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EVERYTHING RAGDOLL FROM THE BEGINNING
 
THE RAGDOLlL IS A HYBRID BREED
The Ragdoll Cat did not occur spontaneously in Nature. The earliest breedings took place among mostly feral cats of unknown ancestry. It developed through human intervention, the results of years of selectively breeding certain types of cats to achieve a desired outcome. The Ragdoll cat of today can be traced to the original bloodlines where Ann Baker of Riverside California started it all in the early 1960's
 
RAGDOLL MYTHS

 It is said the Ragdoll name comes from its tendency to go limp when held, likened to picking up a soft bundle of rags or to holding a child's ragdoll toy. Actually, this tendency to go limp in your arms may be attributed to their docile,  gentle and trusting nature, rather than any physical or genetic factor. Also it is a myth that the Ragdoll cat is insensitive to pain. If you accidentally step on a Ragdoll kitten or cats tail, it will cry as loudly as any other cat.

 
RAGDOLL BEGINNINGS

 In the early '60s a woman in Riverside, California, by the name of Ann Baker created the RAGDOLL breed..

...She was a breeder of Persian cats, mostly blacks, before she started working on Ragdolls. Josephine, the cat that started it all, was a white, long-haired cat who belonged to Baker’s neighbour Mrs. Pennels. Like many cats in the area, Josephine was half feral and she often produced kittens.

The following is taken from the book The Definitive Guide To Ragdolls by Lorna Wallace, Robin Pickering and David Pollard, published by Ragdoll World UK.

...At the time Ann had been borrowing one of Josephine's older sons to sire progeny in her Black Persian breeding program. This son had the appearance of a Black/Brown Persian and she named him Blackie, and it was one of her visits to borrow him that she saw Blackie's brother. He appeared most impressive and in Ann's words had the appearance of a “Sacred Cat of Burma”. Having already established the owner's trust, she was also permitted to borrow this cat to mate with her own females. She was most taken with this son of Josephine and named him Raggedy Ann Daddy Warbucks. What Ann clearly states is that Blackie and Daddy Warbucks are both sons of Josephine, but with different sires who were unknown and undocumented. In the IRCA booklet it would appear to indicate that Blackie's father was a black cat from the East, that appeared more Persian than Burmese. During detailed questioning, Ann confirmed that no-one had ever seen the father of Daddy Warbucks, and he was the only kitten in that particular litter of Josephine’s. This being so, makes it difficult to take the origins of the breed further.

...Ann Baker's breeding program consisted of a handful of Ragdoll breeders contracted under her. She was paid a royalty fee for every kitten sold. In 1966 Ann Baker registered Daddy Warbucks, Fugianna, Kyoto, and Tike as Ragdolls in the National Cat Fanciers Association. Tiki and Kyoto were registered with Ann Baker being the Owner and Breeder. Daddy Warbucks and Fugianna were registered to Ann's neighbor's  the Pennels as Owner but Ann as the Breeder. By 1969 there were only 65 Ragdolls registered with NFCA and Ann was the only Ragdoll breeder.

Today the Ragdoll is still a relatively new and unknown breed, but the number of Ragdolls and Breeders is growing very rapidly and are becoming very much in demand.

 
RAGDOLL DESCRIPTION

The RAGDOLL's disposition and personality are what makes them a truly unique cats. They are large, quiet, playful, placid, relaxed, very loving and respond well children and other pets. Ragdolls and dogs do especially well together if the dog is well mannered. Children should be watched around a Ragdoll kitten, but most Ragdolls raised with children will tolerate being “lugged” around the house and be happy to be played with.

RAGDOLLS are slow to mature physically obtaining full maturity between 3 and 4 years of age. Altered adult males may reach 15 to 20 pounds; females will weigh about 5 pounds less.

The Ragdolls fur is rabbit-like, medium long with LITTLE shedding. Remember, all animals, including humans do shed their fur, so expect some shedding in the spring and fall. The RAGDOLL requires little or no routine grooming. During shedding season, be sure to watch for some tangles under the armpits in some Ragdolls. All pointed RAGDOLLS have beautiful blue eyes.

At this time, the only Ragdolls that are accepted for Championship in the show halls, are blue-eyed pointed Ragdolls. The solid color Ragdolls is considered experimental. The solid color Ragdolls can be registered, but have not been accepted as to the “Standard”, by the majority of the breeders. Therefore, the solid Ragdolls cannot be shown towards any titles.
 
