ragdolls

hello, does anyone have any info on ragdoll cats?? i just got one and expected her to be very friendly, social, affectionate. but she seems to prefer being left alone. i
'd appreciate any feedback/advice.

My best friend is looking for one as we speak. There are a number of sites on ragdoll cats. I did a little searching for her and learned a lot. Just type in "ragdoll cats" and you will find many interesting sites. Some are breeder sites, but there are certainly a lot of info sites.

Maybe your new baby just needs time to adjust to its new environment and new "mom".

Well, I guess individual cats have their own personality... You could try and bring him out of his shell with interactive playing sessions and treats.

Here's the Ragdoll's links page - maybe you'll find something there:
http://www.thecatsite.com/links/ragd.html

Hi Angel, and welcome to the forums!! I moved your thread to the breeders corner, I hope that's alright with you...I thought you might get more information about Ragdolls here!

I bought a female Ragdoll and felt the same way you seem to feel. I lived overseas and paid almost $600 for my Ragdoll (not to mention the plane tickets). I read all about different breeds and Ragdolls fit exaclty what we wanted. I talked to the breeder a few times and told her I just really wanted a lovable cat. She said the one I picked out was very lovable. I was so excited to get her but then she acted like a feral cat who had never had human contact. I don't think it's the breed so much as the breeder- the kittens were locked in a room. The lady said it was easier to keep them in a room and I trusted her but I don't think she has much human contact. My girl is 4 years old now and still pretty aloof. I've been patient and showed her lots of love but she just prefer to be alone. On the other hand, I rescued a little male Ragdoll and he is the sweetest little thing you've ever seen! Go figure, the free one is the sweetest!
Sometimes kittens take a while to warm up too so be patient, your little one might suprise you. I do love Ragdolls, they are neat cats and beautiful!
So what's your baby look like?

well i guess that maybe theya rent all as friendly as we'd like. my breeder actually insisted that i keep her in the bathroom to keep her safe the first few days. now she will only eat in there!!! where did you rescue your??? that sounds interesting. chloe was 600 too plus air fare. she is a seal bicolor. i tried before tompost a picture but it didnt work to well, angel

My boy is seal point and my girl is blue point mitted. I got my boy from the vet office actually. I went with my mom to pick up her cat and I was talking to the secretary and told her about Flossie, my girl and she said that a Ragdoll came in today and the breeder said to get rid of him. Nothing in life is free right? He needed medication for months and he might have FIP, the vet isn't sure. I was mad because I told them to test hom for everything before I brought him home to my $600 cat! Unknowing to me at the time they didn't bother an FIP test since it's not 100% accurate. After months of Calvin being sick they told us he might have it. My husband went off on the vet and they don't like us too much now! I thought it was irresponsible on their part. They didn't even give us a discount for rescuing the poor little guy. He was so sick for almost the first year, I thought he was going to die. After lots of money and love he is healthy now! What really made me mad was I found out that the vets knew that the breeder had some of her other cats put to sleep that had FIP. I guess I shouldn't complain because I had such a sweet little bundle of fur to love on now! My girl has shown no signs of FIP either. They said he might be a carrier and not actually get the symptoms. Sorry to go off, I get upset to think about it again.

that is so strange because my breeder told me NOT to get the fip vaccine as it is uncommon and the vaccine can actually make the cats sick. she also told me not to get the feline leukemia vaccine. i guess i should double check with my vet..... how is he doing now?? my kitten was actually curleed up in bed with me this morning. i was shocked. that is the first time she has not slept in the sock drawer!!!! angel

I heard the same thing about the vaccines. My cats are both doing fine. The vet said that Calvin can just be a carrier and not actually get it. She also said the tests are not 100% accurate so he might not even have it at all. I don't see how they can't tell if he has it or not. They think he may have it since some of the other cats from that cattery had it.
My girl will jump on our bed too every now and then, when she feels we are worthy! ha ha Maybe yours will be a lover and she just needed time to warm up. So she likes the sock drawer? Calvin always tries to get in mine. Must be a cat thing! :tounge2:

Just thought I would jump in on the vaccines. It is true that the FIP vaccine has not been proven effective. The most common place you find FIP is in catteries and feral communities. It is passed to another cat by sharing cat boxes, food bowls, scratches and bites. There is no 100% accurate test for the disease and can only be proven without a doubt once the cat has died and a necropsy is performed.
FELV vaccine is a good idea only if your cat may be exposed to any other cats. Outdoor cats, rescued cats or if you house sit a cat. The only way it is transmitted is through bodily fluids. If your cat is to never come into physical contact with another it is not necessary.
Think about this one...we as humans get vaccinated what..once every 10 years. When the NEED arises we can get vaccinated for certain things like Lyme's disease or Rabies. I pat any vet on the back that uses this as a guideline rather than money. There is no need to over vaccinate our animals and inject them with partially live viruses.

Sandie,
I got my cat when he was real little, maybe 4 months. The vet said he could have FIP since the lady had some of her other cats put down because of it. I went to that particular breeders house before and I know she put her kittens in cages (off the ground). I didn't buy from her because I wasn't for sure if these cats had much human contact. None of the ones out of the cages came near us. I'm not sure if he would have got much contact with the other cats either. Could he get it if there was no contact? He has not shown any signs of sickness for like 2 years now.

If he is 2 years old you are probably way out of the woods. It generally attacks kittens. Most kittens that are exposed at an early age do not make it to a year old. He will probably test positive to exposure but not carry or show signs of the actual virus.
With the cattery situation. It is usually passed onto the kittens through their mothers. So being caged and such will not help that situation. If they share close living quarters like that then it can be passed on very easily. Responible breeders if ever have a cat with FIP will spay/neuter all and stop breeding immediatley.
I am glad your baby made it through that awful situation okay!!

Also jumping in on the topic of the FIP vaccine...

Current research suggests that FIP is caused by the mutation of the feline enteric coronavirus - a coronavirus which virtually 100% of ALL cats - both domestic and wild - have been exposed to. It is when THIS virus mutates into FIP and when the cat's immune system does not fight it off that a cat becomes infected with FIP. Only 1% - 2% of the general cat populace which have been exposed to FIP actually ever develop the disease. Even in shelter and cattery situations, the incidence is no more than 5% - 10%. There is absolutely no value in isolation of the cats. Furthermore, there is absolutely no value in running blood work, since either the cats will fight off a challenge to their immune systems or they won't. Certainly feeding them a good quality food and giving them immune boosters (such as echinacea) is good for them but will not help nor hinder their own ability to avoid developing the disease.

FIP, although discovered as a separate virus back in the 1960s, is still not well understood, and it is only recently that research has pinpointed what appears to be the cause. However, there are no definitive ways to prevent the disease (other than, reportedly, total isolation of a kitten from its mother and all other cats starting at about 3 weeks until it is roughly 16 weeks or more) and I wouldn't touch the vaccine with a 10-foot pole. The problem with the FIP vaccine is that it is to be given to cats which don't have FIP. The problem with that is that there is no such thing as a test which can tell you whether a cat has FIP or not prior to administering the vaccine, and there are reports of the FIP vaccine causing full-blown FIP.

Just my $.02 US,

Gaye

thanks! very informative!!