The Ragdoll, a "rag doll" cat? This is indeed what the name of the Ragdoll breed means in English. This gentle-hearted giant stand...
The Ragdoll, a "rag doll" cat? This is indeed what the name of the Ragdoll breed means in English. This gentle-hearted giant stands out as much by its magnificent coat as by its color that is out of the ordinary. Find out why the Ragdoll cat has such a special name!
Ragdoll Article Summary
- Appearance of Ragdoll
- Character of the Ragdoll
- History of the cat "rag doll".
- Ragdoll Health
- Ragdoll feeding
- Ragdoll Care
- Choosing the right breeder
Appearance of Ragdoll
A muscular physique of ragdoll
This large, massive cat with a large chest and a muscular body is distinguished by its very soft coat. Its medium-long coat with little undercoat has a silky touch, which gives the animal a fluffy appearance. Moreover, this impression is amplified by the presence of a collar around the neck of the Ragdoll cat. The Ragdoll's head is medium, wedge-shaped, its ears are rounded, fairly far apart. The Ragdoll's hind legs are a little longer, which slightly inclines its back. The Ragdoll is a medium sized cat, females can weigh up to 6.5 kilos and males up to 9.5 kilos. Ragdolls can measure up to 1.20 meters in length (from nose to tip of tail) and 40 cm in height.
The Ragdoll's coat
Their large, round, bright blue eyes and the special color of their coat are the distinguishing marks of the breed. Just like the Siam, the Ragdoll cat belongs to the "point" type cats. Their natural coat colors appear only on the extremities of the body such as the muzzle, legs, tail and ears. According to the fundamentals of genetics, the basic color of the cat appears only on the so-called cold areas, called "points". In the Ragdoll, different color variations are allowed: seal, blue, chocolate, lilac and recently red and cream-point. Here is an overview of all the coat variations of the Ragdoll, rag doll cat :
- Seal-point: Cats in seal-point have a black base color, as for all point breeds, this one appears only in the so-called "cold" areas.
- Blue-point : blue is here a dilution of the black base color.
- Chocolate-point: Ragdoll chocolate-point breeds have a brown base color.
- Lilac-point: the dilution of brown is referred to as "lilac".
- Red-point: the designation of the red Ragdoll in point.
- Cream-point: the dilution of red gives the color "cream". Because of the cream-colored points, a "cream-point" Ragdoll is almost unicolored!
- Tabby : the "points" are here streaks, a bit like those of a tabby cat. These streaks are often visible also on the legs and the tail of the cat rag doll. The eyes are like black kohl circles. In this cat, the tabby designation is often called "lynx".
- Torte : The Ragdoll torte has a tortoiseshell color. This pattern differs from cat to cat. The touches of color can be of any size, but breeders however favor small spots that are harmoniously distributed.
- Turbine : The designation turbine is the combination of tabby and torte. The tortoiseshell color appears streaked, which is a very interesting color! The official variants are color-point, mitted, bicolor, tabby, torte and turbine.
- Color-point: Color-point gives the impression that the rag doll cat has a full mask.
- Mitted: Ragdoll mitted cats have, in addition to the point, a white chin and often white streaks on the muzzle. These cats have pink paw pads, white gloves and white boots on the hind legs.
- Bicolor: Ragdolls designated as "bicolor" also have a light dot pattern, but their base color is lighter, they wear an upside down "V" mask, which starts at the forehead and ends at the trailhead. The legs are white.
In addition, like the point type cats, Ragdoll kittens are born white and develop their final colors after only the third or even fourth year!
The mid-long coat of this cat is very silky. Knowing that it has little undercoat, it is easy to take care of it. As a general rule, it is enough to brush a Ragdoll once a week or even a little more frequently during the molting period.
Character of the Ragdoll
The rag doll cat lovers are not only seduced by their majestic appearance out of the ordinary, nor by its big blue eyes...
A cuddly and docile companion
The character of the Ragdoll is interesting, since these cats are known to be very sociable. They are gentle, docile, peaceful and curious but above all playful and cuddly and love to follow their master around. Many breeders often call them "cat-dogs" because of the sometimes peculiar character of the Ragdoll. The Ragdoll often fully integrates itself into its family. However, for his well-being and his development, we recommend that you make sure he has a playmate! Cats have long been considered solitary animals, but sociable animals such as Ragdolls appreciate community life.
