Thanks to the Scottish fold, the cats’ ears are folded over, and thanks to the Levkoy, the cats have very little to no hair at all. The Ukrainian Levkoy only came about as recently as 2004, so it is still a relatively rare breed. Their ears don’t fold forward quite as much as the ears of the Scottish fold, but they still have their own characteristic charm. It is an adorable and slender cat with ears set at a wide base that fold slightly forward at the tip. The Ukrainian Levkoy is a cat that is the result of breeding between a Scottish fold and the Donskoy. Having folded ears doesn’t disrupt the cat’s hearing in any way whatsoever. The good news is that Scottish folds can hear perfectly fine. It all depends on whether or not the kitten is born with the dominant gene mutation that is responsible for the fold. Some Scottish folds never actually develop the fold. It isn’t until the kittens are around the three to four-week mark that they tend to develop the fold in their ears.Ī Scottish fold orange tabby cat. They are actually born with ears that are completely straight or, in other words, how we would typically describe “normal” cat ears. Surprisingly, Scottish fold kittens aren’t born with folded ears. These ears are quite distinct in the way they are simply bent or folded over. The cat so aptly named for its folded ears is the Scottish fold. Susie and her kittens would go on to create the breed known today as the Scottish fold. She was subsequently bred with other cats, and many of her kittens developed the same distinct ear shape and fold. The breed most well-known for its folded ears, the Scottish fold, as well as the Ukrainian Levkoy can trace their lineage back to one cat by the name of Susie, who lived as a barn cat in the 1960s in Scotland. The first modernly reported case of folded ears can be traced back to just one cat, the common ancestor of all cats with this trait today. Cats with folded earsįolded ears are the result of a genetic mutation that affects the cartilage of the cat’s ears. These are also sometimes called Lynx tips due to the resemblance to lynx.Ī silver Maine Coon tabby cat with price ears and ear tufts. It’s also well-known for its heavily tufted ears, or hair that grows from the tip of the ears.

It has prick ears that stand high and an average distance apart.

The Norwegian Forest cat is known for its long, beautiful coat. Some even have extra fur on and in their ears! The Maine Coon, Turkish Van, and Norwegian Forest Cat are all known for having upright, straight, or prick ears. Most domestic shorthair and longhair cats have straight or prick-eared friends. Some can have a flared or wide-set base, and the ears can be set closely together on the top of the head or far apart.

Some are pointed while others are rounded off, some tufted and some fringed. Some are positioned higher on the head, some are far apart, and some are close together.Īnd the tips of the ears also vary. The ears’ positioning can also change based on the cat’s breed. There are several breeds that have unique ears that are folded or even curled. Most cats we see have straight, upright ears, sometimes called prick ears. As more cat breeds are developed, cats are also developing various shapes and sizes of ears.

Characteristics highland lynx kittens