Comments on: Ragdoll Cat Breed Profile: Ragdoll Characteristics

By: Sarah

Sarah — Sat, 31 May 2008 00:55:10 +0000

Last year my blue persian called “Blue” died of liver failure. I wanted another grey cat to replace him. I saw an advert on the web about a male ragdoll for sale almost 1 year old, neutered, vacanated and comes with all belongings and paperwork £50!!! I emailed and later got a phone call saying we where the lucky ones chosen to be his new family. I have another cat Ruby 18 months and an alsation collie cross Jess 14 years young!!! Vandolls Bigpurpuss is his show name aka Sebestian. He was fat, friendly and very furry. He was quiet at first and sprayed everywhere even though he was neutered. We have had him now for just over a year and he has settled down a lot. He is an outdoor cat althought not ment to be, but I would have a harder time trying to keep him in as he is very vocal!!. He follows me around like a lost puppy, his cries and whinges are really load, he is very floppy, and trustworthy with strangers so we had him microchiped. He is a very loving cat. Sebestian used to live in a one bedroom flat above a barn. He looked out of a round window and the only company he had was his owner. He came to live with us and he had 2 kids, 2 adults, 1 cat, 1 dog and an outside world. I would much prefer him to stay in but he enjoys going to my neighbours house where she has 3 outdoor cats.

By: Helen

Helen — Wed, 07 May 2008 12:05:19 +0000

I adopted a rescue ragdoll. I thought she must of been mistreated because she runs when anyone comes to the house and hides.She comes to us when we call her by her name. She loves sitting on our lap and loves sleeping by my head at night. I`m having problems with her hair. It is matting up and how do I get the clunks of hair to seperate. She crys when I brush her near there and that is why it matted. She loves to be brushed near her head and neck. We have a chocolate lab and they get along great. I was wondering if I need to get another cat to get her to be more friendly. What brand of cat food does everyone use for the best coat? I was giving her Chicken soup for cats but her crap was so stinky.

By: hayley

hayley — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 05:12:05 +0000

Hi,
I bought a male ragdoll 2 years ago. He was very affectionate to me and my boyfriend but whenever anyone else would come over he would become very Nasty and would even go as far as to walk up and bit our unsuspecting guests. Also Trips to the vet were and interesting experience. He would swipe and hiss the whole time. The poor vet nurses were terrified of him. He sometimes would even swipe at me if he was intimidated by something.
He has settled down now and doesn’t attack the vet. Though sometimes he will still ‘crack it’ at visitors, but other times he instantly falls in love with them and purrs and rolls all over the ground.
I think that ragdolls need time to adjust and fit in. They don’t like change very much at all.
With the problem with the kitty litter…. I was always under the impression that Ragdoll kittens were toilet trained by their mothers. I heard that the breeders don’t need to train them because the mother teaches them…. My ragdoll Oliver was 8wks old and went straight to the kitty litter as soon as he came home….. it was very surprising!

By: Katherine [Visitor]

Katherine [Visitor] — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 04:11:55 +0000

Children are not evil. I wish you wouldn’t use that term regarding children. Yes, they might show a lack of judgment sometimes but children are not inherently evil.

By: Joan Houghton [Visitor]

Joan Houghton [Visitor] — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 06:05:38 +0000

Our adopted Ragdoll is similar to the descriptions of the cats mentioned in the above illustrations. She does not go limp; if anything she is tenses and is a dead weight when picked up. She does not sit in laps; but this has not been encouraged or discouraged since she likes to infrequently jump on furniture or scratch it regardless of the cat scratch poles. Sometimes she will purr and rub her mouth against us or objects that are near to us. Sometimes she likes to be scratched. Sometimes she does not want to be petted but acknowledged. She does want to be in the area that we are; however that is about it. It is much better than when we first got her and she immediately stayed uner the bed in the guest room for days; only to come out to eat. I finally laid on the floor for over one hour playing with a cat toy and talking quietly to her. She did come out of the bedroom. Then I shut the door so she would have to at least be in another part of the house to socialize. I kept her out of her “room” for about 20 minutes. The next day, she was shut out of her “room” for about the same amount of time. Sometimes I played by myself with her toys and eventually (about 30-40 minutes; I timed it) she would show interest in what I was doing and decided to interact. She is slowly coming around with a compromise (although I don’t think she sees it this way) between her way and our way. It is a battle of the wills so to speak and everyday gets a little bit better with her personality and wanting to socialize. Catnip spray on her toys really helped also at first. Now we don’t have to use the catnip to get her interested. She especially enjoys an empty bathtub. If we are in the bathroom that is where she goes to watch us and purr like crazy!!!

By: Phoebe [Visitor]

Phoebe [Visitor] — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 18:05:43 +0000

When I first got my ragdoll Omni he didn’t like to be held, in fact he was quite rambunctious and loved to play and actually lay near me or on top of my chair or the couch if I were watching TV. He loved to play fetch though and still does.

