With pretty blue eyes and a colorpoint that creates interesting contrasts of light and dark on the coat, the Ragdoll is a gentle cat with a loving disposition. Typically available in a long or medium coat the Ragdoll requires surprisingly minimal grooming as the fur tends to resist matting despite its length.
Ragdoll Cat Personality
Ragdoll cats are typically interested in what their humans are doing, they’ll greet you at the door when you come home from work, will follow you from room to room, and when you sit down to relax at night they’ll be right there alongside you.
If you love cuddling and being close to your animals then the Ragdoll breed may be the cat for you as they will reciprocate your attention with enthusiastic affection. The Ragdoll will fit in well with families who have a dog and also get on well with other cats.
Children will be safe around the ragdoll as they are playful but not destructively or aggressively so – in fact, they usually play without extending their claws. A quiet voice hints at their laid back attitude towards life while still being completely devoted to their owners. Their gentle nature also means they are strictly an indoor cat as they have retained no instinct for either fight or flight, and as such have lost the ability to defend themselves.
Did You Know?
The Ragdoll name comes from their tendency to go completely floppy and limp when you hold them – not unlike their namesake. Despite the long coat and their tendency to go all floppy however, Ragdolls are still a relatively large and muscular breed – especially the males.
Ragdoll fur is soft, silky and luxurious to the touch (very similar to rabbit fur) so it’s a good thing they enjoy lots of attention because cat lovers can hardly resist that soft coat.
The Ragdoll does not get its full color until they are at least two years old and don’t reach full maturity until they are three or four years old.
Caring for Your Ragdoll Cat
There are no known health problems related to the Ragdoll breed and as the fur is less prone to matting than other breeds they require little maintenance from their humans – although a brush every third day or so won’t go astray and will keep their coat in pristine condition. Once every year they will molt heavily and will require brushing every day during this period.
If you have a Ragdoll cat in your life, please share your experiences below.
Image: Peter Munks via Flickr
I had a Ragdoll for 17 years. He was the most wonderful cat ever. Mandela was gentle and he slept right beside me his whole life. He didn’t like to be picked up or to sit on my lap. He liked to be right next to me and we would follow me from room. I have found with cats that the human lets the cat set up how he or she wants to be handled. Mande was incredibly beautiful and easy to be around.
My ragdoll “Chika” is an amazingly blessing in my life. She is so gentle, that she will get up on something level with me, and stand up and extend her paws to hug me🤗
She sleeps with her head on my pillow with her arms around my neck…..she is so sweet and yes her fur is like silk….loves her brushing times, and actually growls like a dog when someone comes to the door…..lol
I have a Ragdoll kitten who has a great personality. At 7 months old he has become my border collies’ buddy. The kitten is always there to greet me when I come home from work. I’ve never had a cat that loves to be held and loved.
Had a kitty show up on our porch this morning.. I had never heard of a Ragdoll Cat before and after posting some pics, some of my friends said it looked like one. Interesting thing is I live in the foothills in a very remote area with very few neighbors scattered around.. it had to have managed to survive from being eaten by coyotes, bobcats, owls, hawks, etc to find its way to our house.
We got our kittens (brother and sister) off craigslist. We were told they were a ”siamese mix”… they are a little over a year now and every single point in this article is totally on point with our cats. The photo looks exactly like our male. He is very big and long just like this post says, their fur is med-long – his is more medium, hers is a little longer, huge fluffy tails, soooo gentle and friendly, always wanting to be with us, follow us everywhere, awesome with the kids, almost limp when you pick them up..etc
I have no idea why we were told they were part siamese, they look and act 100% ragdoll. Pretty good for $25/both! They are our babies we can’t imagine life without them. We always joke around and say “did we accidentally get dogs?”. I don’t know if you can establish breed with a DNA test, but i’m thinking about having it done if its possible.
Great post. I LOVE ragdolls. I’ve never had one, but I’ve always wanted one. This post just made me want one even more!
Cloon’s Human: Great post on Ragdolls. Our Neytiri is a Ragdoll and yes, the breed is super-gentle and they have a very sweet disposition and she loves to follow me around always. I use a steel comb for her fur which works better than a brush and yes, her fur is soft like a rabbit’s. Neytiri doesn’t like to be picked up however or be held in your arms so she also is an exception to that Ragdoll trait of being a floppy cat and she also meeps and makes little ewok noises rather than meows, just like Boodie from Sparkle’s family. It took three years for her coat color to fully develop and come in. I do adore the breed and it is such an honor to be Neytiri’s Human.
I enjoyed reading about Ragdolls. I know two people who have this breed and they can’t say enough about their wonderful traits.
My roommate Boodie is all or part Ragdoll, and she is the exception to the rule because she was not well socialized before she came to live here. She is the weirdest cat my human has ever lived with! Instead of meows, she makes bleeps and meeps like a space alien, she actually enjoys it when Binga beats up on her (unless Binga gets TOO rough), and she is very shy around people still. She does have an easygoing Ragdoll side to her, but it is tempered with a lot of quirks.