Hairless Animals

One of my favorite photo blogs recently posted a picture of a skinny pig - that's a kind hairless guinea pig!!! I have loved guinea pigs my whole life, what with their blubbery little lips and champion veggie munching abilities, but I had no idea that such a breed existed. Apparently, a Skinny is a specific breed first bred for lab use in 1982, and there are other hairless guinea pigs that are not part of that breed.

Photo credit: fairysari

Cool Cats . . .

Another hairless breed of the common household pet is the Sphynx Cat, which seem to be more commonly known about than those little skinny pigs I was just fascinating over. The hairless trait is a mutation that has popped up in multiple places throughout the world over time, but most of the Sphynx cats you encounter in the U.S. today are a special breed that originated in Toronto in 1966.

Photo credit: against the tide

And Hot Dogs!

There are also multiple breeds of hairless dogs throughout the world, including the Chinese Crested, Peruvian Inca Orchid, and Xoloitzcuintle (or Mexican Hairless.) Hairless dogs are popular choices for those people who want a canine friend but suffer from allergies. Or for those who want an unusual looking dog!!!

Photo credit: kendrahw

A Little Bit of Fuzz

As you may have been able to tell from the pictures in this post, these hairless animals are not entirely hairless - they often have hair around the head and face, and may have fine downy hair elsewhere on their body.

You can read more about different guinea pig, cat, and dog breeds in these books.

• The Guinea Pig Handbook by Sharon Lynn Vanderlip
• The Ultimate Encyclopedia Of Cats, Cat Breeds & Cat Care by Alan Edwards
• The Ultimate Encyclopedia Of Dogs, Dog Breeds & Dog Care by Peter Larkin

And just so you don't worry about all these little animals being cold, let's end this post with a SWEATER PARTY!!!!

Photo credit: es74273 

Author Bio:

Michelle K. is a Librarian at the Brisbane Library. Writing this post, she saw many pictures of hairless cats with tattoos and can't imagine how that even happened.