The most well-known hairless cat breed is the sphynx, which originated in Canada in the 1960s. Resulting from a naturally occurring recessive genetic mutation,
The bambino is a pint-sized hairless cat, as its name—"baby" or "child" in Italian—suggests. This dwarf feline is a cross between the sphynx and the munchkin.
Also known as the Russian hairless, Don hairless, or Don sphynx, the Donskoy is different from the sphynx. The sphynx gets their hairlessness from a recessive genetic mutation.
The dwelf comes from crosses among the munchkin, American curl, and sphynx cat breeds.1 Several mutations created this breed’s hairless, compact, and elf-like appearance,
When you cross a sphynx and an American curl, the product is the friendly and playful elf cat, a larger version of the dwelf. These cats typically have a downy feel to their soft skin,
Also known as the werewolf cat, the lykoi isn’t always hairless. Some lykoi cats are entirely covered in the breed’s distinctive black-gray coat,
The minskin is a short-legged, hairless cat developed from a breeding a munchin and a sphynx. These cats often have sparse, fine fur on their bodies, especially at the “points” (the nose, ears, legs, and tail).
The Peterbald is an elegant feline with prominent features and long limbs. They originated from a cross between the Donskoy and Oriental shorthair.
Breeders continue to use the hairless mutation in sphynx cats to produce new hybrids. For instance, the sphynxiebob is a cross between a sphynx and an American bobtail and emerged in 2015.