Petersburg Sphynx (or peterbald) is a breed of cats bred in the northern capital. Peterbald slender, with large ears and long legs. The character is light, friendly. Cats are sociable and adore the company of humans and other animals.
Breed history
The St. Petersburg sphinx breed was bred by domestic felinologists and is quite different from other types of hairless cats in its standards and approach to breeding. Today, the breed is recognized by many felinological organizations. Feedback from owners is overwhelmingly positive.
Petersburg Sphynx, whose photo won the hearts of many cat lovers, was bred relatively recently. The first representatives of the breed appeared in St. Petersburg in 1994 as a result of mixing the blood of the Don Sphynx and the Oriental cat.
Four kittens were born from two matings, which became the founders of the new breed. Four years later, the standard of the new breed was recognized as one of the phenological organizations and received the abbreviation PBD.
At the moment, work on the breed is still actively underway. Breeders are trying to form the Oriental and Siamese type with an elongated muzzle, large ears, a slender body and long legs. In connection with the selection work, breeding representatives of the Peterbald breed with Siamese cats or Orientals are allowed.
Breed standards
The Petersburg Sphynx has a strong and long body, a thin elongated neck, long paws and a tail. The head and muzzle are elongated, the cheekbones and forehead are flat. The profile is straight, the eyes are almond-shaped. Paws are slender, with long fingers. The skin is thin, with folds.
On the face, near the ears, on the tips of the paws and tail there may be residual fur. The mustache is always twisted.
The disadvantages include: round or short head, small ears, kinks on the tail, overshot mouth, turning eyelids, full body pubescence, short body, tail, paws.
The skin of bald cats is very sensitive, including sunlight. Under the bright direct rays, it can get tanned or burned. The skin is capable of pigmentation and may even sweat in the heat. Since the cat has no hair, the color can be determined by the color of the skin. But this shade will most likely be the shade of color of the missing fur. That is why clearly determine the color of a bald cat is difficult.
One of the most desired colors for breeders is black. Peterbald of this color looks just amazing, but in completely bald cats and cats this color is not found. They can boast only owners of flock-type wool or brush, that is, peterbolds, who have preserved though short, but still wool.
In addition, there are colors that can combine several colors and shades. For this reason, the exact color is determined by the breeder after the birth of the kittens, when they still have wool. Kittens of the St. Petersburg sphinx often appear in the world covered with fur.
Types of skin
Peterbalds are not necessarily completely devoid of wool. According to the type of skin, representatives of the breed are divided into several types:
- Golozhdennye. These kittens are born without wool. Their skin is hot, non-slip, a bit like soft clay. It is very pleasant to touch her.
- Naked. These are cats that were born with fur, but lost it completely as they mature.
- Sprayed. Animals that have ultra-short, almost imperceptible hair all over their body. Because of this, the skin appears soft, smooth, like satin. It is pleasant to the touch, caressing fingers.
- Flock. In this type, the cat has sparse and short (up to 2 mm), but very soft hairs all over the body.
- Velours. The term is not used by all felinologists and denotes a type similar to a flock, but with more frequent and long hairs.
- Brush. In this case, the hairs are long, curly. The hairs can be hard and soft, frequent and sparse. They bristle and may look like wire. In a joke of such cats are called "boots".
- Flock-point, velor-point, brush-point. In general, the cat is stripped on the body, but on so-called points, that is, on the muzzle, legs and tail, has a fur of the corresponding type.
- Varietta, or straight hair. This is a cat with normal straight hair. She herself did not inherit a bald gene, but can carry a group of genes that are responsible for the type of skin. The mustache is straight.
You should know that the St. Petersburg sphinx does not apply to hypoallergenic rocks. As a rule, it is not wool that causes an allergic reaction, but saliva and particles of cat's skin. Accordingly, bald breeds cause the same reaction as others.
However, in some cases, the negative reaction is caused by wool. Then peterbald will be an excellent pet. Before purchasing, consult your doctor. Be sure to spend a few hours in the breeder's house to make sure that you feel well. Agree in advance on the return of the kitten within a few days if the family members show an allergy.
How does the Petersburg sphinx behave? The character of cats is typical of sphinxes. They are obedient, friendly, strongly attached to the owner. They are easy to train, and, in general, they resemble dogs in behavior. But still the Peterbalds are capricious and touchy. The owners speak of cats as extremely savvy, affectionate, temperamental and very talkative companions.
