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Ragdoll Cat Owners - please tell me all about them!

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Lynn B

Lynn B

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May 9, 2004
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I am soooooooo intrigued by the breed of Ragdoll cats. Does anyone have one or know anyone that does?

I want to know if it's true that they are extremely affectionate and devoted, lacking the "cattitude" of the typical feline?!
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I've heard they are like "dogs in a cat suit".
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Has anyone ever known of one that was aloof or stand-offish?

I know they can get quite large, that their hair is long but generally trouble-free, and that their eyes are always blue. Customary cost per kitten seems to be $600 - $800.

Does anyone know if they are prone to any certain ailments or conditions? What else can you tell me about them?

THANKS!
Lynn
 
AmberGretchen's baby Oliver is a ragdoll...I'm sure she'll chime in. He's so cute. (She got her wisdom teeth out today, so it might be awhile before she's at the computer.)
 
I have never loved a cat as much as I love my sweet Leo...And that''s saying a lot since my sister recently thanked my hubby for marrying me because if he didn''t I''d be a crazy cat lady wearing HUGE topaz jewelry. I started a thread on him when we got him. I am having a TERRIBLE time with all of our computers so I can''t post new pics yet, but, he has grown soooo much. https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/new-baby-of-the-feline-variety.54656/

He has quickly become the center of our family. I''ll answer your questions: Devoted? Yep, he follows us around room to room like a dog. Affectionate? Yep, I can hold him and pet him as much as I want to...I''m a bit like Elmira (from the Tiny Toons cartoon) so he is on my lap almost constantly. I''ve never heard of one being aloof or stand-offish. My ''little'' guy will be between 18 and 20 pounds. I think they vary between 15-22 lbs. Mine has long white hair that is growing in with peach (red) tips. He is a red mitted Ragdoll. He doesn''t shed too much as long as I keep him combed which he is very naughty about I might add. He is pet quality and cost $600ish - We are in SO CA (not sure if that matters costwise). I can''t think of any health concerns off the top of my head. I think my honey will have a weight issue so I''ll need to be carefull with that.

I cannot say enough good about the breed. We have 3 kids aged 4, 11, and 12 and he doesn''t mind the noise level which can get pretty high if there happens to be 4-6 11 and 12 year old boys in the house. We call him our ''bunny'' because his fur is sooooo soft. It feels like rabbit fur. OMG, we are crazy about this cat. We sing to him, we play hide and seek with him, we play peek-a-boo with him. He''s like a child to us. I caught DH (who is not a cat person at all) giving him a kiss the other day. Speaking of kisses, Leo kisses the dog. Well, I call it kissing with his teeth. Everyone else calls it biting. He only ''kisses'' the dog with these soft little bites.

One caution...I don''t know if it''s all cats or just my sweet Leo, but, ummmm, well, I don''t know how to put it politely so I''ll just say it...He ''sharts'' himself from time to time...And then steps in it. Yep, he doesn''t really squat when it''s time for #2 so if it happens to be loose (like when I gave him hairball remedy because he was vomiting *shudders*) it runs down his long backside hair *shudders*....We keep that part trimmed for easier clean up LOL. Or sometimes he just steps in his poo when he''s using his box...And he flings sooooo much litter. He is REALLY gross in his box, I''ll just put it that way. At least he''s smart enough to know that if he does make a mess, he just stays in the tiiled laundry room and meows. That is really the only bad thing I can say about him and I don''t know if it is a breed thing or not.

Another thought, they are floppy lumps of love and see anything (dogs, etc.) as an opportunity to get some love and snuggles. They DO NOT make good outdoor pets. I won''t even let mine outside if he is held. I panic if I see him sniffing the breeze in an open window. I lost two cats in Aug. to coyotes after DH accidentaly left the door open to take some trash out and the kitties escaped. Anyway, I won''t go into that story, but, my point is that I know I am more protective about my cat than most. Our parents come over all of the time and bring their dogs and Leo is totally fine with that. He even intimidates their Cocker Spaniel (he steals the dog bed and won''t get out). I think he would see coyotes as a friend and not even try to get away.

