- Permissible: All colour varieties and patterns, including those with white
- Permissible: Any amount of white
About the Sphynx
Origin: Canada
- Typical life span
- 12-16 years
- Size
- Medium — from its typical weight
- Weight
- 3.6-6.4 kg
- Height
- 23-30 cm
- Registry status
- Recognised by TICA
- Breed group
- Hairless
- Origin
- Canada
- Known hereditary risks
- 3 documented conditions, with the test for each
About
What is a Sphynx?
Medium-sized, hairless cat with wrinkled skin, large ears, and muscular body. Known for affectionate, attention-seeking personality.
Sphynx history and origins
Originated from hairless kittens born in Toronto, Canada in 1966. Hairlessness is caused by a recessive gene. Not truly hairless - covered in fine down. Needs warmth and sun protection.
Sphynx appearance and size
Typically 3.6-6.4 kg and 23-30 cm at the shoulder — published as one range rather than separately for males and females.
Sphynx temperament and personality
Generally described as loyal, inquisitive, friendly, quiet, gentle, affectionate and social.
That is the breed in general, not a promise about one animal. Ask the breeder what their own line is like, and meet the parents before you decide.
Breed reference from The Cat API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Medium
- Exercise needs
- —
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- 1 of 5
- Grooming needs
- 1 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- 3 conditions documented
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Sphynx
What you get with the Sphynx
- Low grooming needs, fitting for a busy owner — the coat is “Appears hairless, may be covered with short, fine down.”
- Commonly described as: “Loyal, Inquisitive, Friendly, Quiet”
What you are taking on
- 2 serious inherited conditions are documented, mainly in heart & circulation and brain & nerves. The health guide tab has the test to ask for on each.
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FIFe breed standard; The Cat API; Prevalence of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and ALMS1 Variant in Sphynx Cats in New Zealand. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FIFe standard · Sphynx
Coat and colour
As the FIFe standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
Appears hairless, may be covered with short, fine down.
Chamois-like, a feeling of resistance may be felt when stroking the skin of some cats.
Short, soft, fine hair is allowed on the feet, across the bridge of the nose and cheekbones, at the back of the ears, the scrotum and the tip of the tail.
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FIFe’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FIFe standard SPH — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
Temperament
LoyalInquisitiveFriendlyQuietGentleAffectionateSocial
Breed-level information from The Cat API. It describes the Sphynx in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
Health & screening guide for the Sphynx
Known hereditary risks for the Sphynx breed, and the specific documentation to request from any breeder before paying a deposit. A responsible breeder will have these readily available; deflection is a red flag.
3 conditions documentedThis is breed-level literature, not veterinary advice about an individual animal — your vet knows the animal.
Health checklist (PDF)Heart & circulation
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM)
Serious
A thickening of the heart muscle that can cause heart failure, blood clots or sudden death. One New Zealand study found HCM in 40% of Sphynx examined at a median age under six years, making this a serious, breed-documented risk rather than a generic cat concern.
What to ask for
A recent echocardiogram report from a veterinary cardiologist for both parents. No DNA test exists for HCM in this breed
Brain & nerves
Congenital myasthenic syndrome (CMS)
Serious
An inherited muscle-weakness disorder causing a characteristic 'dog-begging' or 'chipmunk' posture, worsened by exertion, stress or excitement. Affected cats generally die by two years old from choking or aspiration pneumonia. A validated DNA test exists, shared with Devon Rex.
What to ask for
Sphynx and Devon Rex CMS (COLQ) DNA test on both parents, showing an N/N (clear) result
Skin & coat
Hairlessness — skin, temperature and ear care
MonitorInherent to the breed
The trait that defines the breed also removes the normal protection fur gives against sunburn, cold and skin-oil build-up, leaving Sphynx prone to sunburn, acne, fungal skin infections and waxy ear build-up, and needing regular bathing and a warm, draft-free home. This is inseparable from the breed itself, not a fault a test can screen away.
What to ask for
Not a genetic test — ask the breeder about their bathing and ear-cleaning routine and whether any of their cats have had recurring skin or ear infections
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Sphynx owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Kittens
No kittens listed right now
That is not the same as none existing. Publishing a litter is part of a breeder's subscription here, so a Sphynx breeder can have a litter and no listing — ask them directly.
See Sphynx breeders