Donskoy

Temperament

The Donskoy is a cat made for companionship. It is warm, trusting and curious, greets guests, happily sits in laps and sleeps under the covers. It loves to play, explores every nook and cranny and learns new things quickly, including walking on a harness. It usually accepts other cats and dogs well, and with children who know how to handle it gently, it makes a great team. It is moderately vocal. The breed's weakest point is being alone: the Donskoy needs constant contact with people and copes very badly with long hours without company, which is why breeders often recommend a second cat. Because its skin is delicate, supervise play with children so that it does not get scratched.

Energy

calmvery energetic

Affection

independentvelcro pet

With children

not idealgreat

With other pets

difficultgreat

Trainability

stubborneager to learn

For first-time owners

for experienced ownersyes

With strangers

waryoutgoing

Playfulness

dignifiedeternal puppy

Shedding

minimalheavy

Grooming

easydemanding

Being left alone

strugglescopes well

Apartment living

needs a house and yardgreat in a flat

Talkativeness

quietchatterbox

Indoor-only life

needs outdoor accessgreat

Scores of 1–5 compare the breed with other breeds of the same species, based on the sources at the bottom of the page. Every animal is different. How we score traits

Who is the Donskoy for?

A Donskoy may suit someone who works from home and can provide constant company, daily skin care and warmth, and who accepts the ethical questions around breeding hairless cats. It is not hypoallergenic, although some people with allergies react to it less. We do not recommend it for people who travel often, want an independent cat or live in a cool home.

Size and looks

Care and exercise

Caring for a Donskoy is mostly about caring for its skin. Wipe the cat daily with a damp towel and bathe it every 1–2 weeks with a mild shampoo to remove the oil. The ears get dirty quickly and need regular cleaning. Skin without a coat burns easily, so the cat should live indoors and spend only short periods on a balcony or in the yard, in the shade, with a sunscreen approved by your vet. On cool days it needs a warm bed, a blanket and often a sweater too. Trim its nails once a month and brush its teeth regularly. A fast metabolism means higher energy needs, but keep portions in check, because excess weight is a common problem in indoor cats.

Health and breed-related conditions

The Donskoy's hairlessness is not a harmless cosmetic trait. The Dutch food and product safety authority, the NVWA, has classed it as a harmful trait and has enforced a ban on breeding hairless cats since 2024, citing a higher risk of sunburn, skin and ear infections, kittens that chill quickly with a risk of respiratory infections, and missing whiskers that limit the sense of touch and communication. International Cat Care's position is that a coat is essential to a cat and that hairless cats should not be bred. The Donskoy mutation is dominant and its molecular basis is still unknown, so there is no DNA test. TICA and Wisdom Panel give a lifespan of 12–15 years. Breeders should screen the parents' hearts.

• sunburn and skin injuriesSkin without a coat burns and gets injured easily; outdoors it needs protection from the sun.
• chilling and respiratory infections in kittensHairless kittens lose heat quickly, which raises the risk of infection in the first weeks of life.
• skin and ear inflammationThe lack of a coat makes skin and ear infections and oil buildup more likely.
• missing or vestigial whiskersLimits the sense of touch and communication with other cats; one of the arguments behind the breeding ban in the Netherlands.

This is general breed information, not a diagnosis. If something worries you, talk to your veterinarian.

Breed history

The breed's story began in 1987 in Rostov-on-Don. A local woman took in a stray female cat that gradually began to lose her hair. Her offspring were also partly or fully hairless, pointing to a new, spontaneous mutation. Research showed that the trait is inherited as an (incompletely) dominant gene, and in 2013 German geneticists ruled out the KRT71 gene that causes hairlessness in the Sphynx. Russian breeders developed the breed, and crosses with the Donskoy produced, among others, the Peterbald. FIFe and WCF recognized the Don Sphynx, and TICA registers it as the Donskoy. In several European countries, however, opposition to breeding hairless cats is growing.

Fun facts

• The breed's founding female was found in Rostov-on-Don in 1987, hence the name Don Sphynx.
• The Donskoy's hairlessness is caused by a different gene from the Sphynx's: researchers ruled out KRT71.
• Donskoys come in several coat types: fully bald, flock, velour and brush.
• The Peterbald breed descends from the Donskoy.

Frequently asked questions

This breed also appears in

• Cats for allergy sufferers

Sources

1. 1TICA – Donskoy breedtica.org
2. 2Wisdom Panel – Donskoywisdompanel.com
3. 3FECAVA – Dutch breeding ban for hairless catsfecava.org
4. 4International Cat Care – Sphynx (position on hairless cats)icatcare.org
5. 5OMIA – Hypotrichosis, Don Sphynxomia.org
6. 6DutchNews – Dutch ban new ownership of Sphynx and Scottish Fold catsdutchnews.nl
7. 7FIFe – Breedsfifeweb.org
8. 8WCF – Breed standards hairlesswcf.de

Last reviewed: November 12, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.