A Description of the Ragdoll
The Ragdoll is a large affectionate, semi-longhaired cat with captivating blue eyes. One of the largest breeds in the cat fancy, the Ragdoll gets along well with children and other pets, including dogs, often living up to its name as it gets carried around the house in a child's arms. These sturdy cats have no extreme features and blend easily in to the busy modern household.
Ann Baker of Riverside, California developed the Ragdoll breed in the early 1960s. A pure white longhaired cat named Josephine is believed to be the matriarch of the breed along with a seal mitted male named Daddy Warbucks and a solid black cat named Blackie. Daddy Warbucks was bred to a daughter of Josephine named Buckwheat and her half sister, Fugianna. These cats are the foundation of the Ragdoll breed. Ann insisted Josephine's genes were altered at a nearby medical center where she was taken after being hit by a car. Litters born after her return from the hospital had the limp, loving personalities Ragdolls are known for, unlike her "normal" kittens born prior to her hospitalization. Baker's breeding program consisted of a handful of breeders contracted as franchises under her. As time went on, Baker became more eccentric and breeders broke away from her so they could continue to develop the highly affectionate and consistently patterned cats. Denny & Laura Dayton were among the breeders who distanced themselves from Baker and went on to play a major role in making the Ragdoll into a legitimate breed recognized by all the major registries.
The Ragdoll is a relaxed, happy cat and, like a child's ragdoll, many of these cats will go limp in your arms and flop like a stuffed doll when cuddled. Generally, the Ragdoll cat is a loving, quiet cat with a very laidback disposition. If you are looking for a very active cat or a talkative cat, a Ragdoll probably is not the breed for you, although kittens and young adults can be very rambunctious and most Ragdolls are always willing to play. Ragdolls are known for their tolerant attitudes with other animals and especially children and many will allow themselves to be dressed in doll clothes and carried around by youngsters with absolutely no resistance. They are often compared to dogs because of their friendliness and intelligence and have even been taught to play fetch.
The Ragdoll's medium length, silky coat has a soft rabbit-like texture. There is little shedding of the coat except in the spring and fall. Its soft texture means it stays on top of surfaces and is easy to pick-up with a hand or damp cloth. All pointed Ragdolls have beautiful blue eyes and come in 3 patterns: colorpoint, bicolor, mitted. The Ragdoll color pallet consists of seal, blue, chocolate, lilac, cinnamon, fawn, red and cream along with the tortoiseshell and lynx (or tabby) variations. Colorpoint Ragdolls have classic markings like the Siamese with no white anywhere on the body; mitted Ragdolls have white feet in the front looking like mittens and white to the hock on the backlegs looking like boots along with a possible white blaze on the face; bi-color Ragdolls have more white extending higher up the legs than on the mitteds, splashes of white on the back, a white underside and an inverted white V on the face.
The Ragdoll is one of the largest of the cat breeds and takes up to 4 years to reach full maturity. Fully developed males weigh from 15-20 pounds with the proportionately smaller females weigh from 10-15 pounds. These gentle cats have long, substantial bodies with sturdy boning to match. They have a sweet expression emphasized by the large eyes full of love and devotion. Their features are composed of soft curves and transitions with nothing extreme or exaggerated.
The Ragdoll's plush, silky coat requires little routine grooming, although it should be brushed or combed weekly with a steel comb to remove dead hair from their coats and separate any tangles. During shedding season, be sure to watch for some tangles under the armpits.
Colors & Patterns of the Ragdoll
The RFCI currently recognizes 6 colors and 5 patterns in the Ragdoll: (recognition of colors and patterns may vary between registering Associations)
| Colors | |
|---|---|
| Seal Point | The body color should be ranging from ivory to pale fawn beige, shading gradually into a lighter color on the belly and chest. The points will range from a warm seal brown to a deep brownish black. The paw pads and nose leather to be a seal brown to brownish black, with rosy undertones allowed. |
| Blue Point | The body should be a bluish white to platinum grey, cold in tone, free of any tinge of brown, shading gradually to lighter color on the belly and chest. The points will be blue- grey to deep slate. The paw pads and nose leather dark blue. They may have rosy undertones. |
| Chocolate Point | The body should be ivory, shading gradually to lighter color on the belly and chest. The points ranging from warm milk chocolate to bittersweet chocolate, all with rose undertones. The paw pads should be a brownish salmon pink and nose leather a rose brown. |
| Lilac Point | Body magnolia white. Points a pale dove grey with pinkish tones to a warmer deep lavender, the dilute pigment permitting the flesh tones to show through. Paw pads and nose leather lavender pink . |
| Red Point | The body should be a warm, even, creamy white. The points will be a deep orange “hot” red. The paw pads and nose leather to be pink. |
| Cream Point | The body should be creamy white. The points ranging from pale sand to deep cream. The overall impression is dull, cool buff beige. The paw pads and nose leather pink. |
| Patterns | |
|---|---|
| Colorpoint | The points, ears, mask, feet and tail are to be dark with the color well defined. The body should have definite contrast between it and points. Soft shadings of color are allowed on the body, as the cat gets older. Nose leather is the color of the points. |
| Mitted | The points are to be dark and contrasting to the body, with matching white mitts on the front feet, and white going up the back legs at least to the hock. The chin must be white, and there should be a white belly stripe from the chin down the bib, and running to the base of the tail. This pattern may have a single white blaze between the eyes or a broken blaze between the eyes and on the nose. Blaze may not extend into the nose leather. Nose leather is the color of the points. |
| BiColor | The Ears, mask and tail to be well- Defined in the darker color. The mask is to have an inverted "V" which should be as symmetrical as possible and should not extend beyond the outer edge of the eye on either side. The nose leather must be pink. The chest, stomach, all four legs, feet and ruff are to be white. The white should reach above the elbow on the front legs, and above the hock on the rear legs. The back may have shading in a lighter shade of the point color, with various markings of white and color patches. |
| Lynx Point | Overlays any one of the above patterns. The Lynx pattern shows as tabby markings on the face in what appears to be the letter "W". |
| Tortie Point | Overlays any of the above patterns. Tortie Points, color-wise, will generally have Red or Cream mixed with one of the other colors. |
