What you need to know before getting a Sphynx

Care and maintenance

Hygiene requirements for representatives of this breed will differ from others. Particular emphasis should be placed on the body and eyes. These are the most vulnerable places for the bald inhabitant of your apartment.

How to treat your skin

She is very sensitive and needs constant attention. be kept clean all the time , because sphinxes sweat profusely and because of this they look dirty. They have many sebaceous glands that secrete lubricant to protect them from the external environment. To remove this brown residue, use a damp, alcohol-free wipe or damp cloth.

In winter, the body is covered with small villi to retain heat longer. In the summer, pets love to bask in the warm rays, but prolonged sunbathing is harmful to them. In this case, the color may darken a little.

Caring for ears, teeth and eyes

The huge size of the ears leads to the fact that brown discharge quickly accumulates inside them due to rapid metabolism and high temperature. It is better to clean them once a week using cotton swabs soaked in a special solution or hydrogen peroxide. Don't climb too far to avoid damaging your eardrums.

During the day, a small amount of clear or brown discharge accumulates on the cat’s mucous membrane. This is normal because there are no eyelashes or eyebrows. If they turn yellow, smell like pus, and are too watery, then your pet has an infection. Contact your veterinarian immediately.

For a healthy animal, wipe the eyes daily from the outer corner to the other edge, using a piece of bandage soaked in tea leaves, furatsilin or chamomile infusion. You can buy drops intended for this purpose at the pharmacy.

Teeth also need care. They are cleaned with baby paste or a solution of soda and salt - 1 tsp each. for 200 ml of warm water. A soft-bristle toothbrush or gauze is suitable for the procedure. At the same time, do not forget to gently massage your gums to avoid inflammation.

Care instructions

Bald nature is truly unusual and therefore requires proper care. Only in this case the animal will not get sick and suffer from various problems. It is necessary to devote time to your pet every day and carry out special procedures. You should take care of the cleanliness of the animal, as if there is no hygiene, it will look bad and suffer from skin problems. Sphynxes tend to sweat because sebaceous glands function in the dermis.

Leather can become dirty, so it needs to be wiped daily. Of course, you don’t need to wash your pet often, because it won’t be good for him either.

It is enough to wipe the animal with wet wipes, paying special attention to the interfold area. Cats enjoy water treatments because they love to swim.

Bathing them is allowed once a week, but not more often.

You should carefully care for your ears every day, because they tend to get dirty. You need to clean your ears with a cotton swab, which must first be moistened in a special solution. If the ears are too dirty, red and have dark crusts, this may indicate an infection. In this case, you will have to visit a veterinarian.

As for your teeth, you need to brush them every day. The teeth are wiped with gauze, which the owner wraps around his finger and soaks in a herbal decoction. This procedure applies to kittens, because for adult animals you can use a special toothbrush and toothpaste. It is sold at a pet store.

By the way, the Sphynx cat breed does not have eyelashes, which is also their characteristic feature. Because of this, dust often gets into the eyes and an infection develops. For this reason, the visual organ must be washed every day to prevent the development of the disease.

You can trim the claws of a hairless cat yourself, but if you have no such experience, then the right thing to do for the first time is to consult a veterinarian. He will show you how to trim nails safely without harming your paws.

Sphynxes are extremely clean animals, so their litter box must always be kept clean. Otherwise, your pet may start walking in the wrong place.

It is important to prevent such a situation in order to avoid unpleasant surprises

The pet loves warmth, so the owner must take care of warm clothes for the winter. The recommended room temperature is 20-25 degrees. By the way, hairless cats love to bask on a warm radiator, so it is recommended to lay some kind of fabric there, for example, a towel. In this case, the pet will not get burned.

Nutritional Features

Feeding follows a special pattern. The lack of wool is compensated by accelerated energy metabolism and high heat transfer. Sphynxes have a higher temperature than other members of the cat family. This causes them to quickly burn calories that need to be replenished.

When creating a menu, consider the following recommendations:

• give food at the same time, following the regime;
• feed adults 3-4 times and kittens 6-8 times;
• the diet must contain all the necessary nutrients and vitamins;
• It is permissible to eat only natural or only prepared food ; the mixed type is harmful to the sensitive digestive system;
• Change the water frequently to keep it clean.

If you choose products of natural origin, then buy only fresh food. Don't skimp on food for your pet. He can eat chicken or beef fillet, raw or boiled. Feed fish without bones once a week. Cottage cheese, fermented baked milk, and sour cream should also be present on the animal’s menu. Whole milk is undesirable for everyone except babies who are 3-4 months old. It is useful to stew carrots, zucchini, and pumpkin. It is better to give eggs not whole, but only the yolk. Some people love cucumbers.

Features of keeping sphinxes

Caring for sphinxes and recommendations for their maintenance differ from other breeds - due to the peculiarities of the body's heat exchange, it is important to monitor the temperature in the room so that the animal does not become hypothermic.

Ears

Ear cleansing is carried out in several stages:

• drop a few drops of cleansing lotion, sold in pet stores, into each ear - it will help soften the dirt accumulated in the ear;
• After 5–10 minutes, remove dirt using a cotton swab or cosmetic swab.

