What makes Sphynx different to normal cats?

[singaporesphynx]

I thought it would be fun to start a discussion around what makes our babies so unique, especially compared to "normal" cats.

I'll start:

- The way they play fetch in a very deliberate and totally natural manner!

- Philibert makes little "peeping" sounds rather than a miaow, and only when he's hungry. He also looks at you straight in the eye, unflinching.

- They way he likes to be held upside down, like a baby. lol

 

[Toa and Ross]

Great thread

- the way they jump. Or better said: the way they fall when they try to jump

- the amount of cuddling they like. Never saw cats how love cuddling with their humans so much

 

[admin]

Their affection is superior then any cat I've ever own.

 

[Hairless Blessing]

Their silly monkey ways, Their love, affection, cuddling, talkative ways,
Smart, very smart, right in the middle of everything your doing,
and more child like than a cat.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

For me it is that tail curl and meatloaf pose on top of their loving and affectionate personality.

 

[Nicolemorgan]

They are so loving and affectionate, and I love how they sleep through the night with us under the covers.
I know what you mean @Catzzzmeow, I LOVE that tail curl, it's always so perfect!

 

[GoldHazel]

I'm sitting here smiling as I read everyone's replies because it's all true.

I had furry cats my entire life. When I had more than one at a time, they never cuddled together except for when I got two kittens at one time. Once they began to grow up (within a few months), they no longer would even touch each other when resting or sleeping. There was always a space between them.
So when I started collecting sphynx cats, I was impressed with the fact that they love to cuddle with each other and groom each other.

Being that we bathe the sphynx often and never furry cats or very rarely for furry cats, makes it seem more like we are bathing a human child to an extent. They certainly don't feel all furry...more skin like, so it feels almost human to touch and bathe them. Once they come out of the bath and you wrap them in a towel, for me...I can eat them up with smothering them with my kisses. They smell wonderful, look OH SO CUTE...and as I'm drying them, I'm kissing them like crazy. LOL

I searched the breed for a year or so before getting my first sphynx. So many sites said that their personalities were a combination of: a cat, a dog, a monkey and a human toddler. Once having my first sphynx, it was no time at all that I turned to my husband and said, "That description absolutely fits Liam to a "T"!"

So besides what I've just said, you can add everyone else's replies above to my answer.

 

[KitKat26]

Piper is more like a human baby and part dog. She always has to be held on your shoulder just like carrying a little baby around. When we are sitting at a computer desk she crawls up on me and drapes herself over my shoulder and demands I hold her while she purrs.

She also fetches me her toys and meows at me until I play with her. She has this long wand toy with feathers about 3 ft. long and she will follow me around the house (upstairs and downstairs) carrying it in her mouth and drop it in front of me and chirp at me to play with her.

She is different than any other cat I've owned because her personality is VERY expressive and she communicates. When she is happy she wags her tail like a dog and chirps and you can tell she is very happy. When she is lonely she will cry with loonngggg dragged out meows and sometimes snappy meows like she is yelling for us to give her attention. You can definitely read her.

It's also easy to humanize them because you can kiss on them and you can't do that with a regular cat unless you don't care about getting hair in your mouth So there is a special bond there.

I would say the neediness for affection and expressive personality sets her breed apart from every other cat I've owned. Plus they are just so dang funny.

 

[Sofia Kitty Cow]

the way they smell like the perfect potato chips :smuggrin: low in fat-love you back-guilt free potato chips :shame:

 

[tara44]

Oh man. So many things. I've only owned three hairy cats in my life and they were lovely but in the short time I've had Clementine her personality just shines through. Definitely the smell and the curly tail too. I love how they're so placid at times, like when you hold them and you can gently pull their skin wrinkles and they don't even bat a naked eye. The amount of extra attention they need in the hygiene department, and the way they love to creep under the blankets at bedtime and snuggle up to the humans to get that extra bit of body heat. :kiss:

 

[Zab]

I just love the way they want to sleep, skin against skin, so you're sweating within 15 minutes! Love'em to death!

 

[Sphynx Asylum Dad]

Everything everybody else has said X2! With 3 Sphynx babies it's easy to see personality differences, but they all love to cuddle in their own way and THAT'S my favorite Sphynx trait!

 

[Xandria]

I've had fur cats all my life until the last couple of years, and I have to say that Sphynx are NOT cats. They truly are part cat, monkey, dog, and even human baby (I think, on the last).

There is an intimacy shared with a Sphynx that I've never shared with furred cats (and I've had GREAT furred cats). It's the snuggling, naked skin to naked skin. It's the look in their eyes -- shared love and devotion... trust that runs so deep it hurts. I FEEL both Max and Min in a way that I have not felt my most beloved furred cats (and I did love them deeply and they all hold a special place in my heart).

The way Sphynx play, interact, and somehow are able to communicate above and beyond any other animal I've ever known.

They are connected to their loved ones. They know, they love, they trust. And how can we do any less in return?

