Ragdoll - character, how much it costs, where to buy a kitten

Ragdoll Characteristics

Ragdoll history

This cat breed is completely new compared to many others. The Ragdoll cat breed was created in California in the 1960s. A cat breeder named Anne Baker wanted to create a beautiful cat with a loving personality.

Anne began using domestic medium-haired cats of unknown origin. Josephine, the original mother cat of the breed, was white.

Although it took several generations, Baker eventually produced the first cats, which were called Ragdolls. These cats were prized for their fur, large size, and sociable nature.

Unfortunately, in the 1970s, drama erupted between Baker and some other ragdoll enthusiasts. Ultimately, many of the original Ragdoll lovers and Baker herself parted ways. The Ragdoll breed remains popular today, despite these upheavals.

The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) began registering the Ragdoll in 1993. Today, the Ragdoll is the fifth most popular CFA registered cat breed.

Ragdoll care

How to care for ragdoll fur?

The Ragdoll has a silky, single-layer coat (meaning it has no underlying layer of fur). It should clump less than other coats on medium-haired cats. However, this breed still requires brushing at least twice a week.

How to clean a ragdoll's ears?

Ragdolls also need regular ear cleaning. Place a few drops of warm cat ear cleaner into your cat's ears, then massage the outside of the ear.

You may need to keep some meat-flavored kitten food or other very tasty cat treats on hand to help your feline friend stay calm during this procedure. After about five minutes, use a cotton swab to wipe the inside of your cat's ears.

How to trim a ragdoll's claws?

Like all other cats, Ragdolls usually need their toenails trimmed. Keep in mind that your cat will likely want to sharpen her claws even more than usual after this procedure, so be sure to provide good scratching posts!

How to play with ragdoll?

Ragdolls are energetic, sociable cats. They need to play with wand toys or other interactive cat toys regularly. Don't leave toys for your cat, get up and play with her! This will help reduce your cat's weight, avoid problems associated with boredom, and strengthen family bonds.

Breed standard

These large cats have an easy-going character and are similar in appearance to Burma, but much larger—females weigh six to eight kilograms, males weigh up to ten.

Main characteristics for the breed standard - description of the TICA system:

• Head. Wedge-shaped, medium in size with a flat area between the ears.
• Neck. Small, with well-developed muscles.
• Eyes. Large, almond-shaped. Widely spaced, have a slight upward slope at the outer corners. Color - any shade of blue, except pale, must be intense.
• Ears. Slightly inclined forward, medium in size, rounded, with edges, tassels are allowed at the ends.
• Nose. Long, the width is half the length, a slight break (deflection) on its back is acceptable.
• Chin. Medium size.
• Cheeks. Well developed, larger in cats.
• Bite. Correct.
• Body. Muscular, strong, long, well-proportioned, with a rectangular, wide chest. The rear part is more massive than the front, the width of the body is the same along the entire length. Fat fold on the abdomen. Males are much larger than females. Final development occurs at three years.
• Paws. Of medium length, medium muscle strength, the hind legs are slightly longer than the front ones. The paw pads are large, and there is a feathering between the toes.
• Tail. Medium length, evenly covered with hair, proportional to body length. Wider at the base, slightly tapering at the end.
• Wool. Long, medium length is allowed, there is a characteristic “collar” around the neck, the hair on the hind legs is longer than on the front legs, a kind of “panties”. Thick, with a slight undercoat, soft, silky to the touch.
• Color. Three main colors: Color point - a characteristic Siamese mask no higher than the middle of the ears, darker than the main coat. Dark paws and tail.
• Bicolor - the color of the mask and tail is more pronounced, the nasolabial triangle is light, the chest, belly and paws are white, colored areas are allowed on the back, but not on the paws.
• Mitted - glove coloring, white paws, light fur on the chest, chin, mask.

Bicolor color

Color Mitted

Color point color
In all three types, shades of blue, chocolate, lilac, and sial are allowed.