It is impossible to penetrate deep into the ear canal - the eardrum is located close to the canal and is easily damaged, which can cause deafness in the pet. If itching or redness appears, you should show the animal to a doctor. The described hygiene procedure should be performed once every 7–10 days.

Eyes

Sphynxes do not have eyelashes, so the owner can remove dirt with a damp cloth additionally soaked in a weak herbal decoction or natural black tea without additives. The presence of yellowish discharge is the first signal that you need to be examined by a veterinarian.

Claws

It is recommended to trim overgrown claws 2 times a month using a nail clipper. It is also necessary to regularly clean the skin fold around the claw from accumulated dirt and skin secretions.

Leather

Contaminants from the skin are removed with wet wipes that do not contain alcohol. If the skin is excessively dry, you should lubricate it with baby moisturizer. In summer, experts recommend using sunscreen to minimize the risk of burns.

Bathing

Water procedures are carried out taking into account the following rules:

1. Bathe the cat once every 2-3 weeks using a special shampoo - frequent water treatments contribute to skin irritation.
2. A bath or basin is filled with such a quantity of warm water that the animal is chest-deep in it.
3. The liquid should not get into your pet's ears, and you should not put it under a shower or running water.
4. After bathing the sphinx, wrap it in a soft towel and keep it there until it is completely dry, so that it does not get sick.

If your pet is not bathed for a long time, a specific aroma will begin to emanate from its skin, and brown discharge from the skin will remain everywhere in the apartment.

Toilet training

Sphynxes have a high level of intelligence, so it’s not difficult to train them to use a litter box - just show the kitten a few times where to relieve themselves, and it will remember it for the future.

You should not raise your voice or hit the animal if it went to the toilet in the wrong place - you should just take it to the litter tray. Most often, after this the sphinx understands the owner’s wishes.

Training

You can train a sphinx from the age of 8-9 months - at this time he begins to listen to the commands of his owner.

Before starting classes, you need to observe your pet’s behavior and study its preferences - this will help teach it new tricks. For example, a cat loves to carry things in his teeth or jump over obstacles - regular exercises will help teach him to jump on your shoulder or fetch certain objects.

Training is carried out without coercion - if the animal does not want to perform the exercise, exclude it. Also, if the sphinx is afraid of you or doesn’t trust you, you won’t be able to bribe him with a treat.

Choice of clothes

Clothing for the Sphinx must meet a number of requirements:

• be selected taking into account the dimensions of the cat - the wrong size will cause discomfort in the animal and can lead to irritation;
• do not have dense or sharp elements that can cause injury or interfere with movement;
• be made of high quality material that does not change color or size after washing.
• You can either buy a wardrobe for an animal in a store or sew it yourself, according to previously taken measurements - such things will protect its body from hypothermia.

Vaccination

Even if your pet is regularly at home, you should not ignore the recommended vaccinations - this will help avoid many diseases. The infection can be transmitted on the sole of a shoe, and an unprepared cat can easily pick it up.

The first vaccinations are given to kittens after 6 weeks - until this age they receive all the necessary nutrients from their mother's milk.

Vaccination sequence:

• 2 weeks before vaccination, deworming is carried out;
• standard vaccination includes the administration of drugs against panleukopenia, rhinotracheitis and calicivirus;
• rabies vaccination is given by 8 weeks;
• At 16 weeks, revaccination against leukemia is performed.

After administering any vaccine, your pet should be isolated from contact with other animals for at least a week.

After vaccination, the Sphynx may become less active or suffer from an upset stomach - this is a normal reaction of the body, which should resolve on its own within 2 days. For preventive purposes, vaccinations are done once a year - their list is agreed upon with a veterinarian.

House for the sphinx

To prevent your animal from freezing during the cold season, in addition to clothing, you can purchase a special house, a hammock or a bed for the radiator for its care. The finishing material should be of soft colors and easy to clean.

What to feed?

Representatives of this breed have a wonderful appetite, but you cannot give them everything. This is especially true for table scraps and human food.

The digestive system of human bald friends is not adapted to digest confectionery or sausages, spices or smoked meats. It's poison for them. The diet is planned taking into account age characteristics.

Adults

Choose the number of feedings yourself, but it is better to accustom him to a certain regimen . The main thing is that your pet has access to food when he is hungry or cold. Meat must be on the menu. The daily value is approximately 30% of his body weight. There are also useful proteins in fish and cottage cheese. 200-250 g per day is enough.

1/3 of the food consists of carbohydrate components. These are porridges - buckwheat, oatmeal, rice or fresh vegetables. Add 5-10 g of vegetable oil to them. Unrefined is better, it contains more vitamins. In winter, the volume of portions increases.

What does a kitten need for normal development and growth?

The body grows up to 10 months, so it is important for babies to eat properly and fully. From the first month of life they are accustomed to solid food. Let's have some boiled veal. They can’t eat pork, it’s too fatty for them and can cause indigestion. From 6 weeks you can feed with egg yolk and cottage cheese. At 4 months, boiled sea fish is useful in small quantities. Remove the bones from it.

