Ragdoll Cats: Everything you need to know about purchase, nutrition, health care, grooming,and behaviour. Features breed history and profiles on the qualities and characteristics of the Ragdoll breed.

With their silky coat and beautiful big blue eyes, Ragdolls have become quite a popular cat breed.

Breed History

Ragdoll cats were developed in the 1960's by Ann Baker; a breeder in California. She bred Josephine, a loving, gentle, longhaired white female carrying Siamese markings, to other longhaired cats carrying Siamese markings.


Her original stock consisted of sturdy, free-roaming cats. By selecting individuals with the look she wanted for her breeding program, she created the type standard for the Ragdoll.

In the 40 or so years that have gone by, the breed history has managed to become intertwined with a series of myths and half-truths.


For example it was said that the extraordinary calm nature of this breed is the result of a car accident endured by the foundation cat, Josephine, and that Josephine's injury, a broken pelvis, had somehow caused a change that caused all Ragdolls to be especially docile. This explanation is obviously not scientifically feasible.

The more likely explanation is that the relaxed breeds, Persians and Birmans, used in the breeding program, created the Ragdoll's personality.

Today the Ragdoll is still a relatively rare breed, but the number of Ragdoll cats and breeders is growing very rapidly. Right now Ragdolls are accepted by most cat associations and some breeders are working on introducing new colors and patterns to the breed. And with the increasing interest in the breed, the future of the Ragdoll cat looks bright indeed!

Breed Description

Ragdolls are large, loving, laid-back longhairs. The body is light-coloured, with darker Siamese-type points on the face, legs, tail and ears. In most patterns, the points are partly covered with white markings.


All Ragdolls are "pointed" cats, meaning that their faces, ears, legs and tails are darker than the body. Kittens are born white and their colours and patterns start to show when they are about 10 days old. Ragdoll cats get darker with age and young cats usually have the biggest contrast between the points and the body colour.

At the moment there are three standard patterns and four colours, listed below. There are also new, "non-traditional" colours and patterns and more are being developed by crossbreeding with other breeds and old original Ragdoll lines.

These include tortie points, lynx points, shaded silvers, cream points, red/flame points, solid colours (no points) and other eye colours. They are still very rare and experimental, lynx point, red point and tortie point being the most common at the moment. Only a few cat associations accept them, but they probably will eventually be recognised more widely.

Standard Colours:

• Seal - Points are deep seal brown. The body colour can range from fawn or cream to warm brown.
  
  
• Chocolate - Points are light milk chocolate colour. The body colour can range from ivory to cream.
  
  
• Blue - Points are slate blue or silverly blue-gray. The body colour is ivory or bluish white.
  
  
• Lilac/frost - Points vary from frosty-gray lilac to pinkish beige. The body colour is warm magnolia colour.

• Colourpoint - Pointed Ragdolls have the classic, Siamese-type markings. The colourpoint has darker points than the rest of the body. The contrast between the points and body can vary a lot. Strong contrast is preferred. There is no white, though the body colour may be nearly white in some Ragdolls. The nose leather and paw pads should match the point colour.
  
  
• Mitted - Similar to the colourpoint, but with added white "mittens" on the cat's paws and a white streak along the chest and abdomen. Sometimes a mitted Ragdoll may also have a white "blaze" (1) on the nose, which is usually accepted in shows.
  
  
• Bi-color - The lower part of the body is white, while the upper part maintains the colourpoint pattern. On the cat's face there is a large V-shaped patch.They may have a splash or two of white on their backs. Only their tails, ears, and the outer part of their masks show the darker markings.
  
  The degree of white in bicolours varies. The nose leather and paw pads are pink.
  
  Mid-high white bicolour (1) - has a broader "V" on the mask. Sometimes a breakthrough spotting on the legs. The amount of white varies. Mid-high wites can be shown too if they have a good "V" and no white in tail and ears.
  
  High white bicolour/van (2) - Vans look like they nearly drowned in whipped cream. Only the top of the mask, ears, and tail, and perhaps a few spots on the body, show darker markings.
  
  There is usually no "saddle" on the back. The "V" on the mask extends almost up to the ears. This pattern can sometimes be shown as a "van" if the cat is marked like a Turkish Van cat.
  
  High mitted (3)- is a mitted with two mitted genes instead of one. There is often a little breakthrough spotting on the limbs, but otherwise high mitted looks like a bicolour. If the pattern fits the bicolour standard, a high mitted can be shown as a bicolour.

