The origin of the breed, the standard of appearance, the nature of the animal and a description of the health of the representatives of the species. Cat care, selection features. Kitten price. The Canadian Sphynx is a unique exotic cat, which in a strange and bizarre way combines things that seem to be completely incompatible or, as the ancient Greeks said, an oxymoron. Judge for yourself: "cat" and suddenly "bald"; having an alien unearthly appearance and absolutely terrestrial origin; outlandish, and at first, somewhat scary appearance and unexpectedly cute, affectionately friendly character. Even the name of the breed itself contains such an oxymoron, causing the most controversial associations - "Canadian" (northern cold country Canada) and "Sphinx" (hot mysteriously mystical Egypt).
But all these are just our associations that disappear irrevocably, immediately after the first acquaintance with this "contradictory", but such a cool hot-suede cat. It is enough to take him in your arms - and you are forever subdued by the wise alien eyes of this creature and the hot suede nudity of his little body.
The origin of the Canadian Sphynx breed
Mentions of cats devoid of hair are found in ancient manuscripts from the times of antiquity. Yes, and judging by the drawings preserved in the Aztec temples, it is likely that the Indians of South America also knew some kind of hairless cats, which, unfortunately, has not survived to this day.
However, quite recently, in the 30s of the XX century, representatives of hairless cats, called the Mexican hairless breed, took part in exhibitions held on the American continent. Unfortunately, it was not possible to prolong the existence of this Mexican cat to this day.
Nevertheless, individual cases of the manifestation of the hairless gene at birth of kittens were recorded all over the world, but special breeding work to create a new breed of hairless cats began only in the 60s of the XX century.
The impetus for the beginning of the planned breeding work was, as always, a case. In 1966, in the Canadian province of Ontario, an ordinary long-haired cat gave birth to a hairless kitten named Prun. This cat later became the main supplier of the hairless gene for the rest of the litters of the same cat, and then of other cats. But no matter how hard the breeders tried, the new naked breed remained extremely small in number (closely related feline marriages gave very weak non-viable offspring).
The almost hopeless situation was corrected by chance again. In the city of Toronto (Canada), three more bald kittens were accidentally found. And then in the state of Minnesota in the United States in 1975, a magnificent bald cat was discovered, which received the funny name Epidermis. A year later, a hairless cat was born there. All these animals brought to the breed an influx of "new" blood, which is so necessary for scientists.
Later, Sphynx cats were crossed with the Devon Rex breed (in order to somehow fix the stability of the transmission of the "bald" gene). True, there were some problems here as well. This selection led to a change in the condition of the skin of the newly appeared sphinxes. The very famous cute folds and wrinkles of the skin that adorn these cats so amazingly have disappeared or become more rare. The most wrinkled representatives of the breed, as a rule, are distant descendants of their ancestor, the cat Epidermis (this is the most elite class of the breed).
However, in our time, there are also cases of the birth of hairless kittens, which can be used for mating, and therefore breeders and breeders do not lose hope of rectifying the situation. The first Canadian Sphynxes were brought to the territory of modern Russia in the 90s of the last century from the USA by the Moscow cat breeder Tatyana Smirnova. Couple: cat Aztec Baringo and cat Nefertiti gave birth to the first offspring of Canadian sphinxes in Russia.
External Standard of the Canadian Sphinx
This type of cat is a medium-sized hairless animal (the weight of the largest specimens reaches 5 kg), with a proportional body and well-developed muscles.
- Head "Canadian" is medium in size, wedge-shaped with a distinct "pinch" (transition from the cheekbones to the muzzle), with pronounced cheekbones, with a straight nose, which has a pronounced stop (in the place of the forehead-nose transition - fold-hollow). The profile is light, straight, with a stop on the bridge of the nose. The neck is of medium length, well defined and muscular.
- Ears very large, with a wide base, open, "upright", with a medium set. The tips of the ears may be slightly rounded or pointed. The inner part of the ears of the Canadian Sphynxes is devoid of hair. The presence of woolly areas is allowed only on the outside of the base of the ears.
- Eyes large (in kittens they seem huge), in shape reminiscent of a lemon, set wide and obliquely. The distance between the eyes is approximately equal to the size of the eye itself. Any eye color, but in harmony with skin color.