 

[AMEDooley]

I love their long fingers. It's way better than the regular paws of a cat.

 

[lapril]

Cosign what everyone else has said!
I love that I can take my babies with me anywhere and they are well behaved and just cling to my shoulder. Airports are never a hassle with them because they love meeting new people and going to new places. I always sneak them into places (stores, movie theaters, hotels etc.) I love how they are both waiting at the door for me when I get home from work and I love the overall connection that I feel with them. Sphynx cats are truly the best of both worlds in regards to dogs and cats. They're not "aloof" and "distant" as some people have described cats. They don't need to be walked and can use litter. They're not loud, like dogs can be, and not nearly as destructive. I'm so in love with this breed.

 

[Deleted member 12033]

For me it is that tail curl and meatloaf pose on top of their loving and affectionate personality.

I feel a bit silly asking this, but... What is a meatloaf pose?

 

[Catzzzmeow]

@AstiMary when they fold their front feet in. Here is one of Jouët lol.

 

[Deleted member 12033]

Well there you go! Thanks for clearing that up @Catzzzmeow (y)
Jouët is just adorable!

 

[singaporesphynx]

Another one - they are extraordinarily intelligent. Philibert is learning to sit within a few attempts!

 

[AMEDooley]

Another one - they are extraordinarily intelligent. Philibert is learning to sit within a few attempts!

I've got Anubis to come on command, sit, and I'm working on walking on a leash. He'll get in the harness and does well. But I'm working on walking him where he goes where I go not me following him where he wants to go.

 

[lealea]

I agree with everything, as everyone else has! Goodness, where to start! I've had hairy cats and they've all been affectionate, but they have their limits. With Rosie, she has no limits! I can smother her in kisses and cuddle and stroke and rub her belly for endless hours and she just purrs and purrs, rubbing her face on mine, snuggling up for more and more loving. The Hairy cats in my life so far have been wonderful, very happy to be picked up and held, but you must not bother them too much. Too much rubbing and cuddling seems to irk them and they move on to a quieter spot without the human pestering them!

I've never had an animal greet me at my door each time I come home, like Rosie does. She cries behind the door before I've opened it, you can tell she can't wait to see me. Then it's her paws on my legs, grappling at me to get me to pick her up and smother her with love, while she head butts and kisses me back with all that sphynx love just oozing out.

I love the way she makes a little den under the blankets and curls up next to my body when I'm sleeping. Even more so, I love how when I turn over, I can take her with me, picking up her sleepy curled up body and plopping it down on the other side and she doesn't hardly open her eyes! Do that with a hairy cat and you'll get the evil death stare for disturbing them and they'll probably run off to seek a less mobile bed companion!

There's just something magical about them that makes your heart melt. I've loved all my animals enormously, but I've never felt that gut aching, deep love that I have with Rosie. It's what makes me tuck her into bed before I leave for work at night, giving her lots of kisses and telling her mummy has to work but won't be long til I'm back, as if she understands me (which I think she does!). It makes me think about her and worry about her when I'm not home and what makes me tell everyone who'll listen about my little pink baby! I know most of my colleagues think I'm potty, talking about her all the time and showing her pictures- I've earned the nickname of the 'naked cat lady', at work, but it just makes me smile and feel very happy, because I have the most amazing little being in my life.

Yes, hairy cats are awesome in their own special and slightly aloof ways, but nakeds are a whole new level of awesomeness that you just can't understand unless you have a naked baby.

 

[GoldHazel]

@lealea I hear your passion loud and clear and have to agree with everything you have said. I too have loved all my animals, but compared to loving my sphynx cats...the love I feel for them is over the top!

The love I get from them is over the top as well. Since I got my first sphynx, I honestly don't look forward to any vacations! I start missing them way before I'm away. Once I'm on vacation, I think about my babies 21 hours a day and dream about them while I'm sleeping. I look at their photos on my cell phone every moment I get. I will talk about them to anyone that I think is listening.

Nobody can ever understand the love of a sphynx until they've been in our shoes. Oh and I too love how I'm greeted at the door when I come home from anywhere. Some are at the door as they hear me coming...others come running and they "talk" to me. I talk right back and we have conversations all the time.

I really feel that they are not just an animal...there is something part human about them. Love them soooooo much. I can't tell you how many people have assumed I never had human children when they hear me talking about my sphynx babies. When I tell them that I do have human children, they all become speechless. LOL

 

[Condo commando]

The way they use their paws and long toes to grab things is amazing. If there's a little chunk of meat on the edge of the bowl that they can't lick up with their tongue, they use a paw to move it towards the center of the bowl and chomp on it. They eat like bottomless pits too.

 

[bluejay1919]

I'm really enjoying reading all of these. I have to agree with everything everyone is saying. It's all so true! There is no other like a Sphynx!!

Nothing compares... Nothing compares... To you!

 

[GoldHazel]

@bluejay1919 you just gave me the chills. LOL I LOVE that song!