The head is large and slightly rounded with oval blue eyes. The coat of the Ragdoll is long but not as long as a Persian cat's. It is soft and rabbit-like and does not tend to mat.


Ragdolls are slow-maturing, reaching full coat colour at two years, and full size and weight at four.Altered males may reach 20 pounds or more; females are proportionately smaller.

Ragdoll Cat Characteristics

The Ragdoll's personality is probably its most famous feature. These are relaxed cats, though they do not necessarily go limp when held.

Ragdoll cats are "people-oriented" cats who love to be with humans and attach strongly to their owners. Because Ragdolls are very social, you should get at least two cats if you are a lot of time away from home.


Ragdoll cats are calm, yet moderately active and like to play. They are gentle, carefully avoid scratching people, and are good with children, the elderly, and other animals.

Ragdolls can also adapt to live in a small apartment and are happy living indoors, as long as you play with them and provide them cat toys and a climbing tree.

Ragdolls are less stubborn than most cats tend to be and they can be easily trained. They usually learn the same tricks as dogs, like retriving toys, rolling and begging. They are also easy to teach how to walk on a leash and how to use a scratching post.

Ragdoll cats are generally not destructive at home, because they are calm and usually prefer the floor-level to climbing.

Don´t forget that these are only common qualities in Ragdoll cats and just like in any other breed, they don´t apply to all of them. Every Ragdoll is an individual!

If you want a large cat which is non-aggressive, loves to be with people, and is very placid, you may want to consider a Ragdoll. Also, if you love the look of a long-haired cat, but do not want the constant grooming associated with breeds such as the Persian, a Ragdoll would be a good choice.

However, they still should be groomed with a steel comb as a part of cuddling (one hand stroke, one comb stroke; one hand stroke, one comb stroke...), but most never need it.

A brush once every few days is usually enough to keep their coat bright and soft.They shed very little and rarely have hairballs.


Although this is still a subject of controversy, some breeders recommend that Ragdoll cats shouldn´t be given live vaccines. In general Ragdolls are a healthy breed and don't have any other special medical concernes.

Certain lines might be prone to some defects, so you should always get your Ragdoll from a good breeder who gives you a health guarantee.

Also keep in mind that Ragdolls can be more than three times bigger than normal cats, so don´t buy the smallest carrier, litter box etc., especially if you are getting a male!

Ragdoll Cats for Sale

Pricing on Ragdolls usually depends on type, applicable markings and bloodlines. Usually breeders make kittens available between twelve and sixteen weeks of age.

After twelve weeks, kittens have had their basic inoculations and developed the physical and social stability needed for a new environment, showing, or being transported by air.

If there are no Ragdoll catteries near you, there are quite a few breeders who are willing to ship cats even to other countries! It is not at all uncommon and because of their temperament, Ragdolls don´t usually get very disturbed even at long flights.

If you do know of any Ragdoll catteries near you, the next step is visiting them. Unfortunately not even all registered breeders are good, so it´s your job to pick the good ones.

Small and medium-sized catteries are generally speaking the best ones. Tell the breeders what kind of Ragdoll you want, they know the kittens best and can help you on choosing the right kitten for you.

Ask the breeders what kind of Ragdoll cats they breed and what they top priorities are, some catteries are most concerned on breeding show-winners and may not give much importance on health and personality.

The breeders should be ready to answer all your questions and show you the cats and places where they live. Make sure that all cats look healthy and the place reasonably clean.

Blood relatives of the kittens can usually give you some idea of what to expect from the kittens when they are grown, so ask to see the mother of the kittens and, if possible, the father.

The breeders should not offer to sell you a kitten under 10 weeks (12-16 weeks is the usual age). If the breeder seems more interested in making a deal than finding good homes for the kittens, go elsewhere.

Ragdoll cats are bred Ragdoll to Ragdoll, meaning both of the parents must be Ragdolls in order the kittens to be pure-bred Ragdolls. There are a few breeders who are experimenting with new colors and out-cross with other breeds, but these are very rare. The kitten and its parents should be vet-checked and vaccined.

When you buy a kitten, you should get health records, vaccination certificates, written care instructions, the purchase contract and the kitten´s papers.

Registration papers are the official and only proof that the kitten is indeed a Ragdoll. Note that some breeders won´t give you the papers before you have provided proof that the cat has been spayed/neutered.

The purchase contract:

All breeders make a written purchase agreement before money changes hands. The contract varies, but they always include all terms of sale and the health guarantee.

The health guarantee is the most important, because it enables you to get your money back if the kitten is found unhealthy at the time it was sold, or if it has genetic problems.