Unlike dogs, cats are usually known for their straight and fluffy hair, it’s one of the most distinctive features that the vast majority of felines have. However, there’s a special cat breed called the Selkirk Rex that looks quite different from the typical cats we’re used to.
Selkirk Rex cats have the most angelic curls, a chunky build with a short muzzle, and a round head. Meet Tony, Manny, Sosa, and Elvira, four fluffy kittens from Switzerland that look absolutely adorable.
As if kittens aren’t already totally adorable, Selkirk Rex cats really take cute kittens to new levels. Their lush curls give them the most distinctive look!
These cats are also known as sheep cats and the name fits the fur. The litter where the first one of them was born in 1987 is located in Selkirk Mountains in Montana, the cat breed was named after those mountains.
Curly Kitty
Smol Kitten
Adorable Kitty Cat
The Selkirk Rex cat breed made its first-ever appearance in Montana in 1987, which makes it a relatively new breed. Their unusually curly hair allowed them to gain a cult-like status on the internet. The origin of those curls is a natural mutation that resulted from a litter of a blue tortoiseshell cat and a white cat.
The lineage of all Selkirk Rexes can be traced back to Miss DePesto, the first-ever Selkirk Rex kitten. She was named after Jeri Newman’s stepfather, her breeder.
When Newman from the Noface Cattery in Livington, Montana realized that DePesto carried “the dominant curly-coat gene, but also the recessive gene for long hair,” he was quite surprised, according to Pet Finder. In order to produce a long-haired offspring, both parents must possess at least one copy of the long hair gene, and that’s exactly what happened.
The breed was presented to TICA’s board of directors back in 1990 and became a new addition to the New Breed and Color class. Two years later, the breed was registered in the miscellaneous class by the CFA. Selkirk Rex is one of the most-loved and unique cat breeds to have emerged in recent decades. It even achieved the CFA championship status in 2000.
While these days most Selkirk Rexes are born with curls, some of them are also born with straight hair. Their waves tend to become much more defined as they get older. Many people call them “teddy bears” since they are super soft to the touch.
These four adorable kittens are melting hearts all over social media.
They have more than 111k followers on Instagram who enjoy seeing their updates regularly.