- Body type - medium, but strong and muscular. The body is dense, with a wide (sometimes barrel-shaped) chest. The back line is straight. The limbs of the "Canadian" are of medium length, in proportion to the body, strong. The feet are neat, with protruding knuckles. The paw pads are large, thick, corresponding in color to the main color. The tail is graceful, long and thin, completely bald, resembling a whip. The presence of hair at the end of the tail (lion's tail) is allowed by the standards.
- Skin covering completely hairless. The presence of a soft fluff on the skin is allowed. The texture of the skin of the Canadian Sphynx resembles soft suede with the presence of multiple deep and small parallel folds. There are especially many folds-wrinkles on the head of the animal.
The color of the skin is allowed to be very different. The most common types of color are as follows:
- Solid color - the predominance of skin pigmentation of one of the colors: white, black, blue, chocolate, purple, red, cream, cinnamon (brownish, cinnamon color), faun (soft beige with a brownish-yellow tint).
- Tortoiseshell (totrie) - the presence of two main pigments. There can be combinations of black-red or blue-cream, and so on. The rarest option when three colors are combined at once - black / white / red.
- Tabby color (tabby) - the appearance of spots of a different color on the main color. There are three types of spots: in the form of stripes (tiger or mackerel); in the form of patterns (marble); in the form of small specks scattered throughout the body of the cat (spotted).
- Bicolor color (bicolor) - a combination of any of the above basic colors of color with a white color scheme. A variation of "calico" is possible - a combination of white at once with black and red.
- Color-point color (color-point) - the Siamese version of the color, when the points (tips of the paws, ears, nose, tail) have a darker color against the background of a lighter main color of any color scheme.
The nature of the Canadian "alien"
Canadian Sphynxes are the smartest dynamic creatures, distinguished by their intelligent tactfulness of behavior and some kind of innate aristocracy.
The delicacy of the behavior of these amazing creatures, at times, is simply amazing. And even in situations where other cats behave in a completely different way. For example, even being very hungry, the sphinx will not yell good obscenities or pounce on food with the passion of a hungry wolf. No, he will still sit next to you, looking with huge inquiring eyes and silently wait for him to be fed, and having received what he wants, he will carefully and slowly eat the offered food, not forgetting to thank the polite "mur-r".
Distinguished by good behavior and general discipline, the Canadian Sphynx cats are also famous for their proud and independent character, not allowing frivolous treatment and familiarity with them. To strangers, and especially to noisy children, these intelligent cats tend to be somewhat suspicious and at first take special care. In which case, they simply go to a secluded place or climb into places inaccessible to children.
Despite all their independence, these creatures cannot be alone for long. Bored, they always wait for the return of their owners at the front door, which is very reminiscent of loyal dogs. And if at the meeting they do not jump, do not bark or squeal with joy, like dogs, then this is only because of their feline nature and innate tact.
Sphinxes are energetic (and sometimes even hyperactive), playful and affectionate creatures. At the same time, they are not distinguished by excessive intrusiveness. If you are busy or simply cannot pay attention to them, they will simply silently follow you with their tails, taking advantage of positions to observe your actions. But seeing that you have freed yourself from household chores and have free time, these smartest animals will instantly try to take advantage of this. How it will look depends on each Sphynxian individually. One will quickly bring you a ball or other favorite toy in your teeth, the other will try to jump onto your lap, making himself comfortable. The third will simply begin to walk in circles, periodically nestling with a hot body against your legs. They all have their own tactics. Do not deny them your attention and affection. After all, they love you.
Canadian Sphynxes love to be on their hands, as well as on the neck, head, knees (if it happens in bed or on the couch). At every convenient opportunity, they instantly take these places, warming them with a hot body and rumbling loudly. From such communication with a person, they seem to get the most pleasure.
This breed gets along great with other pets and children (if they are not too noisy, of course). Moreover, the cases that the "Canadian" scratched or bit some of the children are simply not described. Even small children, who tend to pull and jerk a cat for any place that is in their hands, are completely safe when interacting with this amazing and patient cat. For the Sphynx cat, other pets, such as birds and rodents, are unattractive as dinner. Therefore, they can crawl, run and fly wherever they please, causing only the most ordinary curiosity in the cat. And with dogs, Sphynx cats often perfectly converge at all, finding common interests and understanding (Sphynxes, in fact, have something from dogs in their character).
