The first foundation member of this rare cat breed was first encountered in Russia in 1987 when a professor named Elena Kovaleva rescued a kitten that was being mistreated by a group of boys.
The kitten was partially hairless, leading Elena to attempt all kinds of treatments in an effort to restore it’s coat – but to no avail. After some time, the cat, now named Varvara, had a litter of kittens that included some with hair and some without hair. Those born with hair soon lost part or all of their coats, and it was determined that Varvara had a genetic mutation rather than a skin disease.
One of Varvara’s hairless kittens was adopted by a professional breeder named Irina Nemikina, who is credited with creating the Donskoy cat breed as we know it today.
The World Cat Federation (WCF) granted their official recognition in 1997 and The International Cat Association (TICA) officially recognized the Don Sphynx cat breed in 2005, registering it under the name ‘Donskoy.’