SPYNX KITTENS

A Sphynx History Throughout the domestication of the cat, hairless kittens have spontaneously appeared in Australia, France, Canada and the United States. Around the turn of the 20th century, there were two hairless cats owned by Mr. J. Schinck in New Mexico. He had acquired the cats from local Indians. Although there seems to have been some interest in these cats, no recorded breedings have been found. Then in 1938, geneticist Professor R. Letard reported two hairless kittens born to two Siamese cats in Paris, France. Twelve years later in 1950, a Siamese litter of nine kittens was born, of which three kittens were hairless. When these cats were interbred, three more hairless kittens were produced, but no further information is available on breedings using these hairless cats. The starting point for the Sphynx breed is Ontario, Canada in 1966. A domestic cat named Elizabeth, produced a hairless male kitten, named Prune. These two cats, Elizabeth and Prune, were acquired by Ridyadh and Yania Bawa who were eager to develop this remarkable breed. Keese and Rita Tenhove joined the Bawas in this breeding of hairless cats that were called at first "Moonstone cats", then "Canadian Hairless", and finally the name used today "Sphynx". Hairless cats found in recent years in domestic cat litters are still being used in Sphynx breeding programs to expand the gene pool. Britanya Cattery has been using a hairless cat's offspring found in Texas. Donna Roberds of Kattewyk Cattery has been using a hairless cat found in Arkansas. A breeding between these two cats produced extremely hairless offspring. Two hairless cats found in Indiana are reportedly being used in other Sphynx breeding programs. Today there is an ever spreading growth of Sphynx breeders who are dedicated to promoting, educating and raising awareness of these beautiful creatures. But on the flip side to this, there are also those who think there is much money to be made by breeding them “factory style”, with no consideration for conforming to breed standards, hairlessness, or temperament.