A perfect indoor cat
The Ragdoll with its soft character adapts well to indoor life and likes to have access to a secure balcony. It is crucial to make sure that an indoor cat spends a lot of energy, both mentally and physically! To put it plainly, playing with your Ragdoll should be as frequent as possible. It therefore needs a suitable interior with enough space to hide, rest, play and explore. For this, you don't need a huge apartment! Offer him possibilities for climbing, scratching toys for example or simply window mats for the cat to lie on. A cat tree allows your cat to gain height, observe its environment, climb and play.
History of the cat "Ragdoll".
The Ragdoll is a very recent breed, having developed in the 1960s. The first breeder was Ann Baker from California, a great lover of cats. It is with a male resulting from a cat close to Angora and a female of unknown race that she began this breeding. Ann Baker's male cat had to correspond to the current Ragdoll: tall, with a medium-long coat and beautiful blue eyes. Ann Baker gave this breed the name "Ragdoll", an English term for a rag doll. She chose this name because these cats used to completely slacken, as soon as they were carried, like cloth dolls. It's a name that suits this particularly relaxed cat perfectly!
As is often the case in breeding circles, there were unfortunately problems when Ann Baker filed a patent for the name "Ragdoll" and obtained rights for each animal from her lineage. As a result, many breeders moved away from the original cat and created other breeding's corresponding to today's Ragdoll.
The Ragdoll is thus the first breed for which a patent was deposited!
Health of the Ragdoll
Ragdolls are considered to be a very easy-going breed. Concerning the genetic predisposition to diseases, the Ragdoll is unfortunately not spared.
Even though the Ragdoll is robust and healthy, it tends to develop bladder stones as well as a cardiac pathology known as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. HCM is the most common cardiac pathology in cats, it is caused by a thickening of the myocardium and can be diagnosed by a cardiac ultrasound. There is also a genetic test to detect HCM, so the breeder can exclude sick animals from breeding early enough. There is, however, no guarantee that a breeding farm is completely free of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The breeder should therefore have his animals examined by the veterinarian early enough to exclude possible transmission to the kittens.
Ragdoll feeding
Ragdoll kittens experience significant growth spurts. An adapted and good quality diet, specifically developed to meet the needs of Ragdoll cats, is recommended for Ragdoll kittens and healthy adult cats! During his growth, the cat should be able to eat as much as he wants. Take into account the fact that these cats have not reached adulthood before their fourth year. You can then adapt the amount of food to avoid weight gain.
Whether you offer your Ragdoll a raw food called B.A.R.F. or whether you buy a good quality food, the optimal food for your cat is characterized by a high proportion of quality proteins. With a high moisture content, wet food and food for kidney problems should be the first choice for cats like Ragdolls that have a predisposition to kidney and bladder stones.
Ragdoll Care
Owners of Ragdoll cats report that their cat's coat is easy to maintain and clean due to the low amount of undercoat. However, weekly grooming will be much easier if you get your cat used to combing and brushing from a young age.
At first, a small cat treat can help dispel fear during and after grooming. While some Ragdolls may find it difficult to be stroked and brushed by their owner, many cats do benefit from these grooming sessions.
Despite regular combing and brushing, hair still ends up in the animals digestive system. During the molting period, make it easier for your cat to naturally eliminate the hair she swallows by offering her catnip, special treats or malt paste. These little extras are originally intended to be eaten by cats suffering from constipation.
Choosing the right ragdoll breeder
These hereditary diseases discussed in this article are a reminder of how important it is to choose the right breeder. A professional breeder sees his cats as members of his family, he takes responsibility for his animals and their offspring. This also implies a thoughtful mating of the animals, a good prevention in terms of health and environment as well as an optimal diet for Ragdoll. A good breeder does not propose his animals for adoption before they have reached their twelfth week. Kittens need a minimum of three months to learn the basics from their mother and siblings. It is therefore an exciting and exhausting phase not only for the breeder, but also for the mother of the kittens! For the mother to be able to socialize her kittens sufficiently, she should have enough rest between two litters. For this reason, a responsible breeder does not necessarily have the possibility to offer a lot of kittens. Obviously, an animal from a breeding has a price. Count about 1500 euros if you want to adopt a Ragdoll cat.
Ragdolls are adorable cats, which seduce by their fluffy appearance and their soft character. We wish you a lot of fun with your Ragdoll!
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