Food, care
So, you decided to purchase a representative of the St. Petersburg sphinx breed? A cat or a cat will bring you much joy. But you still need to know about the features of care for peterbolds. Since the representatives of this breed have no wool, which should regulate body temperature, they easily freeze. In addition, the animal can easily burn yourself on a hot heater or battery.
Sphynxes sweat, which means that they need to be wiped with a soft cloth and regularly bathed in warm water with a shampoo for animals.
Since peterbald heat exchange is accelerated, there are some nuances in the care and nutrition. They need to wear, if the apartment is cold. Also of great importance is nutrition. In cold weather, sphinxes should eat more than other cats. In general, the diet does not require correction, ready-made dry premium food or balanced organic food will do. If the house is warm, then enhanced nutrition is not necessary.
Childbirth in sphinxes are easy. Cats are caring mothers, and, remarkably, cats are also involved in raising their offspring. They watch the cubs, lick them, play. The kittens usually move to the new house at the age of three months.
The Petersburg Sphynx is a relatively new breed, but it is rapidly gaining popularity and gaining recognition from felinological organizations. The purpose of breeding - not only the creation of attractive external qualities, but also the preservation of the wonderful intelligence and character of the Peterbalds.
Appearance and physique
Many people confuse sphinxes, and can not distinguish them from each other. But it is impossible to confuse the St. Petersburg sphinx with anyone, because it has amazing appearance, namely:
- The body of an animal of this breed has a tubular shape and medium size. Limbs are always slim and long, yes, cats of this breed can boast of “slim legs”. The tail of the cat is thin and long.
- The head of the Petersburg sphinxes is narrow and slightly elongated. The ears are widely located on the head, they are wide and large. The eyes of cats are large and expressive, they are almond-shaped and can be of such colors: yellow, blue, green and blue.
- The most amazing thing is that the sphinxes of this breed may not be quite sphinxes. That is, they may have hair and even thick hair.
Types of St. Petersburg sphinxes:
- Brush - kittens that are born with wool, but when they grow up, she gets out.
- Brush-point - is also born with wool, but it does not all disappear, and as an adult, the cat may have hair on its muzzle and limbs.
- Velor - kittens born with wool, but she gradually gets out and can only stay in the form of "golf".
- Flock - a cat that has no eyebrows or a mustache.
- Lysorennoe - completely bald cat.
- The straight-faced peterbald is a cat completely covered with ordinary wool. However, despite this, he is a sphinx and his character is appropriate.
Cats of this breed are very intelligent and sociable. They perfectly find common language with animals and with strangers.
The Petersburg Sphynx is one of those few cat breeds that are completely non-aggressive and overly loving. Peterbald simply worships his master and constantly proves it.
Surprisingly, cats of this breed can even get out of a closed room, as they do it - a great mystery.
Peterbalds are incredibly inquisitive and playful, they love to explore new places and play with their toys. Therefore, the owner must provide their pet.
One of the peculiarities of the character of the St. Petersburg sphinx is its friendliness and sociability. Cats of this breed gladly support the "conversation" and do it skillfully.
Nutrition and care
As with any cat, a sphinx needs special care and it consists in the following:
- Sphynxes are constantly sweating, so wipe them with wet wipes or a clean rag
- Bathe the cat regularly, but do not forget to dry it
- Wipe pet's eyes daily
- Keep your ears and eyes clean
- Trim the claws in time
- Teach your pet to scratch, best to do it from early childhood
To feed the St. Petersburg sphinx must be properly. It is best to combine natural food and artificial food. Peterbalds are very voracious, so their portions should be large.
Make sure that the body of the animal got enough of the necessary vitamins and minerals.
This breed of cats is very interesting and funny, with such a pet you will never be bored.
And a little about the secrets.
The story of one of our readers Irina Volodina:
My eyes were especially frustrating, surrounded by large wrinkles plus dark circles and swelling. How to remove wrinkles and bags under the eyes completely? How to cope with swelling and redness? But nothing is so old or young man as his eyes.
But how to rejuvenate them? Plastic surgery? I found out - no less than 5 thousand dollars. Hardware procedures - photorejuvenation, gas-liquid pilling, radio lifting, laser facelift? Slightly more accessible - the course is 1.5-2 thousand dollars. And when to find all this time? Yes, and still expensive. Especially now. Therefore, for myself, I chose another way.
The origin of the breed
Are there any differences between peterbolds (petersburg sphinxes) and other sphinxes? Yes, of course, about this - below.