I thought of one other caution. He is very high maintenance. Meaning he needs tons of love and sometimes even wakes us up early for pets. If anyone gets up to go to the bathroom in the night he is licking their feet. Even if he''s sleeping, he seems to be half awake so he doesn''t miss anything. He is by my (or the kids'') side constantly.

If you are a cat/dog person you will LOVE this breed.
 
Hey - this will be short, and I''ll come back and post more soon, but right now need to focus on recovering from the wisdom tooth removal.

Our Ollie is so easy to love. Since he''s a rescue we don''t know for sure if he''s a purebred ragdoll but he certainly acts like one, including the limpness when picked up and being super-affectionate (and HUGE). He did have the same "messy" problem with his back end fur that Miranda''s Leo had, but he seems to have stopped that. One thing you can do that helps is take them to Petco or wherever with a grooming place and ask for a "sanitary cut." Not to go into too much detail but it trims specifically around the...ahem...problem area.

One thing to consider is that there are a lot of homeless ragdolls that are available through rescue. This can be a really good way to go because many rescues have their kitties in foster homes and so you really know exactly what their personalities will be like in a home setting, which is great because even knowing your cat''s pedigree isn''t necessarily a guarantee about what their adult personality will be like.

I don''t know where you''re located, but just as an example, here is a link to a purebred cat rescue organization in Northern California. They have a number of ragdolls available right now as well as other breeds. If you google "ragdoll rescue" there are a number of similar organizations all over the country. You could also try searching on petfinder for available ragdolls near you that need homes.

I don''t want to criticize anyone''s personal decisions, because there''s obviously a different and important calculus that goes into any decision to add a pet to your family for any person. As someone who volunteers a lot of my time in a local animal shelter though, I can''t help but be moved by the plight of the many homeless animals who need homes and so I try to encourage people to consider rescue as an option whenever possible, especially since in this case there is a fair amount of availability for the breed you are interested in (plus, of course, its way cheaper than buying from a breeder...).

Anyway, I''ll write more tomorrow or the next day and see if I can post some updated pics of our little Oliver (not so little any more). Now I''m off to take some more painkillers...
 
Thanks for the great feedback! I appreciate your candid replies! It sounds like these kitties really are as lovable and affectionate as they say they are!
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The back-end trouble
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does kinda *skeer* me
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but I guess it would be fairly easy to control by keeping the cat trimmed "back there". The cat I have now is also a terror in the litter box (flinging litter into the next county!) and he has a closed, domed one, so I''m used to that!

My DD is getting married next month and is begging to take our kitty with her
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so IIIIIIIIIIIIIIF that happens, I will definitely look into getting a Ragdoll.

Anything else I should know??! Thanks again!

Lynn
 
Mine was very sweet. I just loved her. There was a point when I thought I was going to need to find her a new home and put her with a little old lady. They did not get along -- Yang would not even come out from under the bed for her. I think once they bond with you, they don''t want to go to someone else. At least she didn''t! She came back to me and I was able to work out the housing issues.
 
Our cat is very good with her litter box...

but she isn''t Ragdoll, she''s part Siamese, and who knows what else (so she meows ALOT)

anyways, good luck with getting a kitty
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Lynn, I was also interested in this breed about a year ago. They are also sometimes referred to as "ragamuffins." If you do a search for "ragamuffin" here on PS you will find my thread I posted a while ago and some informative responses...

I hope you find a wonderful ragdoll kitty!
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Thanks for the additional responses!

Hmmmm, I had heard that Ragdoll and Ragmuffins were similar, but different breeds?
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I''ll have to do some more research on that!

Well, another question... are Ragdolls able to be left alone like other cats? We do work during the day and most days (except weekends) the cat would be home alone. But we do start "rolling in" fairly early in the day (usually around 2pm) so it''s not like the poor baby would be alone till 7 or 8pm!
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But, when we are home, we would be delighted to spend time with Mr. or Ms. Kitty, there would be no shortage of laps, hugs and cuddles!

But I worry that as "dependent" as these cats are reputed to be, maybe they don''t do well in homes where they will be alone for awhile most days?

And what about "extended" periods... if we have overnight plans ocassionally , can the kitty be home alone overnight? (Not for a whole weekend -- I would get a cat sitter for that -- but one night away?)

