Two New Hairless Cat Breeds: SphynxieBob and BamBob

SphynxieBob and BamBob

A woman in America, April Arguin, has created two new hairless breeds of cat by turning two existing breeds, the Bambino and the Sphynx into cats with no tail (bobtailed). They are hybrids. The Bambino is a dwarf hairless cat. She introduced the gene which removes the tail or shortens it to create the BamBob. The Sphynx is the world’s best known hairless cat. She created a tailless breed from this cat which she calls the ShynxieBob; a cat without fur and tail. Let’s remind ourselves that this breed is based on removing two important aspects of the domestic cat’s anatomy (fur and tail) to create what Arguin believes is an attractive or interesting cat. The same, more or less goes for the Bambob.

The video tells her story. She wants her new breeds to be recognised by a small, rather insubstantial cat breed registry called the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry (REFR). The mainstream registries in America are the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) and The International Cat Association (TICA). The former would not recognise these breeds on health grounds although ironically they promote the breeding of an inherently unhealthy cat, the contemporary Persian (and Exotic SH – the shorthaired version). As for TICA they currently recognise bobtailed cats, hairless cats and a dwarf cat (the Munchkin) and therefore may in due course recognise the SphynxieBob and the BamBob.

Hairless bobtailed cat SphynxieBob

BamBob a new breed

New Cat Breeds

New Cat Breed

April Arguin says she has not created these breeds for financial gain but for her own pleasure and to bring new cat breeds into the world. The question is: does the world need or desire two new hybrid cat breeds? If we are honest, the answer is probably, no.

Dwarf cats are controversial because of potential health problems so these will be carried forward to the Bambob. Bobtailed cats are not uncommon and for instance you’ll see lots of street cats in Japan and Asia with short and kinked tails. The SphynxieBob is probably a better breed because it is probably inherently healthier. The Sphynx is quite popular although some people argue that it is unfair on a cat to remove its fur. These are essentially full-time indoor cats. They are an interesting cat breed, however. They have monkey-like behavior characteristics.

Do you think it is a good idea to create yet two more cat breeds to add to the existing 104 (approximately)? The major era for the creation of cat breeds was around the 1960s, by the way.

Note: this page was first published on September 11th 2015. The current video is still on YouTube. The page has been updated.

