Cute And Hilarious Hairless Animals That All Kids Will Love

Did you know that some animals are born hairless?

Hairless, bald animals are often overlooked. However, they are just as amazing as their furry counterparts.

Even though the bald animals that lack fur or hair may appear strange to us at first glance, they are just as beautiful as any other creature. Many reasons can cause a species or different animals to lose hair over time. Most of these reasons are evolutionary but at times, even genetic mutation plays a role. When it comes to manipulating genes, humans are the primary drivers to create or amplify mutations. In some cases like dogs and cats, animals are bred to be hairless. Humans are funny animals that alter the course of evolution simply because they find hairless animals appealing. In this article, we will understand why some animals are born hairless and also learn about some cute and fascinating bald animals that are a delight to look at.

If you like reading about different animals and how some of them evolved to be hairless, be sure to check out other cool and fun facts on Kidadl about orange animals and famous animals.

Why are some animals hairless?

There may be a myriad of reasons why a given animal is hairless. Read on to learn about some of them.

One of the big reasons an animal is hairless is biological dysfunction. As much as we adore the unique look of a hairless animal, it may be rooted in the factors like vitamin or mineral imbalance. These deficiencies may cause the animals to experience hair loss. In such cases, the animal may restore its hair if the underlying issue is corrected. One of ways an animal may become hairless is through the natural aging process. In addition, there are other natural causes like seasonality that are part of the shedding cycle of animals which cause hairlessness. Another reason why an animal may be hairless is due to genetic mutation. The process of creation of life is imperfect in some ways. At the point in the womb when DNA is copied there are certain errors in replication, which may cause a mutation that leads the young to be born without fur or hair. Mutations get a bad rap due to the stereotypes associated with the X-men movie franchise. Many times a given mutation may cause the animal to never grow any skin. This may not be an issue for animals that do not need their hair or fur to protect from the elements, but for those animals that do, being hairless can be a cause for concern.

Naturally Hairless Animals

We have discussed what animals are the exception to the norm of their species in being hairless. This does not account for those animals, which by default, are almost completely hairless. These animals may have evolved in a manner that makes hair redundant or inconvenient.

There are many such animals which include the cetaceans. Cetaceans are the largest group of mammals that happen to be hairless. This group includes mammals that live in water such as dolphins, whales, and porpoises. There are land animals too that are hairless, how about the biggest animal on land, the African elephant. The African elephant lives in hot, dry conditions, and as they mature they lose hair. The kangaroos too are born hairless. It is only after the kangaroo cub comes out of the kangaroo mother's pouch that hair starts to grow. A hairless wombat is meant to stay in the mother's pouch until they reach the age of about seven months. Over time the wombat grows out normal fur.

Cute Hairless Animals To Look At

While hair and fur give some of our favorite animals the soft furry feel. Hairless animals too are cute, despite their wrinkles or smooth skin. These animals are a testament to the idea that you don't need hair to look your best. If you are on the fence about these claims, then you ought to look at pictures of some hairless baby animals available on the internet.

A skinny pig or hairless guinea pig is the almost hairless breed of cute little guinea pigs. This animal has smooth skin and a few wrinkles around its neck and legs. The modern breed of this skinny pig was a result of a cross between a hairless lab strain of guinea pigs and haired guinea pigs. No list of cute animals can ever be complete without the mention of dogs. Just like dogs with lots of furs, hairless dogs are adorable. Few hairless dog breeds like the Chinese crested, Argentine Pila dog, Peruvian hairless dog, and American hairless terrier carry genes that cause them to have very little hair on their body or be completely hairless dogs. Next on the list is the baboon, which is the world's largest monkey. Hamadryas baboon is a hairless baboon that can be located in Africa and Asia. The female hamadryas baboon has a hairless black and brown face. This characteristic makes them look quite intriguing.

We always think of birds as having lots of feathers. However, some birds can be featherless or later grow up without feathers due to a lot of reasons. One such example is a featherless bird named Rhea who lost all her feathers due to a disease called the Psittacine beak and feather disease. Hamsters, like the hairless Syrian hamsters, lack their usual fur on the body due to a genetic disorder. However, these hamsters even without fur, look too adorable. For the next animal, we have the Sphynx cat that is known and is popular for its lack of fur. The hairlessness in this cat breed is due to a naturally occurring genetic mutation. Since the 1960s, the Sphynx has been developed through selective breeding. The Sphynx cats are super adorable to look at and play with. Their large, lemon-shaped eyes make them very cute. These cats are some of the best hairless pets that one can keep at home. This pet cat can make for a great companion. Rats, like the naked mole-rat, or double rex hairless rats, are also adorable creatures that can be kept as a pet too. These hairless rats are very similar to their fluffy, hairy counterparts in their characteristics. Rats like the truly hairless rat have no hair at all. But this rat is usually meant only for lab use and not for keeping as a pet. Talking about adorable hairless animals, the poor bald hedgehog named Nelson, unfortunately, lost all his fur due to trauma that resulted in stress-related alopecia. All the spines of this poor hedgehog also fell out and have not grown back.

Animals With Thick And Hairless Skin

Hair or fur on the body is perhaps one of the most distinguishing features of mammals. However, some mammals have evolved with very little hair and as a result, appear to be naked to others. These animals though are just as natural and normal as any other animal we see with fur or hair.

Below are some of the animals that have hairless skin but are extremely adorable.

African elephant: who doesn't love majestic and beautiful elephants? It is the largest land mammal. They experience rapid hair loss on their body as they grow older. This may be due to the fact that their bodies have adapted this way to survive in their habitat.

Cetaceans: these mammals constitute the largest group of hairless mammals. They generally lack a coat of hair on their body but may have few hairs on their face. Evolution has a role to play in this too. This group of mammals was the only mammals that evolved from land-based creatures and returned to the sea. Their evolution process involved losing hair that is helpful for life on the land but may get in the way in the waters.

Bald bear: in a zoo in eastern Germany, three bears appeared to have suddenly experienced hair loss and appear almost bald. Many other zoos had also reported the same problem. This bear normally has a thick layer of dark brown fur to keep itself warm in harsh winters. Although not a particular cause could be identified for the hair loss of this bear, the climate and the diet may have had an effect.

Walrus: these mammals have replaced their hair with a layer of subcutaneous fat to help with insulation.

Babirusa: this animal belongs to the family of pigs and can be found in Indonesia. They are also known by the name of deer pigs. Although these animals are not completely hairless, they have very short hair and appear to be bald animals.

Hippopotamus: this animal, much like the walrus has less hair and more fat. This fat acts as a useful insulator as the hippopotamus spends most of its time in the water.

Unfortunately, there are people who do not appreciate their hairless dog or hairless guinea pig. It is at times that these bald animals are abandoned. You can do something about this and adopt such bald animals from your nearest rescue center and give the love needed to these adorable animals.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for hairless animals, then why not take a look at radial symmetry animals or pack animals?