Peterbald

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Peterbald is a hairless cat breed from Russia, created in St. Petersburg in 1994 by crossing a Don Sphynx with an Oriental Shorthair. The first Peterbald kittens—Mandarin iz Murino, Muscat iz Murino, Nezhenka iz Murino, and Nocturne iz Murino—formed the breed’s foundation. It was adopted by the Russian Selectional Feline Federation in 1996, by The International Cat Association in 1997, and by the World Cat Federation in 2003.

Peterbalds have a lean, Oriental/Siamese look: long muzzles, large ears, a slim, muscular body, and long legs. They carry a dominant hair-losing gene from the Don Sphynx and can be born bald, flocked, velour, brush-coated, or with a straight coat; hairless cats may lose their hair over time. They come in all colors and markings. Breeders cross Peterbalds with Oriental and Siamese cats or semi-longhairs like Balinese and Javanese (Balinese and Javanese were removed from acceptable outcrosses in 2005).

Peterbalds are friendly, affectionate, curious, smart, and energetic. They are medium-sized with a long head, almond-shaped eyes, a straight profile, large separated ears, a long tail, webbed feet, and oval paws. They tend to vocalize moderately and enjoy being with their people, getting along well with children and other pets.

Note: Some places have breeding restrictions related to genetic mutations; for example, in the Netherlands, since 2014 it has been illegal to breed parent cats with certain mutations that could affect offspring.