Are there any cat breeds that don t shed much, or are hypoallergenic? Ideally both...?

NO dog or cat are hypoallergenic - they just shed less then normal.

Saying that most people are allergic to either the dander in the coat or the saliva from the cat washing. Sphynx (hairless cats) can cause an allergic reaction if the person is allergic to saliva. Less shedding cats include: Bengals, Burmese, Cornish or Devon Rex, Oriental Shorthairs, Ocicats, very short/tight coated Siamese and Russian Blues. These cats shed a lot less then most breeds.

However, these purebred cats will cost you $700+ for a kitten. If you are willing to spend that kind of money, then adopt an adult cat - not a kitten as adult coats can be different then kitten coats. Most all kittens do not shed very much till they are closer to being an adult, so that is not a good way to know if you allergic or not.

Hairless cats most often cause MORE of an allergic reaction since people aren't allergic to cat fur it's cat DANDER - the SKIN - that they react to.

The Russian Blue is no more or less allergy inducing than other breeds. There's also only about 6 breeders in the entire country and even pet quality kittens START at around $800.

The only breeds that are supposedly less allergy inducing are the Siberian and the Rex breeds - Cornish, Selkirk, Devon. The Rex breeds will shed less than a Siberian. But again, the fur is not the issue.

You won't find a pet quality Siberian for under $1,200 or any of the Rex breeds under $600. Odds are there also isn't a breeder of any of these close to you so do you also have a bunch of money to fly to the breeder and IF approved to buy fly back next Spring/Summer to pick up a kitten?

You also need to realize that kittens don't have the dander adult cats have. So you could spend all this money to get a kitten only to find you're HIGHLY allergic to it once it's an adult.

If you're MILDLY allergic to cats why not just go to a shelter and adopt the adult cat you least react to? But if you or someone in your home is highly allergic to cats NO cat would be a good match.

Besides the Sphinx cat which is hairless, there are two breeds which have short curly hair and do not shed: the Devon Rex (which has a pretty pixi-ish face) and the Cornish Rex (which has a coarser face). Both these breeds make wonderful pets; their coat looks like little marceled waves.

Something also to consider is nutrition. Even if an animal doesn't shed coat, it will shed dry skin if it isn't getting good nutrition. Be sure you feed a quality cat food and that will reduce dander - which is the source of most allergic reactions.

Also, consider this in the case of shedding dogs: nutrition again plays a role; the other factor is while you will see the shed hair from long-haired breeds more than you will the short-haired ones, it's actually the short-haired breeds that shed more. The long-haired ones wouldn't have longer hair if they were shedding it to the same degree as the short-haired ones; it wouldn't stay attached long enough to grow that long.

There are hairless cats that don't shed at all. These cats, however, are still not hypoallergenic because the amount of dander they shed will be the same as any other cat. On the upside, with a hairless cat it is easier to conduct a controlled removal of dermis through regular grooming so less dander scatters across the house.

Cat Breeds That Dont Shed

I'm allergic to regular coated cats myself. I bought a bengal 7 months ago and he hasn't bothered my allergies at all. He probably sheds at least a little, but to be honest I don't notice. My furniture is not covered in hair, and my clothes aren't either. He's much softer than regular coated cats. He's an SBT bengal, so he is considered a domestic cat. Bengals have pelts, not coats. Savannah cats are supposed to share the same pelt and be better for allergy sufferers. I don't know what you want to spend on a cat though. A pet only SBT Bengal will start at $800 from a reputable breeder. I've never bought a foundation bengal, but they probably cost more and have too many wild cat tendencies to be good pets for the average cat owner. I don't know what SBT Savannahs cost, but the foundation bred (f1,f2,f3) are quite expensive, and will also display more wild cat behavior.

There is absolutely NO such thing as a hypoallergenic cat. There are only cats who some people have less of a response to. There are always people who will be allergic to that cat. There is a short list of breeds that a percentage of the population have less of a response to but again, there is no guarantee.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/10/health.pets.a...

http://www.catster.com/cat-breeds/hypoallergenic-c...

I have severe allergies and I have found that I don't have a reaction to Russian Blues, Siberian or Balinese cats. Keep in mind that if you want one of those breeds they tend to be very expensive. You usually can't find a siberian cat for under $1,200.

Personally I like guys with shorter hair. I don't mind it getting a little long like 3-4 ins (maybe a little longer) as long as it's styled in a very good way.

No pet is hypoallergenic. They ALL shed dander and they all she d fur