Why Do Sphynx Cats Shiver?
Posted in Hairless Cat Hints, Sphynx Kittens Care on 22. Jun, 2009
I made a post some time back in the “Sphynx Cat Myths” series about how people may mistake the shivering of a Sphynx cat or Sphynx kitten with fear or timidness. As any Sphynx cat owner will tell you, it would be the exception rather than the rule, to find a Sphynx cat who is shy by nature. So why do Sphynx cats shiver?
If you remember back to your school days in science class you may recall that when energy is expended there are the by-products – light and heat. The Sphynx (as do humans and other mammals) use this area of physics to increase body temperature.
When the skin and nerves send a message to the brain that they sense cold, the brain sends out the message to various muscle groups to start moving (shivering) to create extra heat. For the Sphynx, who has no covering to protect it from the elements, and maintains a body temperature two degrees warmer than furred cats, this is one of the ways it keeps warm (along with laying on heat sources, staying under blankets etc).
Sphynx cat Luna knows how to get close to the heater without burning
A warm Sphynx is a happy Sphynx, and keeping your Sphynx warm should always be a priority to the Sphynx owner. I have heard anecdotal stories that a cold Sphynx will also grow more body hair (not real fur) than one in a permanent warm environment. I am researching whether that is indeed the case, correlation does not always mean causation as they say in the scientific world.
So if you have patted or held a Sphynx and felt it shiver you can be assured it was not frightened of you, it was just feeling the chill.