Of course, these cats, like all others, have drawbacks, each animal is always individual, unlike anyone else and always requires its own special approach. But the Canadian Sphynxes are just those cats that have the very minimum of these shortcomings and are able to fall in love with anyone. Knowledgeable people say correctly that Sphynx cats either cause persistent disgust or fascinate forever.
Canadian Sphynx health
This breed of cats is an artificially bred by breeders breed, where the main emphasis by scientists was on the preservation of the gene for hairlessness of the animal. And if the creators of the breed did the best with the baldness gene, then it was not possible to overcome all the attendant problems (after all, this gene not only gives the disappearance of wool, but its action also extends to the bones of the skeleton, internal organs and systems of the animal) has not yet been fully overcome.
Therefore, veterinarians involved in the treatment of Canadian Sphynxes note that these exotic cats are characterized by no less exotic genetic diseases and predispositions. And this is a whole bunch of: problems with the structure of the lower jaw (shortening or sloping of the chin is observed), skin dermatitis and acne (including seasonal), congenital volvulus of the eyelids, curvature or fracture of the tail of the spine, cysts and hyperplasia of the mammary glands, glandular cystic mutations of the mammary glands, underdevelopment of the thymus gland (leading to weak immunity and problems with the endocrine system) and gingival hyperplasia. There is also a problem associated with the lack of wool - the danger of colds and sunburn.
Scientists and breeders are now working hard on all these issues.
Nevertheless, even with so many predispositions, the average life expectancy of Canadian Sphynxes is quite high and reaches 14-16 years, and the ancestor of the breed, the cat Epidermis, managed to live up to 20 years.
Sphynx cat grooming tips
Caring for "Canadians" is quite specific. It may seem that the lack of wool makes life easier for the owner (after all, you do not need to engage in tedious combing), but this is not so. Not only is it necessary to constantly monitor that your pet does not get overcooled in a draft or, conversely, does not overheat in the sun, but also the condition of his bare skin must be given constant attention, much more than the hair of an ordinary cat.
The standard procedures for caring for the skin of the Canadian Sphynx are to regularly wipe the entire body with wet wipes. More frequent bathing - a specific sticky secret-lubricant secreted by the skin, in combination with dust and dirt, quickly turns these cats into "grubby". The air in the apartment is kept sufficiently humid - with dry air or elevated temperatures, the skin of the animal becomes dry and begins to peel off, forming ulcers.
Regular examinations of the cat's mouth, teeth and gums, removal of secretions from the eyes (the "Canadian" does not have eyelashes that protect against environmental pollution) will help you avoid many health problems. It is necessary to occasionally trim the claws with a special tool - a claw cutter.
It is worth dwelling separately on nutrition. Weak immune system and endocrine system problems do not allow feeding these animals anything at all. You are also unlikely to succeed in individually creating the right menu for them (due to, again, breed problems). Therefore, the most correct and time-tested solution to the issue of nutrition is an individual selection of high-class dry food from the best manufacturer (and with his own recommendations).
Features of the selection of Canadian Sphynxes
Home breeding of Canadian Sphynx cats is strongly discouraged by scientists felinologists.
And this is directly related to the hereditary and genetic health problems of this breed, which do not allow an ordinary person to cope with them without special education and experience.
Therefore, the breeding of sphinxes should be carried out by experienced breeders directly related to scientific breeders, veterinary specialists and experienced felinologists. It is these specialists who, acting together, are able to detect the signs of genetic diseases in time already at the initial stage. For an ordinary person, such work is simply an unbearable burden in terms of the cost of effort, time and money.
Price when buying a kitten of the Canadian Sphynx breed
The uniqueness of the first created breed of hairless cats and the complexity of its selection at home significantly affected the price of kittens. Despite the fact that the breed is no longer as small as it was in the 20th century, there are not so many true purebred individuals today. The average price in Russia is in a very wide range - 17,000-100,000 rubles, directly depending on the pedigree, appearance, color and sex of the animal.
In other countries, where "Canadians" are more common, the maximum cost of Sphynx kittens reaches 1200-1300 US dollars.
For a description of the Canadian Sphynx cat breed, see this video:
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