Talk to me about ragdolls

[Serenajoy1]

Tell me about your ragdolls. I'm so drawn to them! Are they generally much more docile than your average moggy or is there really no difference? Is it much harder having an indoor cat? Are they less aloof than moggys? I'd really love a very affectionate cat that will be a friend for my kids and company for me.

But you do make a good point. Have a look at ragdoll rescue op. They are usually just past the kitten stage but tbh they are so big they don’t stay kittens for long anyway.

@alliensprig Please point me to all these Ragdoll’s in rescue awaiting homes. Ethically breeding pedigree cats is NOT the same as chucking your moggie outside to get pregnant and breeding pedigree cats does not impact on the number of moggies in rescue either. People who want a pedigree cat generally are not open to moggies. For me it’s Ragdoll’s or nothing.

Persians are much better!

Oh god, no! I’ve never seen a Persian that didn’t look like it was hit in the face with a shovel. I don’t see the attraction at all.

Mine was 7 months when I took him in and never had any issues. He was also fully litter trained, neutered, fully vaccinated etc so definitely don't discount rehoming x

I have two ragdolls, both from a ragdoll rescue centre. They came with papers etc but we aren’t bothered by that, we just wanted two easy going cats who will enjoy cuddles. Love ours more than anything.

I had no idea there are breed specific rescues till I got my pair.

Don't feed the troll

Thanks so much for the replies. One question I have, we often head off to holiday home ( in same country) would a ragdoll be happy to come with us? Or would they be a bit put out by change of surroundings

I wouldn't want to take my cats with me. I'd be terrified of them getting out/lost. Mine go to a cattery. And I can relax and not worry about them.

I don’t take mine with me but one of the ladies who had a kitten from me previously takes hers to their caravan a couple of times a year and the cat is absolutely fine with it. You’d have to be extra careful about them not getting out with being away from home though so it depends if you would be able relax or not.

All cats are beautiful! We have a Tortie/tabby who is so affectionate cuddles up to me every night. We also have a Burmese X and he's more like a dog than a cat! He's very chatty, but chooses where and when he gives cuddles.

They were both private rehomings due to changes in health/circumstance. I understand why some people want a purebred cat, but we've ended up with two beauties 2nd hand.

They're beautiful looking cats. Lovely personalities too.

Not sure about why someone would come on spouting about Persian cats on a specific ragdoll thread. They're unattractive cats

toddler isn’t a troll, she posts regularly on this topic she just seems to have it in for ragdolls!

WRT to taking them away it depends entirely on the cat. One of mine would love it, the other 2 not so much.

Have you decided yet op? If you are going for a kitten then a couple of things to look out for:
Kittens shouldn’t be leaving mum till at least 14 weeks. A good breeder wouldn’t let them go earlier.
They should cost around £650 and up.
The breeder should ask you to come and see the kittens before you place a deposit.

Gosh I know she's not a troll. But it's very odd for someone to post ' tell me about ragdolls' and she pops up constantly to push hideous looking Persians. I'd get it if the thread was 'tell me all about Persians'

Anyway. They're also not very bright OP so bear that in mind So sweet and friendly though

Mine was absolutely insane. We took her on because a family member's colleague was going to have her put to sleep if they couldn't rehome her. She quickly became very possessive of me and hostile towards other family members. If I was away, she'd just go and sit in the cupboard for days, ignoring everyone else. I couldn't let her out because she was so daft, she'd just keep walking in a straight line and would have gone on forever until she walked into a road. Unfortunately, she never quite got the hang of toilet training and cost me my entire deposit in one rented property.

I loved that cat to pieces though. She was a total one-off.

There are a few health issues associated with Ragdolls - you'll need to ensure that the breeder has screened for them The information below is from the PDSA website.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy – a condition where the volume of blood that the heart pumps with each contraction is reduced. This can cause fainting, tiredness and other signs of heart disease.
Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) – a condition where cysts, present in the kidneys from birth, gradually increase in size until the kidney cannot function normally, resulting in kidney failure. A genetic test is available for this disease.
We’d recommend discussing the medical history of your potential kitten’s parents and grandparents, and think very carefully before taking on a cat with any of the health conditions listed above evident in the family line.

Thanks everyone for the replies. I'm still doing my research though one has come up today, a bicolour boy. I was set on a girl just because i have a house full of ds! I'm not pushed on colour but he is absolutely beautiful! He's not registered however , I'm not bothered about this but wondering what should I be paying for a non registered ragdoll? I'm in Ireland & price is €600. I'll see if I can attach a pic

Pic 😊

I wouldn't buy from done deal or similar in case they are farmed kittens tbh.

Very few options in Ireland unfortunately

Make absolutely sure that the parents have been HCM tested. If they are registered the parents HAVE to be HCM tested or the kittens can’t be registered. Breeders selling unregistered kittens could be doing this to avoid the compulsory testing because they know one of the parents is positive for HCM.

Ragdoll HCM is very severe! Homozygous kittens generally won’t survive past 1 year old so it’s really really important to have this done. The DNA test is just a mouth swab and only costs £35 there is absolutely no excuse for not doing the test unless you’re trying to hide something!

It’s a shame that some people are only tolerant of beautiful animals with sweet personalities. I will only adopt one-eyed, three-legged demons who sass me regularly.

Good for you mimibunz your obviously such a better person than me

But like I said, don't feed the trolls.

If anyone else has anything more to add on their experience of ragdolls I'm all ears. Any other judgy comments will be ignored

My parents have had two now - the first was soft as anything, the second was a bit intolerant of others (would nip or lightly scratch but actually gave lots of warning) but has proper mellowed in her old age.

They are a lovely breed but I would be really cautious about buying a kitten without proper information about its parentage. Have you visited the breeder?

Oh and the first one just didn’t fancy going outside (could leave doors/windows open and she wouldn’t bother) but second one goes out but not far and comes immediately back in if called).