Ukrainian Levkoy
Hairless with ears that fold inwards, bred in Ukraine from the Donskoy and the Scottish Fold. Recognised almost nowhere outside its home registries.
Overview
The Ukrainian Levkoy is a hairless cat with ears that fold inward, developed in Ukraine in the 2000s by crossing the Donskoy with the Scottish Fold. It is recognised only by Ukrainian and Russian registries.
Both defining traits come from a single gene each, and both of those genes are known to do more than change appearance. That is the honest description of what this breed is built from.
Temperament
Sociable, affectionate and confident. Levkoys are people oriented in the way hairless breeds generally are, seeking warmth and contact and following their households around.
They are good with children, dogs and other cats, and they are active and curious. They are not shy with visitors and they do not enjoy being left alone.
Care and grooming
Bathing rather than brushing, since skin oil accumulates with no coat to absorb it, plus regular ear cleaning, which the folded ear makes more necessary and more delicate.
They sunburn, they chill quickly and they need a warm house. The Donskoy hairlessness gene is dominant, which raises its own breeding questions.
Living and exercise
Indoors, warm, with heated beds and soft places to burrow.
The fold is the thing to understand before buying. It comes from the Scottish Fold line, and the variant that folds the ear is a TRPV4 variant that interferes with cartilage development throughout the skeleton, producing progressive joint disease in cats that carry it. A cat can be affected whether or not the ears look dramatic.
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