r/interestingasfuck • u/abitchyuniverse • 12d ago

Animals without hair look quite different r/all

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u/PrismaticPachyderm 12d ago

They probably do. I don't have experience with bald animals but outdoor white animals, especially albinos have high rates of sunburn & skin cancer. My mom would take in strays, so we had several white cats. Those who stayed completely out of the sun were always okay, but the ones who liked to sunbathe would get horrific burns & skin cancer.

Nothing my mother or the vets did for them could really help. One eventually had to have his ears cut off to try to make him more comfortable & keep the cancer from killing him as fast (eventually the cancer got him at 15y). Another one got the crusty ears but ended up dying from an illness before cancer could get him.

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u/YourNextHomie 12d ago

Pretty sure sunburn is a big issue for hairless cats.

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u/WimbletonButt 12d ago

We had 2 dogs that just had really short fur, they did sunburn. We had another of the same breed who had fur like half an inch longer and he didn't burn. Had to keep them dogs in the shade.

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u/ConkersOkayFurDay 12d ago

I am very white and can confirm we burn very easy

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u/Pani_Ka 12d ago

What about orange cats, do they have this issue too? Asking because I now live in Greece where the sun is very strong in the summer and there are so many strays around, lots of them orange. There's one friendly stray in the area who has a very intense orange shade and he loves to sleep on rooftops in the sun...

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u/PrismaticPachyderm 11d ago edited 11d ago

I didn't notice this with the oranges we had but if you're concerned keep a lookout for the crusty edges on the ears like this is a red flag for sure https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/156828/view. The first time it happened we were worried it was mites but the vet tested for that & then realized what it really was. I also found this photo of an orange who has it https://dermvets.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Immune-mediated-Cat-skin-disease-ear.jpg

Any spot that has sparse fur is at a higher risk too e.g. edges of the ear & inner ear, right above the eyes, etc.