• Weight. Large cats. Weight is about six to eight, in cats it reaches ten kilograms.
• “Raginess” - low muscle tone - does not belong to the standard, it is considered a feature of the animal.
• Crossbreeding. Only intrabreed. Read about mating cats and female cats.
• Pathologies. Small head, excessively long and narrow nose, short and wide nose, short legs, squat body, short tail, small pointed ears, short hair, color type violation, black, red, gray hair, pale eye color.

Key indicators for disqualification and title removal:

• tail defects;
• color point violation - the chin is darker than the chest;
• violation of bicolor - white on the ears, tail, white spots in places not allowed by the standard, mustache is not white;
• violation of mitted - non-white or insufficiently white chin, white spots on parts not allowed by the standard;
• excessively short hair on the body;
• big break.

Mitted

What do ragdolls get sick with?

All breeds have the potential to have genetic health problems - even mixed breed animals can get genetic diseases!

It's important to know what your chosen breed is prone to so you can ask the breeder about appropriate testing. Avoid breeders who insist their kittens do not need tests or health guarantees.

Like many large breed cats, Ragdolls are prone to weight problems. Feeding your cat in portions will help keep her fit and balanced. Regular cat play is also important for weight control. Although "fluffy" fat cats may be cute, they are not healthy!

Purebred Ragdolls do not have much genetic diversity. They are vulnerable to bladder stones and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Bladder stones are painful and can lead to litter box problems.

You can help your cat avoid bladder stones and other urinary tract infections by letting her drink plenty of fresh water and feeding her a high-quality diet.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is more difficult to avoid because it is genetic. HCM is a heart disease that causes thickening of the heart muscle. A cardiogram can help diagnose the problem, but only after the cat has developed HCM.

Character

This cat was not called “Rag Doll” for nothing. In the hands of the owner, the pet completely relaxes and allows you to do whatever you want with it.

Thanks to their silent and flexible, almost ideal character, these cats are in demand by people. But before you take your pet into your home, you need to know about some of its special features:

• Due to low muscle tone, Reggie is not always able to land on his feet when jumping or falling from a height. You should not allow falls, you should not acquire high cat complexes.
• The high gullibility of these animals can turn into disaster for them - they practically cannot stand up for themselves. You should not let them go for independent walks outside.
• This cat is very attached to its owner and suffers from loneliness. If you can’t be with her all the time, you should get another pet at home. Raggies are friendly and will get along with any breed of cat, even a small dog.
• These cats are real intellectuals. They are easy to accustom to a scratching post, litter tray, or new food. If you practice wearing a harness from a young age, you can safely walk with your cat on the street.
• These pets mature very slowly. For normal growth, they need increased and fractional nutrition, up to five times a day.
• The “rag doll” loves to talk with its owner. You should not refuse to communicate with your pet. Reggie sincerely suffers from inattention. These pets are kind and affectionate, like children. They require the same dedication.

How and what to feed ragdolls?

Work with your veterinarian to create a diet appropriate for your Ragdoll's age and activity level. In general, wet foods prevent dehydration, which in turn helps prevent urinary problems.

Be sure to ration food and do not leave it in your cat's bowl all day. Lack of food is linked to diabetes in cats because insulin levels rise every time the cat eats, regardless of the quality of the food.

Since cats spend most of their time doing nothing, a great way to make your cat's life more interesting is to use puzzle feeding toys.

Exhibitions 2021

October 24-25, 2021, Moscow, “Star 2020”, WCF license No. 201021

With this quarantine, exhibitions were canceled for more than six months!!
We even missed you! And finally we visited! Lada Valley Tuberose, Vienne Valley Tuberose, Olaf Valley Tuberose, Amina AirOne participated in the exhibition on October 24-25, 2021, Moscow, “Zvezda 2020”, WCF license No. 201021 Lada, Olaf and Amina participated in the exhibition in the adult class for the first time! Vienna participated in the kitten class. “Children’s” titles, basically. They don't give anything and don't count towards the adult class. But we still go to shows with kittens to hear the opinions of experts.

