What are 'bully cats' and why are experts warning against buying them?
Animal experts from the United Kingdom warned cat lovers to avoid buying "bully cats," the feline equivalent of the banned American dog breed XL bully dogs, due to serious health problems.
In case you didn't know, bully cats were created by breeders in the United States who mixed the gene in sphynx cats that causes hairlessness with the gene of munchkin cats that causes short legs.
Citing a research paper, The Telegraph said these newly emerging cat breeds are likely to have a life expectancy of at least six years, which is shorter than that of an average pet cat, which usually has around 13 to 14 years.
"Prospective pet owners need to be aware of the risks associated with owning mutant and experimental breeds," said Dr Grace Carroll, a specialist in animal behavior and welfare at Queen's University Belfast's School of Psychology.
Currently, bully cats are being offered for sale in the UK through various social media promotions despite concerns over their serious health defect, including their hairlessness, which makes them more susceptible to respiratory infections, sunburn, and skin cancer.
"Kittens already have a limited ability to regulate their body temperature and this is made even more difficult by hairlessness and makes them more susceptible to respiratory infections. A lack of fur can also lead to sunburn and skin cancer in hairless cats," Caroll said, adding that cats with no whiskers might cause problems with their communication and navigation.
Likewise, as per the cat protection spokesperson, bully cats can experience "painful arthritis and cause problems with their general mobility" due to genetic defects brought on by their short legs.
Hence, Carroll discouraged breeders from prioritizing "aesthetics" over health and welfare of the animals, as this would cause "unnecessary suffering" to the cats in the future.
"Consumers hold purchasing power. We can discourage breeders from prioritizing aesthetics over the health and welfare of the animals by refusing to buy breeds with extreme traits."
Carroll added, "A fashion toward ethical breeding could ensure future cats are healthier, happier, and free to enjoy natural feline behavior like climbing, jumping, and lounging in the sun. We should let cats be cats."
'This kind of breeding is just cruel'
Meanwhile, the NatureWatch Foundation, which campaigns on animal welfare and investigates the illegal trade in animals, highlighted how "cruel" and "disturbing" it is to know that these "poor cats" are starting to appear in the country.
"We've seen increasingly extreme breeding practices in the dog world in recent years, and it appears unscrupulous people are now turning their attention to exploiting cats in the same way, all in the pursuit of greed and social media likes," said a spokesman in a statement obtained by The Telegraph.
"Bully cats are an animal welfare disaster unfolding before our eyes, and this kind of breeding is just cruel," it added.
Ultimately, Dr Dan O'Neill, Associate Professor of Companion Animal Epidemiology at the Royal Veterinary College has this to say to all pet lovers, especially those who are buying bully cats, "The advice to anyone thinking of acquiring a cat or a dog is to always put the welfare of the animal first and to stop and think before acquiring an animal with an extreme and unnatural body shape that does not exist commonly in nature."