SPHYNX CARE

---

Skin: BATHING Since the Sphynx is hairless and their skin produces oils, it is important that you maintain their hygiene. We usually wash our cats weekly, but monthly baths are necessary to wash off the oil and dirt buildup. Fill the tub with lukewarm water; if it’s hot on your wrist then it will be hot for the cat, be sure to check. Shampoo the cat (we use Pet O’Cera Cat shampoo Found on amazon) and rinse fully. DO NOT GET WATER IN THEIR MOUTH, EYES OR EARS. Don’t forget to towel dry your sphynx, as they feel the same way as you do when you come out of the shower… cold. Like most furry cats, some of our cats dislike baths greatly, despite us trying to get them used to water at a early age . In these situations we swear by the Earthbath All Natural Cat Wipes (found on amazon).

SUN EXPOSURE Like all other cats they love their sunlight especially for warmth, but keep in mind that unlike other cats their skin is exposed subjecting them to sunburns and skin cancer. We try to keep sun exposure as minimal as possible, and instead have heating pads and heated beds that our cats love to spend time on/in. Do not use sunscreen on your cat, there aren’t any sunscreen safe for cats, not even baby formulated ones. Keep sun exposure to minimal periods of time.

TEMPERATURE Sphynx are indoor cats and are sensitive to the cold. If your cat’s ears and paws are cold, it’s a sign that they are not warm enough. Typically if your comfortable they should be comfortable. But  we suggest having a heating pad at home for these purposes, as well as a blanket they can cuddle up inside (as they love so much to do). You can also dress them up in sweaters if you would like, although it is not necessary we do have a few for our cats.

Teeth: Weekly brushing is a must. Without dental hygiene maintenance your cat will be susceptible to gum diseases and tooth decay. If you neglect weekly brushings and occasional dental checks at the vet, your sphynx can develop a severe, painful, and pricy illness. We use the C.E.T Poultry Enzymatic toothpaste.

Eyes: Because Sphynx kittens and cats do not have eyelashes to keep dust and particles from the environment out of their eyes, they do develop mucus in the corner of their eyes. When this happens, just gently wipe it away with a warm (not hot) damp napkin from boiled water. Make sure you aren’t harsh, because this is a sensitive area. Healthy mucus can be clear or brown in color. If the mucus is yellow, that is a sign of infection and it is important to get this to the attention of a vet.

Ears: Since the Sphynx is hairless and produces oil, the ears accumulate dark colored dirt quickly. We clean our cats’ ears weekly, after their baths. This isn’t necessary, but for appearance purposes we do like to maintain the hygiene of their ears. The dirt also varies from cat to cat, we’ve had cats that never had dirty ears, and others that needed daily maintenance. We use a wipe or just a baby wipe (or a bath wipe if you prefer). NEVER stick a Q-tip down a cat's ear!

Claws: Our cats get their nails cut every two weeks. We use a special cat nail clipper. This is a very delicate area and it is important not to cut near the pink/white area, that’s where the nerve endings and blood vessels are located. Also from sweat accumulating in the skin flaps around the nail, there can be a brown/black build up. We suggest removing it after their bath, with a cotton ball or Q-tip.  If this isn’t maintained, the cat can develop a fungal infection in the nail. After fully cleaning we apply Kitty caps to all our cats/kittens and suggest the same for you (please read all instructions carefully before placing then and look at our Facebook or Youtube  pages for videos on how to place them. If you are uncomfortable your vet will typically charge a small fee and do it for you)

Food: We feed our cats dry, wet, and NEVER table food. Dry food (we feed our cats/kittens Royal Canine Mommy and kitten) is available to the cats at all hours. Once in the morning and once in the evening we feed our cats wet food. For canned wet food we feed the same wet food as we do dry

Health: The Sphynx cat breed are KNOWN to be PRONE to Upper Respiratory Infections (URI) Colds. They especially susceptible under stressful situations, such as moving to their new homes. Usually they get over this by themselves, BUT sometimes they need to be put on antibiotics. Your vet will know how to take care of this. Sphynx have a higher metabolism than most cats because they need to work a little harder to keep their body temperature warm due to the hairless factor. It is important to keep food and water available at all times so they can eat as much as they need to. Sphynx cats should be indoor only cats. Due to hairlessness they can freeze and sunburn very quickly as stated above.

Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or concerns. And I hope you enjoy your new kitten and have an amazing time playing and getting all the love and affection I have over the last 12 weeks. I am sure you have been anticipating this BIG day to bring your baby home i just want to leave you with a few tips to help you and Him/Her to adjust. He/She is still really small so please keep in mind that if he/she get to far from the litter box he/she may not make it back in time and may have a accident on the floor, or get confused as to where the litter box is. He/She is litter trained and does use the litter box, so when you first get home take him/her to the litter box immediately and show him/her where it is often for the first few days or as you think is needed. I also recommend that when  you are away  for the day put him/her in a smaller room of some sort. Do not let him/her roam the house when you are gone. This will help you to be able to find him/her right away when you do get home. Please do this until you think him/her are completely comfortable with their surroundings. This is a BIG change for him/her and he may cry because he/she will miss their littermates (this is normal). And most important handle him/her as much as possible. Love on him/her and hold them even if they seem to resist a bit. This will help him/her become a very affectionate sphynx. Good luck with your bundle of joy and again please let me know if you have any questions or concerns as I am always here to answer them.  Thank you so much for trusting me to be your breeder and PLEASE send plenty of updates and photos of your baby along your guys journey!