Sphynx Care – Ears and Eyes
Eyes
Sphynx don’t have eyelashes, their eyes produce thicker than tears discharge which works as a moisturizer, protector and cleanser. Sphynx clean their own eyes and wipe off brownish, jelly like residue. But if for some reason they have left some significant amount of discharge you may use soft (lint free) washcloth with warm water. Be gentle and wipe outside of the closed eye, moving from outer towards inner corner. Don’t poke your kitty’s eyes, you could cause serious problems. Sphynx are fragile creatures so always be extra careful in handling them. After wiping eyes you may delicately pass washcloth over mouth and the face since those parts get dirty quicker than rest of the body.
I don’t like to recommend baby wipes because all of them contain chemicals. As we all know cats clean themselves with saliva and will lick it off at some point, which can’t be good.
Ears
Since sphynx have no hair in their ears you may notice they produce more wax than other cats. This sometimes dark in color wax is there to protect the inner ear from bacteria, viruses etc. Some owners like to use oils, vitamin A or Hydrogen Peroxide to help with excess wax. I believe best approach to keep ears healthy is to use well rolled q-tips swabs or cotton balls (because you don’t want pieces of cotton to be left in the ear) and gently pat it in between of outer ear flap, following natural curves.
It’s important that after each bath you dry ears from water. Sphynx like to shake off after bath. If water got into their ears would be naturally moved to outer parts. You can gently pat and swipe but do not rub (!) with dry q-tip or cotton ball, excess water or wax should be absorbed by cotton. Make sure you use fresh end of cotton each time you dry or clean new part of the ear. If you want to get rid of wax from ear canal make sure you don’t go deeper than 0,1 of the inch. Perform all ear maintenance slowly and delicately, do not puncture eardrums. Clean ears every 3 to 4 days and after each bath.
If you see any unusual discharge from eyes or/and ears , or just feel concerned contact your veterinarian.
Written by Joanna