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Comments

Two New Hairless Cat Breeds: SphynxieBob and BamBob — 18 Comments

Sarah Hartwell on September 12, 2015 at 9:13 am said:
These cats are created by a business (rather than a cattery) registered with REFR (which is not a recognised cat registry). They won’t be recognised by TICA or genuine registries because they break a number of recently introduced rules on breeding different mutations together. The article is basically an advert.
If you look at the breeds listed by REFR, many will never get past the “just a couple of litters” stage, but registering them with a name and a sort of standard helps with selling the cats to Joe Public. A couple of the REFR breeds have been renamed and re-registered with TICA, but hairless bobtails won’t be among them.
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- Michael Broad on September 12, 2015 at 10:43 am said:
  Thanks for your input Sarah. My thoughts concur with yours. REFR is almost meaningless and as you say these breeds won’t be truly recognised. Thanks for the update on TICA. I suppose the question is will they public go for them. My guess is that a small number might. The Munchkin is quite popular for instance and so is the Sphynx.
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Albert Schepis on September 11, 2015 at 6:04 pm said:
I agree, it’s selfish, irresponsible and in the realm of cruel. Saying that doesn’t stop these people, but it should.
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- Michael Broad on September 11, 2015 at 8:22 pm said:
  We agree with you Albert. Breeders breed cats for themselves with little sensitivity to what they are doing from the cat’s perspective. It is like creating a product for the breeder.
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  - RM on September 11, 2015 at 8:43 pm said:
    My cat was slated for extinction by the breeder due to a defect. My identity remains guarded to protect my baby’s identity and that of her loving vet. The others in the litter were not so impaired but they did not survive. Breeding is clearly a business, not a love affair in most cases. An unkempt Sphynx is slimy in coat, not sweet smelling, and very sad. Their humans must be very attentive. It’s like giving kids a bunny for Easter…how cute and how mindless.
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    - Michele S. on September 12, 2015 at 8:19 pm said:
      Thanks for sharing the story of your Sphynx and your honesty about the maintenance required to keep them clean and healthy. I think those are aspects of owning a Sphynx which many people simply aren’t aware of, but should be to ensure they can provide the necessary level of care.
      Your vet sounds lovely… a real antidote to the likes of cat killing vet Lindsey.
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RM on September 11, 2015 at 5:55 pm said:
Having a harless little Sphynx love whose survival was not clear for first year of her life, then finding out that the vet who we adopted her from had carried her around everywhere for the first four months of her life because she needed constant attention, I have to warn that the breed requires a commitment to continuous care.
I can’t imagine how frightening this period of my kitty’s life must have been for her.
Further, to my knowledge, cat allergies are due to dander sensitivity. Although a Sphynx has no hair she has the potential for more dander than a haired cat.
An lastly, since the Sphynx tail is held in a manner that is distinctive to breed and it is used intensively for balance, I fear for the lack of it both from a safety standpoint as well as a psychological stantpoint.
I totally agree with the previous comments.
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- Michael Broad on September 11, 2015 at 8:21 pm said:
  I like your comment RM. Very sensible. The breeder mentions or hints at her creation being hypoallergenic because they little hair but as you say they can still cause an allergic reaction.
  The Fel d 1 protein, produced largely by cat saliva and sebaceous glands, is the primary allergen present on cats. Hair is not in the equation.
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Serbella McGee on September 11, 2015 at 5:25 pm said:
I quote Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) in “Jurassic World”: “Probably not a good idea.” And since I’m on a Jurassic movie kick, here’s Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum – Jurassic Park): “Just because you can do it doesn’t mean you should.”
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- Michael Broad on September 11, 2015 at 8:17 pm said:
  Nice quotes. I like Jeff Goldblum in the Jurassic Park films.
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  - Serbella McGee on September 12, 2015 at 1:58 pm said:
    I loved Jeff Goldblum in the Jurassic Park films. He was the best human character there, in my opinion. “World” was better than I thought it would be. Chris Pratt was very good and I had no problem with Claire running around in those high heels. I’ve know women who could do that in real life. Of course, they weren’t being chased by a T-Rex.
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Sandra Murphey, No. CA, USA on September 11, 2015 at 5:12 pm said:
More insanity in my opinion. People get pleasure from some pretty strange things. Creating new breeds of cats seems selfish and irresponsible.
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- Michele S. on September 11, 2015 at 5:59 pm said:
  Sandra: I wholeheartedly agree with everything you said.
  We do not need any more breeds of cat. Especially those which have been deliberately inflicted with physical traits which are considered detrimental to their health and welfare. The UK’s cat registry the GCCF would not recognise either The Sphyniebob or the Bambob, because of the bobbed tails, lack of fur and short legs.
  The Manx and Sphynx are the only exceptions to the GCCF ruling, because both breeds were established before the decision was made not to recognise or register any new breeds suffering similar physical handicaps.
  I wouldn’t be surprised if TICA were to recognise these new breeds or add them to their experimental register. In their quest to become the largest registry in the world, it seems to me that they have an ‘anything goes’ policy, regardless of the impact that has on the welfare of the cats themselves 🙁
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  - Sarah Hartwell on September 12, 2015 at 5:14 pm said:
    Rules have been greatly updated to prevent such mix-and-match breeding. Nowadays, if you want to use a Munchkin to found a new breed, you have to get permission of the Munchkin breed committee. Same goes for using Sphynx or any other structural or fur-type mutation – you have to get the permission of the breed committee of the breed in which the mutation originally occurred (or, more likely, the breed in which it was originally registered). Breeds that got recognition before the rules changed will not lose recognition, but new mix-and-match breeds are likely to be refused any type of recognition. These days, the only “anything goes” registries are the online “paper registries.”
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    - Michele S. on September 12, 2015 at 8:08 pm said:
      Interesting to learn that rules have been updated regarding mix and match breeding. I wasn’t aware of this. If that decision is based on putting the welfare of cats first, then it’s welcome news.
      Other than not being able to register their breed with one of the recognsied registries (and all that entails), are there other disadvantages in not seeking the permission of those breed committees before creating a new breed? What is there to deter people from creating new breeds and registering them elsewhere?
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      - Sarah Hartwell on September 12, 2015 at 10:46 pm said:
        A lot of other registries already won’t recognise the mix-and-match cats (in much of the EU there is companion animal legislation that bans certain traits and, being legislation, it overrides registry rules). Paper registries are the exception. Since cat shows are run by registries or welfare societies, those “outsider breeds” wouldn’t be accepted for exhibition at shows.
        As for disadvantages … do we need another Munchkinised breed? Or another bald breed derived from a Sphynx? There is a loophole – what if a lookalike mutation occurs spontaneously and is developed?
        More here: http://messybeast.com/mutation-who-owns.htm (something I wrote when the rules were changed)
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        Michele S. on September 12, 2015 at 11:40 pm said:
        Thanks for the additional info Sarah.
        I especially enjoyed your article, because I’ve been wondering how breed committees expect to trademark mutations and if that’s even feasible.
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- Michael Broad on September 11, 2015 at 8:16 pm said:
  Yes, I don’t want to upset the breeder but I agree with you. People should not amuse themselves creating new creatures. It is not right.
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