or 1970s. It has variously
been known as the Moon Cat, Moonstone Cat or Canadian Hairless
and may be spelled either Sphynx or Sphinx, though the former
spelling is more common. The history of the Canadian Sphynx is
not continuous as the original bloodline has been lost, but the
breeding program was restored when more hairless kittens
surfaced later. The later cats were probably related to the
earlier discovery, but there is no traceability.
The Sphynx's recessive gene mutation appeared more than once in
Toronto, Canada but the cats were most likely related. Hairless
kittens were discovered in Toronto in 1963 and it was
established that the trait was due to a recessive gene. They
were bred, but the breeding experiment was discontinued in the
late 1970s. Though a number of breeders were working with these
cats, the breed was not eligible for registration and many small
breeding programs were started up, only to vanish without trace
a few years later. Inexperienced breeders produced unhealthy or
poorly fertile cats, signs of inbreeding. In 1973, the Journal
of Heredity ran a report on these hairless cats. In 1978, the
last breeding pair of cats from that breeding program went to
Holland. The cats were brother and sister and though the female
produced a litter of kittens, she rejected them. They did not
manage to produce any further kittens which suggests poor
fertility/infertility due to severe inbreeding. What was needed,
were further female Sphynxes to widen the gene pool.
Coincidentally, also in 1978 (some reports erroneously state
1973, probably based on the report in the Journal of Heredity
relating to the earlier hairless cats), a litter with hairless
kittens was discovered among street cats in Toronto. The mother
giving birth to two further hairless female kittens in separate
litters in 1980. Since the gene for hairlessness is recessive,
both the mother and the two sires must have carried the gene. It
is likely that the parents of those kittens were unrecorded
progeny from the earlier, failed, breeding program. The two
1980s females were sent to the Netherlands to the same person
who held the last of the 1970s strain. He attempted to breed the
two strains together. The male refused to accept either of the
two new females and was neutered. It was discovered that one of
the females was pregnant by that sire, but she lost the litter
and with it the genes of the last authenticated Canadian
Hairless of the earlier strain. The Sphynx breed was therefore
developed using Devon Rex. Devon Rex sometimes occur with sparse
fur.
A further Canadian Sphynx appeared during the early years of the
breed; this being a hairless male farm cat found in Western
Canada. Though acquired by a Sphynx owner in Washington state,
he does not appear to have contributed to the modern Sphynx
line. Possibly he was genetically incompatible or otherwise
unsuitable.
In 1970, two nude cats (later named Starkers and Baldy) were
cared for at the Blue Cross Animal Hospital in London's Victoria
district. The pair appeared in the Daily Mirror newspaper
apparently in spite of its "no nudes" policy!
In 1975 and 1976, Jezabelle, a tabby shorthair farm cat owned by
Minnesota couple, Milt & Ethelyn Pearson, had given birth to two
hairless female kittens - Epidermis (1975) and Dermis (1976).
These were later used to expand the Sphynx gene pool. The
Pearsons' farm cats bred freely and there were hairless kittens
born in several litters, suggesting a mutation several
generations earlier followed by a degree of inbreeding. A
hairless male barn cat occurred in North Carolina, but there are
no recorded offspring from this cat.
In 1984, the Journal of Heredity carried again reported
hairlessness in cats. This was a report of ten hairless Birman
kittens born in England between 1978-1982. The hairless Birman
kittens had short or absent whiskers and greasy skin. None
survived beyond ten weeks of age, dying from various disease
processes (this suggests some sort of metabolic disorder or
immune system disorder). This type of hairlessness was already
associated with a lethal gene following a study in 1981.
In 1986 (unconfirmed date) a hairless cat turned up at a New
York, USA animal show. The owner claimed to know of a hundred
more in various locations around the world. In 1986 a hairless
female was discovered in a colony of freely breeding domestic
shorthairs in Bloomfield, New Jersey, but the owner apparently
would not allow this cat or its normal haired offspring (which
would carry the gene for hairlessness) to be used in the Sphynx
breeding program. In 1993, a mother cat with three normal-coated
kittens and one hairless kitten was rescued in Westchester
County, New York. The kitten, known as Gracie, proved to have a
different mutation. She produced normal coated offspring when
mated with a Sphynx. In 1995 a hairless male kitten was born to
two long-haired parents in Tennessee and was incorporated into
the Sphynx genepool.