RAGDOLL 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 .

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.

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.

RAGDOLL PATTERN
COLOR POINT - 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.

BI-COLOR - 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.
 
ADOPTING A RAGDOLL

Before you purchase your kitten there are a few things you should be aware of and ask up front.

1) The first thing is to ask if your kitten is a pure Ragdoll. Some breeders are out-crossing to other breeds to bring in new colors and patterns. While this is fine if it’s done honestly, the customer should be told if the cat is less than the generation that brings it back to full Ragdoll. The price should reflect the generation of the out-cross. The kitten should be at least 4 generations away from the outcross before it is considered a full Ragdoll.

2) If you find a breeder whose asking price is much lower than the rest of the breeders around your area, ask why it is lower. If kittens are offered for less than average price, it could be because the breeder is cutting corners in order to outsell the competition, or they have produced too many kittens . They may have to lower their prices to attract people, and so the people will overlook the conditions the cats are raised in.
- OR- they may be breeding illegally.. this means that they may have purchased their cats from a breeder with a contract to alter the kitten at around 6 months.. They have not fulfilled the requirements of the contract and are breeding, in most cases, Pet Quality Kittens..which they are not able to register because they are not a registered cattery and do not have papers for their adults. Do you want to deal with this dishonest person
 -OR-  they are not true RAGDOLLS----- BUYER BEWARE

 3)  . No kitten should leave its breeder’s home before 12 weeks of age, and with at least one shot but usually two. By not taking a kitten before it’s 12 weeks old, you will be getting a much better and well-adjusted kitten. Also, the kitten’s immune system will be stronger, and the adjustment to it’s new home will go smoother. Kittens need to be with their littermates until this age. Kittens have to learn to be kittens, and it is better for them to do that at the breeder’s house, with their siblings and mom, than to do it to you and your children. Breeders know how to train the kittens for the best behavior towards people. Kittens go through stages of kittenhood that are important. The first three weeks, they don’t want anything to do with people, and are happy just to be with mom. Most breeders will handle them at this age anyway, to get them use to it. The period of 3 to 6 weeks is a fun time. The kittens are thrilled with people, and want to climb all over you, they are learning to use the litter and of course the all inportant scratch post. Then comes the 6 to 10 or 11 weeks of age. At this age, they are either sleeping or flying through the house. This is the age they need each other the most. Getting a kitten at 8 weeks will NOT make the kitten bond with you more than at 12 weeks. You will just be depriving the kitten of a very important learning experience. It is much cheaper for the breeder to let kittens go to their new homes at 8 weeks of age. Kittens between 8 and 12 weeks eat a tremendous amount of food, because they are growing fast. So, if the breeder is feeding them top quality food, as they should be doing, the food $$’s add up and take away any profit that might be made from the litter.

 4) You should never buy a kitten or cat without a health guarantee and contract. This protects the buyer as well as the seller. Read the contract carefully, so you know what is expected if you need to have your kitten replaced. Most breeders require an autopsy report. This is a sad thing to have to have done on a cat you just lost, and we do understand that. However, if we are to breed healthy cats, we have to know what problems we are dealing with. The vet’s "best guess" is not good enough. We need to know for sure what the problem is, and if it could be passed on to more cats and kittens. Make sure you get at least a two-year health guarantee on the kitten for any genetic or heredity defect. Many things don’t show up until the cat is a year old.

5) Try visit the cattery you are getting your kitten from. This is not always possible, but it is worth the effort if you can manage it. If you can’t visit, ask for references and do call the people who have been there. Breeders can tell you something over the phone or email, but you won’t know if it is true or not, unless you visit, or talk to someone who has been there. When you do visit, look for overall cleanliness, and make sure the litter boxes are clean. The house should not have an ‘old cat urine’ smell all over. Many breeders will not let you handle young kittens, but they should be willing to show you where they are raised even if it is a peek in the door of the kitten room. You have to remember that breeder cats do not look as beautiful as they would be if they were spayed or neutered. Males often have more important things on their mind then food, and can be on the thin side, with half the coat they would have if they were neutered. The females are usually in different stages of "beauty". They usually start looking good again with all their weight, and starting to get back their coats, just about the time they are ready to be bred again