His homeland is the cultural capital of Russia. All peterbolds are descended from Nocturne, but not that in Mayakovsky’s poems, but that Nocturne that was born from the mother of German-born German cat Radma von Yagerhof and the father of Don Sphynx Afinogen Myth.
Description breed peterbald
The cat from the fashion magazine is what a peabergold is. Being the epitome of elegance, peterbald cats look like catwalk models. But instead of the notorious 90-60-90, the Petersburg sphinxes have slightly different standards of beauty.
- The head of the Peterbalds is narrow, long, “drawn”. Experts emphasize the graceful bend-transition of the head in the long neck of Nefertiti:
- nose long, straight, proud profile, characteristic of the extreme type,
- the ears are large, like all sphinxes, wide at the base, the tips spread apart. Representatives of the St. Petersburg sphinx breed are very valued by English post ears. That is, the ears on which you can put a sheet of paper. The head and ears visually resemble a sharp blade,
- Vibrissae are often absent, but if nature has preserved them, then the whiskers of the Sphynx are convoluted
- eyes - Shamakhan queen: almond-shaped, slightly slanted, surprisingly beautiful. Eye color may be yellow, green, blue or even blue. Kittens open their eyes early - for 3-5 days after birth.
- The size of adult peterbald sphinxes is medium. The body is elongated, its shape is tubular. This means that the shoulders and hips, if you look at the animal from above, are the same width. The ribs are rounded, the groin line should not be picked.
Limbs - tall and slender. The paws of the St. Petersburg sphinx are rounded, the pads on the feet are thick, and the fingers are elongated. Curved front limbs are a significant disadvantage of the breed.
The description of the body would be incomplete, without an accent on the tail. He is very long, thin right at the base, speaking in professional language “whip”. Tail kinks are excluded.
Gutta-percha kittens can be in a variety of colors. True, among all the palettes, cream, chocolate, lilac, color-point, particolors are especially valued. These cats are rarely in mono-color. Absolutely black, gray, red or white color - occurs occasionally. The Peterbald kitten is most likely artistically painted with a variety of specks.
Petersburg sphinxes are not always completely naked, features are distinguished:
- Brush - at birth, babies are covered with wool, but as they grow up, they can part with it.
- Brash-point - the kitten has a shorter wool than the brush, the fur of the baby's tail is fluffy. But in an adult cat thick hair remains only on the face and limbs (sometimes on the tail). The body of the Sphinx bare completely or covered with a thin flock.
- Velor - in infancy, there is wool, but later in residual form it can remain on its paws and face, or it can disappear completely, only on “socks” or “golf socks” reminding of itself.
- Flock - the kitten has no eyebrows, no whiskers, wool - no more than 2 mm.
- Absurd - there is absolutely no wool. And because of the special skin secretions it seems that the body of the nude is rubber.
- Peterburg straight-haired - in a kitten, mustache and wool are normal and with age they also remain normal. But the character is a sphinx!
It is very interesting to observe how, in the absence of wool, signs of the color of the animal appear directly on the skin.
Character peterbald
Reviews about the breed: "In the morning, waking up, in the afternoon, in the evening, in the evening, in the meeting, in the embrace, constantly playing with something, always everything is eaten." In principle, it is more difficult to say more precisely - peterbald is sociable, friendly and not vindictive. They are very determined to be friends and ready to be friends with anyone but the owner. Because the owner does not need to "be friends", and love!
Petersburg sphinxes - talkative breed. They chat a lot and this point should be taken into account by those who are interested in the breed.
They are elegant and sophisticated, and the way Peterbold looks like is a reflection of his inner self. Cleanliness is in their blood.
Health and Disease
The price for an exotic appearance is genetic diseases of pets. Petersburg sphinxes have some of them:
- The most dangerous disease is congenital underdevelopment of the thymus. This organ is responsible for the growth and development of the whole organism and for the immune defense. With its underdevelopment, the animal dies in its infancy,
- in animals of blue, blue-cream, tortoise color, gingival hyperplasia may occur (genetic disease too),
- Signs of skin diseases can also sometimes be seen on a pet. Be careful and go around the pitfalls in time,
- respiratory diseases are common in peterbolds. Your pet should not supercool!
Life expectancy peterbaldov - 13-15 years.
Photo
The absence of the usual coat allows you to observe the rich mimics of peterbolds. Photos of pets are fun!
Where to buy peterbald
Nevsky handsome man gradually enters the zenith of fame. In America and in Europe, they know about peterbolds, but the breed has not yet found a wide distribution and the question: “How much does a peterbold cat cost?” Does not yet sound everywhere. In Russia and Ukraine, they are better known, but only certain lines of animals can boast of exhibition success.