Throughout the world there are still reports of hairless kittens
appearing in litters of feral cats and house cats. Hairless cats
found in domestic cat litters may still be used in the Sphynx
breeding programme to strengthen and expand the gene pool. Some
of them are producing extremely hairless offspring, suggesting
that several genes may be involved, not just a single simple
mutation. Others, like the much more recent Peterbald (discussed
later), prove incompatible with the Canadian Sphynx because they
have a different mutation. In the USA, hairless cats have been
found in North Carolina, Minnesota, Texas, Arkansas and Indiana.
In Canada they have turned up in Toronto and in Western Canada
(no precise location given). They have also occurred around the
world although to date only the Canadian, Russian and Hawaiian
mutations have given rise to distinct breeds.
Rather than being totally hairless, the modern Sphynx derived
from Canadian cats and other genetically compatible
spontaneously occurring hairless cats has a light peach-fuzz on
the skin and sometimes fur on the tail-tip. Unlike the Mexican
Hairless, it does not grow a ridge of fur during the colder
seasons.
Russian Hairless Cats
 Hairless
cats were reported in England in 1981 and 1984, but for many
years, the Canadian-bred Sphynx was unopposed as the sole
hairless cat breed. This changed with the appearance of the Don
Sphynx (Don Hairless, Russian Hairless, Don Bald Cat, Donskoy/Donsky)
in 1987 with a hairless blue tortoiseshell cat called Varya. In
1989 Varya produced several hairless kittens, one of which
became foundation cat for the Don Sphynx breeding line. The gene
for hairlessness is dominant to the gene for normal coat. The
Don Sphynx cats were bred to European Shorthairs, Domestic
Shorthairs and Russian Blues.
Some matings of Don Sphynx to Oriental/Siamese occurred in
St.Petersburg and in Moscow in 1993, but the first true
Peterbalds were born in January 1994 using a tortie oriental
female and tabby Don Sphynx with some Oriental traits. The Don
Sphynx was also bred with Russian Blues to produce more Don
Sphynx, but some of the offspring were used in the Peterbald
breeding program. It is a medium sized cat with curly whiskers
and tail tip and may have soft, dense, close lying, slightly
curly coat. Kittens may sometimes be born with a wavy Rex coat
and "bald spot" on the head. Young cats may retain short fur on
muzzles, slightly longer cheeks with "ear muffs". In winter the
whole body may be covered with a fine coat. It is now being
seriously bred in the USA and its breeder suggested using it to
found an experimental Hemingway Sphynx which would be a variety
of hairless cat with extra toes.
The Peterbald (St Petersburg Hairless) is another Sphynx-like
Russian breed derived from the same female, but with an
oriental-type body. It originated as cross between Don Sphynx
and Oriental-type household pets in St Petersburg. Some matings
of Don Sphynx to Oriental/Siamese occurred in St.Petersburg and
in Moscow in 1993. The first true Peterbalds were born in
January 1994 using a tortie oriental female and tabby Don Sphynx
with some Oriental traits. The Don Sphynx was also bred with
Russian Blues to produce more Don Sphynx, but some of these
offspring were used in the Peterbald breeding program. Like the
Don Sphynx, the Peterbald is now also bred in the USA. If a
Peterbald (or Don Sphynx) is crossed with a Sphynx,
normal-coated kittens result because the hairlessness is caused
by different genes.
Recent Mutations and Developments
Hairless cats still pop up out of nowhere due to mutation. Many
are treated as oddities and are neutered because the trait is
seen as detrimental. Elsewhere, the new occurrences may either
be used to expand the gene pool of an existing hairless breed
(if found to be genetically compatible) or used to create a
whole new breed (if genetically different). In 2002, I received
information about another hairless cat bloodline being bred.
