The Essence Of the Ragdoll

The Essence of the Ragdoll

"The Ragdoll is a large, floppy, people loving, blue eyed and pointed cat, with a pleasant domestic head type with wide spaced ears and non extreme semi wedge shaped muzzle."

A fascinating cat, the Ragdoll from California enjoys great success and has a large following of breeders and owners. It is not the only cat breed to emigrate from California, but it is probably the best known and its unusual breed name causes interest wherever it is seen. In fact, the name Ragdoll was given by the original breeder Ann Baker in the 1960's and was so named for its captivating tendency to go limp like a child's toy when held in human arms.

The ancestors of today's Ragdoll breed are a bit of a mystery. It is believed they descended from a combination of three feral cats: a white longhaired cat named Josephine; a Birman-like, black and white mitted male and a black Burmese-type male.

There has been much myth surrounding the origin of the breed. Every Ragdoll ancestry must though, be traceable back to Josephine.

Patterns & Colors

The Ragdoll has a soft semi-long coat which does not require as regular grooming as many other long-haired breeds. Ragdoll kittens are born white, acquiring their colouring and coat pattern by the age of eight weeks. Ragdolls are available in the following colours: seal, blue, chocolate, lilac and presently cream, red & tortie point ragdolls are being developed in various countries around the world. At present, there are only two common and readily available colours, seal and blue.

The coat patterns of the Ragdolls are: pointed, mitted, bicolour & lynx (tabby markings in one of the three previous patterns).

The varying patterns may be bred in the above colours i.e. seal, blue, choc, lilac, cream, red & tortie.

Ragdolls are humongously huggable. Estimates of adult Ragdoll size range between 8 to 12 pounds (4-5kg)for females and 12 to 16 pounds (5-8kg) for males. Ragdolls are a large cat that reaches full maturity between the ages of three to four years.

Unfortunately myths still persist in some circles and cat owners have been mislead into believing that Ragdolls do not feel pain, do not cause allergies to those allergic to cats, cannot defend themselves and do not possess normal cat instincts such as hunting. All of the above are untrue. Ragdolls should be treated with the same care and respect bestowed upon all other breeds.

When all the fallacies are stripped away, the facts remain. The Ragdoll is a gentle, "boneless", good natured and loving cat that possesses a unique and quiet charm which can quickly convert the most dedicated aelurophobe into a Ragdoll fan.