The kennels of peterbolds, alas, are few (for example, there are no specialized kennels in Kiev).
The cost of a kitten ranges from 5 000 rubles. up to 15 000 rubles (2000-6000 hryvnia).
Choose a peterbald breed nursery:
Peterbald literally means “bald Peter” in English. In honor of Tsar Peter the Great, breeders donated the name to the breed. You can finish the educational program about the breed to the music of Glinka:
Description of St. Petersburg sphinx breed
Peterbalds can rightly be called a glamorous breed, because with their grace and grace they resemble models proudly strolling along the catwalk at the fashion show of the designer collection.
- The body is small, slender, flexible, muscular, tubular form. Thorax, shoulders and thighs are the same width. The ribs are rounded.
- Weight - 3-3.5 kilograms of a cat, 5 kg of a cat.
- The head is wedge-shaped, the wedge passes in a straight line from the tip of the nose to the ears. The muzzle is narrow.
- The neck is slender, long, proportionate to the body.
- The tail is long, narrow, thin (whip). The tip is sharp.
- The skin is tender to the touch, mobile, about to folds on the head and body. Wool is absent, but young cats may have a down, which disappears by two years.
- Paws are long, graceful. The paw pads are thick, the fingers are oval, slightly elongated.
- The nose is long, straight, neat shape, profile proud.
- The forehead is flat.
- Chin pronounced.
- The ears are large, widely divorced, with a characteristic English postavom - you can put a sheet of paper on them.
- The eyes are Asian, slanted, almond-shaped, green or blue in a rich hue.
- Whiskers mustache.
Color varied. St. Petersburg kittens can be chocolate, cream, purple, color-points, multicolor. Monochrome black, white, red individuals are rarely found, as a rule, their skin is covered with specks.
Cats peterbald not always completely devoid of wool, distinguish the following features of the skin:
- "Brush" ("brush"). The coat of the kitten is soft or, on the contrary, harsh hairs of varying degrees of density.
- Brush Point Wool is shorter than the first species, tail fluffy. With age, the cover is exposed, remaining only on the face and limbs.
- Flock. The kitten has no eyebrows, mustaches. On the skin on points there are rare and soft hairs (no more than 2 mm).
- Lysorennoe. The body of the kitten is completely naked. Special skin secretions create the impression that the body of the baby is rubber, "plasticine" to the touch.
- Naked. The cat is born with a small woolen cover, but by the age of two it completely loses it.
- Velours. Upon reaching a certain age, the wool that a kitten has remains, only the paws remain, forming “socks” or “golfiki”. According to the tactile sensations wool is like a velor fabric.
- Straight-haired peterbald (varietta). The cat does not inherit the "bald" gene. His coat is straight, short. The remaining external signs correspond to the breed.
- Dust. The coat is short, almost imperceptible, delicate and smooth to the touch.
Each of these types is valuable in its own way and finds its admirers. So, individuals completely devoid of hair - the ideal representatives of the breed - are good for exhibitions. Flocks are suitable for keeping at home, peterbold brush is used for breeding.
Maintenance and care peterbaldov
Petersburg sphinxes are comfortable and easy to maintain. Their main attraction is the absence of wool, which eliminates the owners periodically comb them out. Treatments include daily rubbing of the eyes from mucus, periodic cleaning of the ears, teeth, and claw clipping.
Concerning bathing the views of the owners are divided. The skin of peterbolds emits a special lubricant (wax-like brownish coating), which has a protective function. If you bathe the cat too often, the lubricant will be washed off, and the animal will experience stress, but it is necessary to remove it at the most crowded places (on the ears and paws), since it forms brown specks.
Many owners wipe the skin of sphinxes with a damp cloth or sponge. Other owners prefer to bathe cats using the most gentle shampoo and, after a water treatment, which peterbolds tolerate well, wipe dry with a towel.
Under the influence of sunlight the skin of cats can burn, but a moderate tan is useful. In order to avoid drying, winding the skin should be lubricated with baby oils.
Because of the absence of wool, the Peterbalds have an increased metabolism, therefore they do not suffer from lack of appetite. Cats can be fed with natural food or dry food, as long as the nutrition is balanced and contains the necessary amount of vitamins and trace elements. Determine whether you are feeding your pet correctly will help protective brown grease. If it stands out in excess, then the diet needs to be revised.
