Peterbalds

Even though this is a hairless breed of cat, there is still some grooming involved.  Because, there is no hair to absorb the oils of the skin, the Peterbald has to have regular bathing like humans.  We get them used to baths early and Magnolia cats almost always love the attention of getting a bath.  I use a very mild shampoo and always dry them thoroughly (that is their favorite part).  Usually a bath every couple of weeks is more than sufficient.  During times that a bath is not possible, I use baby wipes for a quick and effective job in between baths. 

Other grooming consists of trimming nails, like all cats, and making sure their ears are clean.  Overall, this is a much easier job than most cats.  The great thing is NO SHEDDING!

In 1988 Irena Kovalyova rescued a cat that appeared to have some type of disease. The cat was losing its hair. No matter how much she was treated with anti-fungal medications, she continued to lose her hair. It was soon very obvious that this cat was meant to be hairless and was not ill at all. Varya was soon to become the foundation cat of a new wonderful breed. The first thought, of course, was that this mutation was the same gene that caused the hairlessness in the Sphynx. For that reason, you will see the name “Don Sphynx” used in some descriptions. That proved to be untrue and it was soon discovered that these were two totally different breeds. The Sphynx gene is a recessive gene. After breeding the “Don Sphynx” the gene was found to be dominant.