THANKS again!!!
Lynn
 
You couldn''t get two cats, could you? I have a savannah, which is also a very "dependent" breed, more like dogs than cats. I''ve found that having two cats is much easier than having just one, especially in the kitten phase. My other cat came from the SPCA but also happens to be needy. Fortunately, they keep each other company during the day, and my older cat keeps my savannah from getting into too much mischief while I''m gone.

They''re so much fun to watch when they''re playing with each other, and their affection for me is not diminished. I just feed a little more food and scoop a little more litter!

Having my older cat as a kitten, by himself, was hell. I didn''t get a full night''s sleep for a year and the neighbors complained about him crying. Having my savannah as a kitten was a breeze (well, mostly) because when he was feeling rambunctious in the middle of the night, or if he was lonely and I wasn''t around, he had a buddy to go to.

Just a thought!
 
Date: 4/19/2007 11:20:54 AM
Author: Lynn B
Thanks for the additional responses!

Hmmmm, I had heard that Ragdoll and Ragmuffins were similar, but different breeds?
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I''ll have to do some more research on that!

Well, another question... are Ragdolls able to be left alone like other cats? We do work during the day and most days (except weekends) the cat would be home alone. But we do start ''rolling in'' fairly early in the day (usually around 2pm) so it''s not like the poor baby would be alone till 7 or 8pm!
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But, when we are home, we would be delighted to spend time with Mr. or Ms. Kitty, there would be no shortage of laps, hugs and cuddles!

But I worry that as ''dependent'' as these cats are reputed to be, maybe they don''t do well in homes where they will be alone for awhile most days?

And what about ''extended'' periods... if we have overnight plans ocassionally , can the kitty be home alone overnight? (Not for a whole weekend -- I would get a cat sitter for that -- but one night away?)

THANKS again!!!
Lynn
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I think my cat would be fine if I left him during the day. I''d guess that he/she would just learn to sleep while you are gone and be awake while you are home. Do you have a dog or any other pets? I''m usually home during the day, but, if I''m out running errands I find him snuggled up with the dog when I get home. Overnight would probably be fine as well. I intentionally didn''t clean his litter box for 48 hours to see what would happen. There was no poo disaster so I''d be comfortable leaving Leo for a night.
 
Date: 4/19/2007 11:20:54 AM
Author: Lynn B
Hmmmm, I had heard that Ragdoll and Ragmuffins were similar, but different breeds?
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I''ll have to do some more research on that!
Click to expand...
I happened to have a cat magazine nearby and looked, because I too thought they were different breeds. They do look very similar, but they are different and the magazine had different breeders for the different cats.
 
Just in case anybody is interested, here is a link to Maine Coon Rescue. I was sent an e-mail and they are in need for volunteers. They also have kitties that are up for adoption and some that need foster homes.

 
Oooooh my goodness. Ok so my avatar is Chen our Ragdoll. He used to be Mom''s but she elected to move overseas and sort of left him with us, and FI has become too attached to give him up to anyone else. He was 900 dollars when Mom bought him.

He has a form of IBD so he can be Mr StinkyPoo, we have him on a strict diet and he has to have his bum furr clipped or ...stuff....gets in it and tracks about the house. But he''s sweet and loves to play, loves to be held, follows FI around, waits for him to come home, waits by the door when he leaves. AND, he seems just fine being by himself much of the day. He likes having me about when I went home to visit them, but in general he''s the perfect kitty.


I''m sorry but I''m going to picture blitz you now. He''s much bigger now than he was in my avatar, 1 yr old and 12 pounds! They keep growing for 5 years.
 
chen looking out the window

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I am of course leaving out that he is a myschevious rascal of a kitty as well...he knows exactly what breaks and won''t break it, but he''ll knock every other unbreakable item down, and crawl UNDER the sheets to sleep with you at night, etc.

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Date: 4/19/2007 11:55:25 AM
Author: Aloros
You couldn''t get two cats, could you? I have a savannah, which is also a very ''dependent'' breed, more like dogs than cats. I''ve found that having two cats is much easier than having just one, especially in the kitten phase. My other cat came from the SPCA but also happens to be needy. Fortunately, they keep each other company during the day, and my older cat keeps my savannah from getting into too much mischief while I''m gone.