The exhibition was from the club we are a member of - the Astra World Felinological Center. It took place in Moscow, at the VDNH shopping center. The examination was carried out by:

Belova Natalya, Levkovich Larisa. Lebedeva Natalya.

Everyone did great! Let’s say right away that of our four participants – Vienna, Lada. Olaf and Amina, Vienna was the greatest success and all the experts noted her amazing doll face and predicted a show career for her! Everyone also loves her blue eyes and rabbit fur. She really is beautiful! It’s not for nothing that it’s named after the most beautiful capital of Europe!))

Amina and Lada got good results in the rings, which made us very happy. They were also highly praised by the judges.

Olaf is our graduate, living in co-ownership in a wonderful house with a loving owner. He has already grown up and is ready to become a father. We showed him to get a title and expert ratings and breed him with two of our girls. Unfortunately, the first mating was unsuccessful and the bride did not get pregnant... But there is still more to come. You can read about Olaf here

We also updated our new white wooden tent and it turned out to be very comfortable to exhibit in! And a lot of air. Not as stuffy as in tents made of thick fabric. How do you like it?

March 7-8, 2021

We participated in the largest exhibition in Europe in 2021 - Catsburg. This is a huge exhibition, with more than 1500 cats, only our numbers were 1455 and 1447! Great organization and celebration - that's what Catsburg is all about!

Our two girls Lada and Lavender took part. And also our graduate - castrato Kristall - Kristall Valley Tuberose - 4th place in the ring of more than 30 animals! And again we heard that it was a pity that he was castrated...

Of our two beauties, the judges like Lavender more)) But Lada was also highly praised and said that she was superbly built, perfect color, and promising! We lost in comparison to older girls, but we were not upset! Thanks to the organizers and experts!

04 - 05 - 06 January 2021

Exhibition "Christmas Star Astra"

It took place in Moscow, at the Hanoi shopping center. We participated with Katniss and Lavender.

The examination was carried out:

• Lebedeva Natalia AB WCF,
• Fedorenko Elena AB WCF,
• Emelyanova Tamara AB WCF,
• Guseva Irina AB WCF.

Our Usapurrs Katniss has come to close the title of International Champion and open the Grand International!

Day 1 – CACIB, Nom Best 10th place out of 23 in the WCF ring (judge Elena Fedorenko)

Day 2 – САСGCIB, Nom Best

Lavander Valley Tuberose – participated as a kitten –

Day 1 – CACJ, Nom Best, 5th place out of 25 participants in the WCF – junior ring, (judge Tamara Emelyanova)

2nd place in Best of Best among Kittens! What a fun costume contest! For some reason I love him very much, but my husband and son can’t stand him, and they think it’s stupid to dress up cats. But if there is such a competition at the exhibition, I will definitely participate! Katniss wore a Christmas tree costume and took 1st place! Lavender was dressed as Santa Claus and received an incentive prize!

Are Ragdolls hypoallergenic?

Unfortunately for allergy sufferers, ragdolls are not hypoallergenic. Although some allergy sufferers are less bothered by cats with medium coats, Ragdolls are not considered hypoallergenic. Breeders who claim hypoallergenic ragdolls are trying to make a quick buck!

Ragdolls do not have an undercoat, which can reduce allergic reactions in people with dander allergies. But most people are actually allergic to cat saliva and skin secretions. Ragdolls still produce allergens found in cat saliva and skin secretions.

Choosing a kitten

It is better to take a four-month-old kitten. To determine its breed, just pick it up - the cat will seem to go limp in your arms.

Important. The kitten's muzzle should be pointed, its eyes blue, oval in shape, and the tip of its tail sharp.

Particular attention should be paid to health status:

• Eyes and ears should not fester.
• There should be no diarrhea.
• The kitten must be active and easy to contact.

Before sale, the nursery must provide a veterinary passport with information about vaccinations and a pedigree. The breeder is obliged to tell about the defects of the breed (if any) and the habits of the animal.