Owning hairless pets, like Sphynx cats, comes with its own set of challenges and accommodations. Hairless cats expel more energy every day compared to cats with fur. They lack the insulation of fur to keep them warm, therefore have to use extra energy to constantly heat themselves. One of the most important things you can do for your hairless cats is to get them a heat lamp!
How Does a Heat Lamp Help?
Heat lamps help support their overall health and well-being. Your cat expends a lot of energy just to keep warm. Laying under heat lamps allows your cat’s body to direct energy into other important bodily functions, which can also help improve circulation and digestion, as well as help reduce stress and anxiety.
Heat lamps are also very comforting for your kitty! Many cats enjoy laying in the sunny patches on the floor, so having access to this experience whenever they’d like makes for one happy cat.
Making Heat Lamps Safe
You want to ensure that the heat lamp is both safe for your cat and for your house. Heat lamps can cause fires when too close to flammable materials, so be sure to choose bedding that isn’t too fluffy. There are a couple options that you can choose to suspend your heat lamp.
Use a Cat House
The set-up I currently have in my home for my Sphynx cats is a cat house with bedding. I got this large cat house on Wayfair, called the “Gatsby Cat House.” Then I drilled two holes in the roof and covered them with wire mesh, which I placed the lamps on.
The wire mesh keeps the kitties from being able to access the hot bulb and the roof of the cat house is a perfect height for your cats to bask without getting burned.
Use Your Cat Tree
Before I had the room or the funds for a cat house, I used the cat tree I already had to suspend my heat lamp! I simply drilled a hole into one of the climbing shelves and zip-tied the heat lamp to the shelf. You can then place a soft bed underneath the lamp. If you go this route, I recommend purchasing a specialty fire-proof and burn-proof heat lamp like the 'Prima Heat Lamp' from Premier 1 for best safety for your home and cats.
Make sure that your lamp is at least 18 inches above the bed your cat will be laying in. This assures that your cat will be nice and warm, but won’t burn themselves.
Where to Get a Heat Lamp
Heat lamps are a great investment and can be found easily on Amazon by looking up a reptile heat lamp or a pet heat lamp. They are also very affordable, with a basic lamp costing around $25 and a bulb being around $10. For hairless pets, this affordable investment could be the difference between a healthy and happy pet and one that is shivering!
