Other Name
His floppy, relaxed good nature gives the Ragdoll his name. He is a big, gentle cat with striking blue eyes who can get along with everyone, including other animals, traits that make him adaptable to almost any home. His semi-longhaired coat, which comes in a variety of patterns and colors, is easy to groom. Large and heavy, the Ragdoll cat, also known as the Ragamuffin cat, embodies the essence of quiet power. It has oval blue eyes and a semi-long silky coat, which comes in the four traditional pointed colors: seal, chocolate, blue and lilac; and three divisions: solid or colorpoint, particolor mitted, and particolor bicolor.A mitted Ragdoll has white-gloved paws, while a bicolor Ragdoll has its face covered by a white mask in the shape of an inverted "V." The bicolor also has its legs, chest, stomach and ruff -- a collar of fur around the neck -- all covered in white.
The Ragdoll breed is not quite 50 years old. The cats were created in California in 1963. Breeder Ann Baker wanted to develop a beautiful cat with a loving, gentle personality, and she started with domestic longhairs of unknown ancestry. Josephine, the foundation cat, was white with Siamese-type markings, and in her genes she carried a seal mitted or black tuxedo pattern. The Ragdolls of today descend from Josephine and her son, Daddy Warbucks, as well as other unknown domestic longhair males. The Cat Fanciers Association began registering Ragdolls in 1993, and they achieved championship status in 2000. Today Ragdolls are the fifth most popular breed registered by CFA.
