A UFO, an alien hot-water bottle, or just a bald cat? The Canadian Sphynx is very easy to recognize: a few obvious features set it apart from every other house cat.
Breed History
Of course, the Sphynx’s most noticeable traits are the lack of hair on the body and those amazing wrinkles! Cats of this breed started amazing the world fairly recently.
In 1966, the first Canadian Sphynx kitten was born in Canada (though nobody knew it yet). The only naked boy in an ordinary cat’s litter was named Prune, and breeding him made it possible to fix the hairless gene. But at that point, breeders still didn’t fully understand how sphynxes came about. Everyone could see what the new breed looked like, but how could they get consistent litters? The question stayed open for almost 10 years.
Epidermis came to the rescue! Yes, that’s the (very fitting) name given to a bald cat born in Wadena, Minnesota. Soon after, a similar female was born there too. At the Z. Stardust cattery, they launched the breed and became the great-great-grandparents of today’s Sphynxes.
Leafing through the breed’s history, it’s worth stopping for a moment at a chapter called Bambi. This black-and-white hairless cat was found on the streets of Toronto in the 1970s. People say he was beautiful. Bambi’s looks and personality matched his name perfectly. But Bambi was a street cat and had been badly hurt in fights. One-eyed and, sadly, unable to father kittens, Bambi became famous as a long-lived sphynx. His fans celebrated Bambi’s 19th birthday with him!
The hairless cats Pinkie and Paloma, found along with Bambi, were sent to the Netherlands, where they started the European line of Canadian Sphynxes. But the Sphynx’s homeland is Canada, and so that nobody ever forgets it, the name “Canadian Sphynx” is written forever into the cat world and into the hearts of the breed’s fans! In the US, the breed is simply called the Sphynx.
Canadian Sphynx Personality and Traits at a Glance
| Affection for family | ★★★★★ |
| Shedding | ★☆☆☆☆ |
| Health | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Playfulness | ★★★★☆ |
| Vocality | ★★★☆☆ |
| Good with kids | ★★★★★ |
| Friendliness toward strangers | ★★★★★ |
| Ease of grooming | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Gets along with other pets | ★★★★★ |
| Intelligence | ★★★★☆ |
Canadian Sphynx Breed Overview
So how many sphynxes are there in the world? Nobody has counted them one by one yet, but there are only three main hairless breeds: the St. Petersburg Sphynx (better known as the Peterbald), the Donskoy (the Russian hairless), and our old friend the Canadian Sphynx. You’d think all three breeds are hairless and therefore the same? Never say that to owners who adore their Canadian Sphynxes!
The breed standard will help you tell that you’re looking at a Canadian Sphynx and highlight the breed’s features.
- The Canadian Sphynx has a medium-sized, wedge-shaped head with rounded contours. The head is only slightly longer than it is wide. The cheekbones are prominent, the jaw is strong, and there may be a short layer of fuzz:
- the bridge of the nose is broad, and the nose itself is short and covered in short fuzz;
- the ears are wide at the base and set wide apart. The ears are always large and may have some fuzz on the outside at the base. Furnishings and tufts aren’t allowed;
- kittens of this breed open their eyes very early and immediately look straight into your soul! It’s true: owner reviews and urban legends say only Canadian Sphynxes can, and love to, look a person in the eye for a long time without blinking or looking away. In fact, Canadian Sphynxes are sometimes even born with their eyes open, and their eyes are large and lemon-shaped. The space between the eyes is slightly more than one eye’s width. The eyes can be any color that goes well with the coat color;
- they have almost no whiskers, but some cats may keep them, and the standard allows that.
- The Canadian Sphynx’s build is charming! They win you over with their grace and elegance. Their body has no straight, harsh lines; everything is smooth and flowing. Like little statues, Canadian Sphynxes are medium-sized, muscular, and sturdy. The belly shouldn’t be tucked up, but the chest should be broad; overall, the silhouette looks like a ripe pear.
Because of the broad chest, the front legs are always set wide apart. The legs themselves are slender with long toes (this kind of paw is called a “monkey paw”). The hind legs are longer than the front legs, which gives them their special walk. There may be a little fuzz left on the toes.
The tail is long and whip-like, with no fur, but your Sphynx may well grow a lion’s tail, meaning a tuft at the tip. That’s not a disqualifying trait. A Sphynx’s tail is almost always curled up like a bagel and pressed against the body.
An amazing fact: a Canadian Sphynx always turns out to be heavier than it looks.
You couldn’t call these bald cats especially big: an adult weighs about 8 to 13 lb.
- Skin and color. Any coat can only show up as minimal fuzz on the cat’s body. They feel warm and very pleasant to the touch: Sphynx skin is similar to a baby’s skin.
The Canadian Sphynx is famous for its wrinkles. In fact, there’s so much skin that even if you stretch a Sphynx out to full length, it still won’t be smooth, but “wrinkly.” There must be wrinkles on the forehead, neck, and legs. The photos confirm that Canadian Sphynxes are the most “wrinkly” of all the sphynxes.