This is the Hawaiian Hairless (or Kohana Kat). These cats are
the only completely hairless cats, since they lack hair
follicles and have a skin texture like rubber. The Hawaiian
Hairless originated from a feral litter in Hawaii, and are due
to a dominant gene which masks out the dominant gene for full-coatedness.
Unlike the other hairless breeds where the mutation affects the
function of the hair follicles, this mutation is different in
that it causes the hair follicles themselves to be absent.
In 2003, a magazine featured an almost hairless cat. Described
as the result of inbreeding, it was bald apart from long
whiskery guard hairs all over the body. It resembled the
mythical "longhair sphynx" and was described by one
correspondent as strange and rather ugly.
Once the gene for hairlessness has appeared, it is possible to
introduce it into other breeding programs. Whether this is
desirable is a matter of debate. For example, the Hemingway
Sphynx is a polydactyl hairless cat suggested in 2001 by a Don
Sphynx breeder (it was previously nicknamed the Polyfynx).
Around the same time, another breeder was using Canadian Sphynx
and breeding them to Munchkins and domestics to produce the Minskin. The Minskin is neither a short-legged Sphynx nor a
hairless Munchkin, but has its own unique look.
A Sphynxkin was also reported as a Munchkin/Sphynx crossbreed
made accidentally or out of curiosity; there was apparently
intention of establishing a breed, but this appears to have
vanished. The Mynx was reported to be a Manx/Sphynx crossbreed
and was strongly discouraged because of side-effects of the Manx
gene. The "breeder" was apparently attempting to obtain
foundation cats, but there has been no further news of this
"breed" so presumably it was not developed further.
The Mythical Hairless Breeds
Finally two "breeds" which have caused a stir of quite the wrong
kind are the Egyptian Hairless Cat and the Chinese Hairless Cat
Neither breed actually exists although numerous people have
either tried to obtain one or claim to "know somebody who has
one".
The root of the mythical Chinese Hairless cat might be Monsieur
Patrick Challan, a French antique breeder who apparently
attempted to revive hairless cats as a breed (undated report).
He speculated that his cats were Sphynx cats, which lived in
China in ancient times and which were descended from a liaison
between a cat and a "beautiful midget hairless dog". He stated,
by way of support to these claims, that his five nude cats
(chats nus) were never afraid of dogs and approached them in a
friendly, playful manner. Monsieur Challan's research apparently
found that bald cats had appeared in the writings of a few
English authors and that they had been sighted in Canada just
after that country was conquered by the British. This historical
link, never mind the hysterical dog-cat claim, resulted in
Monsieur Challan being offered up to $50,000 for his nude cats.
These offers were rejected by Challan who wanted to breed the
cats himself. He may not have resurrected the hairless cat
breed, but he seems to have created a mythical Chinese Hairless
Cat myth. I can find no mention of a Patrick Challan in Sphynx
literature, although a Patrique Challain of Paris bought 5
Sphynx kittens from a Dutch breeder in 1983.
The "Egyptian Hairless Cat" was invented around 2001 by the TV
show "Friends" and mistakenly reported as fact on some
veterinary websites and on usenet. The show depicted it as
hypoallergenic. Hairless cats are not hypoallergenic since the
allergen is in the saliva and dander, not the fur itself. It was
irresponsible of the show to mislead viewers into believing the
hypoallergenic myth as well as creating a belief in a
non-existent cat "breed". Although the name "Sphynx" might
suggest an Egyptian origin, there are currently no hairless
varieities originating from Egypt.
There is also no such breed as the "Chinese Hairless Cat". It
appears to be no more than a garbled version of the Egyptian
Hairless which has possibly been confused with the Chinese
Crested (or Hairless) Dog (which does exist) or the legacy of
Patrick Challan. Having said this, no doubt someone somewhere
will spot a marketing opportunity and create breeds by these
names!
The "Longhair Sphynx" rumoured to be the powder-puff version of
this breed is actually a cat fancy joke from a mailing list. It
was intended to poke fun at breed classification by registries.
Hairlessness is a recessive gene and always breeds true. There
is no Longhair Sphynx or Powder Puff Sphynx. The joke used the
Powder Puff Chinese Hairless Dog as its model.
Thank you to
www.messybeast.com
for letting us use their resources.
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