Royal Canin for sphinxes

If you choose ready-made food, follow good recommendations . Advertising is usually not a guarantee of quality. Loud PR most often masks major shortcomings, slowly poisoning the body. It’s better to ask veterinarians, your friends or breeders which is preferable for representatives of this breed.

Please also consider these helpful tips when feeding this type of food:

• purchase only certified products, do not skimp on paying a higher price for them - a trip to the hospital will cost more later;
• take the type that you need - there is food for sterilized animals, for adults and kittens, medicinal or with special additives;
• Place a cup of clean water next to the food bowl and fill it on time;
• additionally sprout oats as a source of vitamins;
• If you notice that digestive problems arise, you should not suddenly switch to other types of nutrition, do it gradually.

Royal Canin produces dry food directly for Sphynx cats. The serving size required for a cat is indicated in the instructions for use.

Video

* We invite you to watch a video about the Sphinx . In fact, in front of you is a playlist in which you can select and watch any of 20 videos about a given cat breed by simply clicking on the button in the upper right corner of the window. In addition, the material contains quite a lot of photos. By looking at them you can find out what the Sphinx looks like.

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The Sphynx is a graceful cat that has gained popularity relatively recently. Not many people know that hairless cats existed long before the development of civilization and were also revered by ancient people. Today, sphinxes are smart and kind animals that are always ready to make contact with people.

How to bathe properly?

In addition to frequent rubbing, the skin needs additional care. It is advisable to carry out water procedures at least once a month or when the animal’s body becomes too greasy to the touch. If you want your pet not to experience stress, give him bath days at intervals of once every 14 days after he reaches the age of 1.5 months. Then after a while he himself will start asking to go to the bathroom.

The necessary conditions

It is recommended to wash with baby gel, intimate hygiene product or special shampoo for hairless cats. The water should reach chest level and the temperature should be between 36-38 degrees. It’s better to throw toys at it to interest and distract it.

The optimal time is immediately after sleep. At this moment, your pet is still relaxed and will not resist much. Cover the bottom of the surface with a towel or mat to reduce slipping. It will be more comfortable this way.

Process Features

To thoroughly bathe the sphinx, you must first become familiar with the sequence of water procedures for it. This is done in the following order:

• We put our four-legged friend on the mat.
• We thoroughly wet the body, pouring it with the palm of your hand or a ladle. It is not advisable to do this with a stream of soul, so as not to cause negative emotions.
• Apply detergent. You can rub it with a washcloth.
• Wash off with warm water.
• We wipe it well and let it dry further in a warm place.

After water procedures, try to avoid hypothermia.

The Sphynx is an extraordinary breed of cat. They are very affectionate and curious . If you give them care and attention, they will reciprocate. They will warm you with the warmth of their heart, purring pleasantly at your side.

Sphinx skin

A striking difference between Sphynxes and other cat breeds is the lack of hair, but not all Sphynxes fully fit this definition. There are several types of these cats depending on their skin:

1. They are naked, completely devoid of hair, and have sticky skin.
2. Flock, on the skin of which there are short hairs 1-2 mm long, making it feel like the surface of a peach.
3. Brushes having hard, slightly crimped sparse hair, which these animals can periodically “take off” and “put on.”

Absolutely hairless sphinxes are considered the most noble, since hairlessness is the main breed-forming characteristic.

Because these cats have a higher body temperature than humans, their skin feels hot to the touch. Many are confident that the healing abilities inherent in all cats, which treat a diseased organ by lying on it, are twice as developed in Sphynxes, since skin-to-skin contact enhances the effect of such a procedure. In addition, Sphynxes are considered the most hypoallergenic, or rather, the lowest allergenic cat breed, since the allergen contained in the saliva of any cat and getting on the fur is contained in much smaller quantities on the hairless skin of the Sphynx.

The advantages of these hairless cats are their unusual expressive appearance, as well as the absence of the need for hair cleaning, which cannot be avoided with cats of other breeds, even short-haired ones.

How to properly care for your Sphynx's skin?

Unlike other cats, the Sphynx needs regular bathing, since the skin of these animals secretes a greasy brownish substance that forms an unpleasant coating, which also accumulates in the folds, which is especially pronounced in completely hairless Sphynx cats.

Therefore, the skin of such a cat should be wiped daily with a damp cloth or sponge. And the pet needs to be bathed approximately once every 2 weeks. Keep in mind that shampoos for cats are not suitable for sphinxes - it is recommended to wash these animals with shampoo that has a pH level of no higher than 5.5. This condition is perfectly met by baby shampoos. You can bathe the Sphynx in a plastic basin, or in a bathtub in warm water, similar to that in which small children are bathed. To prevent the cat from slipping and being so afraid, you need to lay a rubber mat or towel on the bottom. The water level should reach the cat's abdomen.

When considering the topic of caring for the skin of Sphynx cats, one cannot help but mention one more important point: being very sensitive, the skin of these cats easily burns in the sun, so you need to carefully ensure that in hot weather the animal is not exposed to the sun for a long time. For this purpose, special summer clothes are used for the sphinx, which will protect their skin.