These days more and more cats in breeding programs stay hairless as they grow up but lose most of their kitten “hood” of wrinkles. It’s still best if your pet’s genes let it keep these signature skin features.
All colors are allowed, of any type and in any combination. The color can be solid: black, gray, chocolate, lilac, red, cinnamon, fawn, white, tortoiseshell. It can also be tabby, colorpoint, and so on.
Personality
According to owners, the Canadian Sphynx has a heart of gold! They’re very loving, and you can be sure they won’t miss a chance to climb into their owner’s arms. Or onto their head, whichever works.
Their intelligence is about the level of a three-year-old child. This “kid” shows every sign of common sense and isn’t at all jealous of other animals living in the same house.
A Sphynx’s loyalty is amazing: they’re always devoted to their owner and ready to keep them warm, entertain them, and talk with them endlessly.
Sphynxes are proud fellows. They don’t beg for handouts; they’d rather swipe a treat themselves. And a full Sphynx is no guarantee your dinner table is safe.
When it comes to life, you get the impression that Canadian Sphynxes don’t fully understand they’re cats. Their behavior and personality suggest they consider themselves people, or at least dogs. A Canadian Sphynx is never aggressive and can easily cure a mild headache, since these cats clearly have a healing gift. In short, the Sphynx’s warm heart is wide open to love!
Health
And it’s not just their hearts that are warm, but their bodies too! Sphynxes feel hot to the touch because they have no fur, and they have a fast metabolism and heartbeat.
Unfortunately, Canadian Sphynxes are prone to a long list of health problems. Obesity tops the list. They may also (or may not) have: a curved tail spine, skin vasculitis, congenital entropion (inward-rolling eyelids), acne, softening of the last tail vertebra, dermatitis, gum hyperplasia, mammary hyperplasia and cysts, and more. The list is impressive, but if you pay close attention to your pet’s health, you can avoid most of these pitfalls.
Important! A Canadian Sphynx’s skin is so thick that in some places it’s very hard to get a needle through.
Canadian Sphynxes live 13–15 years on average. But Bambi’s example is an inspiration for Sphynxes to make it past 17–19!
Care and Living Conditions
The Canadian Sphynx is a beautiful but sweaty flower! Of all hairless cats, Canadian Sphynxes are the champions at this. When a Sphynx sweats, it sweats all over. The sweat doesn’t have a particular smell, but this waxy film can stain clothes and surfaces around your home. So you’ll need to wipe your cat down regularly with a damp cloth or pet wipes, because when the sweat dries, it leaves a chocolate-colored “tan” on the skin. Sometimes a wipe-down is enough, and sometimes you’ll need to give your Sphynx a bath. Any shampoo that’s gentle enough for a baby will work for bathing.
By the way, the same substance the skin produces builds up heavily in the ears. This black-gray wax doesn’t bother the cat, but it doesn’t look nice, so you’ll need to clean the ears often.
Another recommendation: moderate sunbathing. A little sun makes the cat’s color brighter and prettier, but moderation is key. Hairless cats sunburn easily in direct sun, so get them used to it gradually, starting with time in light shade.
Feeding
Because Canadian Sphynxes lose more body heat than other house cats, they eat noticeably more too. They’ll eat just about anything and have great appetites. Keep in mind that Sphynxes hardly chew, and choose their diet with that in mind.
They may also suddenly start eating foods that are completely unusual for cats. Be careful here: some human foods, like chocolate, are toxic to cats, so never give them those.
You can feed them lean meat that’s been frozen first, if you’re sure it’s clean. Your pet will also like grains, organ meats, and fermented dairy, as well as a raw egg yolk once a week (they don’t digest cooked eggs well). They’ll also love sausage, cheese, and cake. But you should never give those to these greedy bald cats!
Still, a high-quality dry food is the best choice.
Photos
Few people know that the wrinkle pattern on every Canadian Sphynx’s nose is unique. Each cat of the breed has its own pattern, like a person’s fingerprints. These wrinkles look amazing in photos!
Where to Buy a Sphynx Kitten in the US
The Sphynx is one of the most popular breeds in the US and Canada, and breeders and catteries offer plenty of beautiful kittens.
In the US, a pet-quality Sphynx kitten from a reputable breeder usually costs about $1,500–$3,000, and many well-known catteries charge $3,500–$5,000 or more. Show-quality kittens and rare colors can cost $6,000 and up. The price depends on the kitten’s pedigree (catteries provide it) and its individual qualities. Be wary of very cheap Sphynx kittens: a rock-bottom price usually means no health testing or a scam.
Choose a Sphynx cattery:
- CFA (Cat Fanciers’ Association) Find a Breeder – https://find-a-breeder.cfa.org/;
- TICA (The International Cat Association) breeder listings – https://tica.org/find-a-cat/find-a-cat-breeder-listings/;
- Pantheon Sphynx Cattery (Southington, Ohio);
- Kissy Sphynx (CFA; Sphynx and Siamese);
- FurlesFeline (TICA and CFA).
The Canadian Sphynx is a purr-fectly gorgeous cat!