Gradually, he has warmed up to the idea of being held, sitting in laps and getting lots of love. He will go limp now, but not when he was younger. I think that some ragdolls just need time to mature and get some of the kittenish energy out of them. If they resist, don’t push the issue. Maybe pick them up and carry them around, mine would tolerate that at first better than being held in a lap. I think he liked watching all the scenery and seeing things from a different angle. Pet him and praise him and put the cat down before they begin to insist that you do so.

Don’t force the issue, just with little doses of cuddling your cat will eventually relax enough to love it more.

By: Nancy [Visitor]

Nancy [Visitor] — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 18:39:41 +0000

I had the same experience with our 2 ragdolls. Very distant and ran when we tried to pick them up. Unfortunately our little girl died unexpectedly–not sick, just found her dead one morning! Her brother is getting more affectionate because I take the time to lie on the floor and play with him and brush him. He’ll still run away if I try to pick him up. Disappointing ragdoll behavior. We’ll get a ragdoll kitten in a week. Hope he’ll be more cuddly.

By: MARYLYNN [Visitor]

MARYLYNN [Visitor] — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 12:33:07 +0000

It was so wonderful to finally read something other then Ragdoll cats are,people cats,social etc..I bought a male Ragdoll kitten papers and all..Spending $540.oo two years ago..Bailey was twelve weeks when I bought him..I live alone but have spent as much time as I can with him..He is so beautiful but very timid..He will sit by me..but does not like to be held..My sister has two other cats and even took him to her home back and forth for over a year to play with her cats..Bailey loved it but still was very timid..He meets me at the door every morning when I get home..He loves to be brushed.and petted…He does play alot..follows me around..But if any one comes over my grandchildren etc..he will run under the bed..Usually takes him hours to come out…I love him dearly but am so disappointed by his behavoir..I am thinking about buying another kitten so maybe Bailey will be more outgoing…

By: Di [Visitor]

Di [Visitor] — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 00:47:39 +0000

I have just bought two Ragdolls, one 15months the other 18 months. One is classic Ragdoll, the other stiffens and cries when she is picked up. The older one is clearly dominant and the younger one seems to not want to get “out of line” and demand too much attention from me. I approach this problem by always acknowledging the dominant cat and stroking the other one whenever possible. She is definitely warming to me but it is a slow process. I think she will relax but it will take a lot of time and I have to remember not to try to rush her just because I want a cuddle!! As for toilet troubles, I am training them to use the real toilet, using Litter Kwitter. Having a few problems, definitely harder with two cats but having had a fully trained toilet user (no more litter!!) I know it’s worth it. May be the answer for Hollie. Hope Shelby the ice queen and Casper come around. Can only suggest what you already know…take it slowly. Oh yeah, mine love to snuggle up in the cat carrier that I brought them home in, so I have taken the door off and let them use it as a refuge. They have both retreated to it today after being to the Vet’s. If I let them stay in there and reach in and stroke them (specially Lilly the timid one) I am rewarded with her purrs. Somewhere small and safe might help Casper and Shelby.

By: Lynn [Visitor]

Lynn [Visitor] — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 19:05:31 +0000

I have just obtained a beautiful Ragdoll. I already have a very old Persian and they have accepted each other well. Not quite best mates yet but learning to live with each other. Casper the Ragdoll is 9 yrs. He does not appear to like being handled, in fact goes stiff rather than limp. Does not seem to like any food I give him but eats a few biscuits. I think he has been tormented by the previous owners child. They had only had him for around a year. He just hides all the time and does not even want to be in the same room as us. I have had him completely checked over by my vet and all is well. I just wondered if anyone could give me a bit of advice on how to integrate him into the family. My old Persian is 18 yrs old and tends to ignore him so bullying is not a problem. One other problem is that he does not always go in his litter box. (he has his own and I have tried different ones to encourage him) He has been with us now for 4 weeks and I have not yet heard him purr.

By: hollie [Visitor]

hollie [Visitor] — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 18:32:44 +0000

I am having the same problem. I bought a purebred Ragdoll about 6 months ago. He was 4 months when we got him. He hates to be held and doesn’t go limp. He sheds like crazy, I could make a new cat everyday with all the fur that comes off of him. He is also VERY talkative. I can’t leave a room without him crying like crazy. Really loud and constant, until he finds me. None of his personality traits are like a Ragdolls. I love him to death but he’s not the cat I expected when I researched this breed. Also, he has trouble with the litter box. He has never gone outside the box but every time he goes he squats to low or something because his back end is always covered in litter. I have another long-haired cat that has longer hair and he doesn’t have this problem. Am I doing something wrong. It’s really gross.

By: carol [Visitor]

carol [Visitor] — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 16:09:01 +0000

I have adopted a purebred ragdoll cat that was given up by her owner. She has two other ragdolls and supposedly did not have room for Shelby. Shelby does not go limp, in fact she hates to be held and resists vigorously. She pretty much ignores us. The original owner said she was "different" because she was constantly jumping up on things etc.

I am a diehard cat lover and through the years have taken in at least nine
strays. I must say all of them have been far more loving than the ragdoll.

Any helpful advice will be appreciated.
Right now Shelby is a beautiful ice queen.