00:10 APRIL: It was my dream to produce an adorable
bobtail cat that everyone would be able to enjoy.
00:16 COMM: April Arguin of Jacksonville, Florida
has successfully introduced two new cat breeds into the world.
SphynxieBob, and the BamBob.
00:25 APRIL: The SphynxieBob looks identical to
a regular Sphynx, has the gorgeous big round ears and the hairless features, the only difference
that makes them superior and unique is the short little bobtail.
00:42 APRIL: Unique feature of the BamBob is they're
identical to the bambino cat which is a hairless cat that carries the gene for short legs so
they have the same awesome looks and short, cute little swagger but they have a short
bobtail.
00:57 APRIL: You are the world's first ever.
01:01 COMM: With help from her mother Wendy, April
has spent the last three years attempting to create her new breeds.
01:12 APRIL: We had to really do our research before
we started into the breed before we even did the very first pairing and make sure that
the genetics were all appropriate to combine together.
We got expert advice from our veterinarian and really made sure that we were going to
be producing beautiful healthy cats.
01:28 APRIL: So the hairless gene in the sphinx
cat is a recessive gene so the first generation all are actually gonna be produced with fur
like a normal cat, so then we chose the best kitten from that litter and we bred them again
back to a hairless cat and then the final product is the hairless bobtail kittens.
It takes three generations to get the hairless gene back into the kitten and carry on the
bobtail.
01:53 WENDY: I'm really proud of my daughter and
what she's accomplished with this breed and just the amount of work and dedication she
has for it is just incredible.
02:05 COMM: With their inquisitive personalities,
April insists that these hairless cats are the perfect companions.
02:10 APRIL: We call them velcro kitties, they need
to be with you, and on you and in bed with you everywhere you go.
They are wonderful with children.
They love to interact and play.
They're very outgoing and social.
There's a lot of people that come to us every day to adopt these cats because they have
severe allergies to cats and they can't tolerate the fur.
02:30 COMM: April is currently trying to get her
new breeds recognised at the rare and exotic feline registry.
02:36 APRIL: They require a certain number of kittens
to be born first and so we are waiting for a few more litters of kittens before we'll
able to be fully registered.
It's definitely a passion, it's not a business or something I do with the goal or intention
of making money.
We do this for the betterment of the breed and really just the passion of sharing these
amazing creatures with the world.