Getting to know the Ragdoll
The Ragdoll first captivates with its gaze: large, luminous, expressive blue eyes, and a silky, lustrous coat that ripples with every movement. But what really makes the difference is not its appearance. It is its temperament.
It is unique.
Unique in its gentleness, kindness, calmness and spellbinding gaze, which expresses all its expectation and adoration.
Haiku de La Rosdollane
We love it relaxed, a little clumsy and always close by.
We love its majestic beauty, its powerful yet elegant silhouette, its soft colours and its intense gaze.
The Ragdoll’s success is no accident. Calm, gentle, present and easy to live with, it fits naturally into everyday family life.
Its name, literally “rag doll”, comes from its tendency to relax when held. Without falling back on clichés, the Ragdoll undeniably stands out for its gentleness and its ability to form very strong bonds.
Personality
The Ragdoll has a personality all its own. This affectionate, sometimes intrusive cat-dog takes an active part in home life. It welcomes you at the door, follows you from room to room, cries in distress if you dare close the bathroom door behind you, settles nearby to comment on your activities and greatly appreciates a quiet moment at your side.
Its only extreme qualities are its kindness and intelligence. This big gentle giant has an enormous heart.
Gio de La Rosdollane
Naturally sociable, it generally gets on very well with children, other cats and dogs: everyone is a friend. Its tolerance and trusting nature make it an easy companion, but can leave it vulnerable outdoors. It values security and needs a peaceful environment to thrive.
Moderately active and sometimes a little clumsy, the Ragdoll happily alternates play sessions with long naps on improbable cushions. Not very territorial and generally adaptable, it readily travels with its people. Its voice is discreet, often replaced by an expressive gaze that says all it needs to say.
Physical characteristics
The Ragdoll is a large cat with a powerful, harmonious silhouette. Its semi-cobby body, midway between the Persian and the Maine Coon, is well proportioned, with strong bones and well-developed muscles. Growth is slow, and full maturity is reached between three and four years of age.
Flocon d'argent de La Rosdollane
Its coat is semi-long, silky and has little undercoat. This distinctive texture feels like cool silk and limits tangles and grooming. Always colourpoint with blue eyes, the Ragdoll has a lighter body than its extremities: face, ears, legs and tail. The most common colours are seal, blue, chocolate, lilac and red, with many variations. Kittens are born white, and their colour develops gradually over months or even years.
You will find more details in the LOOF breed standard.
Grooming
Despite its spectacular appearance, the Ragdoll is relatively easy to care for. Its semi-long coat has little undercoat, rarely tangles and generally needs only weekly brushing to preserve its natural beauty. Shedding remains moderate, particularly at changes of season. As with all cats, regular attention to claws, teeth and general condition contributes to well-being.
Health and longevity
The Ragdoll is generally robust when it comes from careful breeding. We systematically screen our breeding cats for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and polycystic kidney disease (PKD), using genetic tests and regular ultrasound examinations. Calm by nature, the Ragdoll needs an appropriate, high-quality diet and regular activity to stay in good condition. It is muscular and heavy: do not confuse its weight with being overweight. The fat pouch on its lower abdomen is part of its natural build. In good living conditions, it can reach fifteen years and often more.
The cousins
The Ragdoll standard describes a blue-eyed colourpoint cat. Some varieties, such as mink, sepia and solid, exist in certain breeding programmes. Although many cat associations do not recognise them, LOOF and TICA have recently included them under the name Cherubim in the Ragdoll Breed Group.
This part of Ann Baker’s work, now resurfacing, will be explored in a dedicated chronicle on our Stories of the Ragdoll blog.
Conclusion
The Ragdoll at cat shows
The difficult days of recognition are far behind us. The Ragdoll is now accepted by all cat associations in all its coat varieties. It is rare not to see one at a show. Shows are the best place to discover the breed, talk with breeders and gain a better understanding of its wonderful temperament.
The Ragdoll according to Ann Baker
But a Ragdoll is more than a coat, however sumptuous it may be. Colour, pattern and white markings contribute to its beauty, but are far from defining it. Ann Baker always said it: above all, the Ragdoll is a temperament.
Its future seemed brighter than ever, provided the qualities that had always defined it were preserved, but…
A dark future
With the complicity of accommodating associations and ambiguous regulations, a handful of opportunists have appropriated the names of very fine Ragdoll bloodlines to produce false pedigrees. Moreover, through questionable, prohibited crosses, their cats display ever denser coats, ever shorter muzzles and ever smaller ears — cats politely described as “hypertypes”.
The siren song
Many Western breeders have been caught in the net of this siren song. With their luxuriant coats, their cats thrive at shows and their fluffy kittens sell like hot cakes. But can we still call them Ragdolls?
A Ragdoll kitten is not fluffy. It is even rather awkward-looking. But one day the ugly duckling becomes a majestic swan. Patience is needed: maturity, for Ragdolls as for cherries, takes time.
A small flickering light
That is why I chose to work with Ivanne Pincedé of the Kind of Magic cattery, breeding only so-called traditional Ragdolls: cats descended from the original founders listed in the chart compiled by Denny and Laura Dayton.
I know we are dinosaurs, but like the hummingbird we do our part, however modest, to preserve the beautiful qualities of this beautiful breed.
A wave of sorcerer’s apprentices seeks to dazzle you, little moths, with coats that are spectacular but very hard to maintain, ever shorter muzzles and ever smaller ears: cats politely nicknamed “Perdolls”.
The choice is yours: appearance, certainly, but also that very special temperament, which is not passed on as easily as it might seem.