They''re so much fun to watch when they''re playing with each other, and their affection for me is not diminished. I just feed a little more food and scoop a little more litter!


Having my older cat as a kitten, by himself, was hell. I didn''t get a full night''s sleep for a year and the neighbors complained about him crying. Having my savannah as a kitten was a breeze (well, mostly) because when he was feeling rambunctious in the middle of the night, or if he was lonely and I wasn''t around, he had a buddy to go to.


Just a thought!
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You have a SAVANNAH? Pics, please!
 
The story:
-A cuts two pieces of bread and puts on plate.
-A turns around to cook egg.
-Cat hops up on counter.
-A turns around and sees cat''s paw on first slice of bread.
-A tries to stop cat in slow motion.
-Cat pushes bread off and onto floor.
-Rinse, wash, repeat.
-Cat occupies plate (see picture)

chenplate2.jpg
 
I can''t find the picture right now, but he also was pet-sat by some freinds with a rambunctious Weinermeier, and Chen pretty much had the dog humbled by the end of it. I have a great photo of the two of them on the couch but I can''t find it right now....Chen is taking up 2/3 of the couch and this giant dog is huddled in a little ball at the other end!
 
OMG RT they are such gorgeous cats!!! That plate picture is hilarious.
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Those little white feeties are SO CUTE!!!
 
Oh RT - he is gorgeous, and HUGE!! I can''t believe our Ollie might really get that big someday, but all signs are certainly pointing that way - he''s bigger than one of our adult kitties at 10 months old! Your Chen is just so incredibly beautiful - I LOVE his gorgeous smoky pale grey points and those gorgeous blue eyes!!
 
Aww, thanks! His colors have really deepened in the last six months or so, he was almost totally white as a kitten.

The funniest thing: when I came back to visit a few weeks ago, I would be sitting on the couch, and suddenly, in MY tone of voice, I would hear FI say,

"Hello beautiful!"

So I would turn around, expecting to be hugged....and he was hugging the CAT! Chen looked pretty smug I gotta say.
 
RT - Chen is soooo precious! Mr. Stinky Poo reminds me of my Leo. I love his white nose stripe (a flame?).
 
I''m not totally sure...I think the breeder called it a blaze? I wasn''t hugely involved in picking him out, but I remember it''s a desired breed point.


Miranda, I totally agree with all the advice you gave above about the breed. I live in terror of him getting outside---in fact when he first came to live with us the first order of business was 4-5 hours of me, the spray gun, and leaving the door out of the apt (it doesn''t open on the outside) open. I squirted him whenever he *thought* about going out, and then I left the water bottle in the doorway for awhile. I barely even have to shoo him away from the door anymore, but he was pretty soaking wet that day, thank goodness it was summer.


They do keep you up at night esp if there are new people. When FI''s family visted Chen kept them awake alll night, because apparently their bed was more interesting than ours.
 
HI:

Rainbowtrout--those pics really made my day! Love your adorable furball!!!!!!!!!!

cheers--Sharon
 
RT, Chen is adorable!
 
Date: 4/25/2007 5:14:59 PM
Author: rainbowtrout
Aww, thanks! His colors have really deepened in the last six months or so, he was almost totally white as a kitten.

The funniest thing: when I came back to visit a few weeks ago, I would be sitting on the couch, and suddenly, in MY tone of voice, I would hear FI say,

'Hello beautiful!'

So I would turn around, expecting to be hugged....and he was hugging the CAT! Chen looked pretty smug I gotta say.
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LOL! When my dad calls me and he says 'how's my baby girl?'...he ain't talkin' about me either.
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Date: 4/25/2007 3:42:47 PM
Author: rainbowtrout



You have a SAVANNAH? Pics, please!
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*giggle* Well, here''s a good pic of him. He''s a bit of a ham.

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Chen is seriously GORGEOUS! What a pretty little foofball! OK, not so little, but I just want to reach through the screen and give him a squeeeeeze.
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Hmm...does this work?

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