Ragdolls vs Ragamuffins

The Ragdoll breed has, to say the least, interesting beginnings. Ragdolls were founded by Ann Baker of Riverside, California in the 1960's and her original cat was a non-pedigreed white, long-haired cat named Josephine. She was owned by Ann's neighbor. At one point, Josephine was hit by a car and then nursed back to health as an indoor cat. Suddenly, it seemed, she and her kittens were much more docile and "floppy." Ann acquired a kitten of Josephine's named Buckwheat, a black "Burmese-like" female. She was later given another female named Raggedy Ann Fugianna. Her father, different than Buckwheat's, was a mitted "Birman-like"cat called Daddy Warbucks. He was called "the father of the true Ragdoll look" and these three cats were the foundation stock of Ragdolls. Ann Baker then trademarked the Ragdoll name and breeders had to pay royalty fees and sign a contract to breed Ragdolls. The name of her organization was IRCA (International Ragdoll Cat Association. When Denny and Laura Dayton left Ann Baker's program, they started RFCI (Ragdoll Fanciers' Club International) in order to try to get ragdolls accepted by the major cat associations. They took with them only the four colors and three patterns that are accepted as Ragdolls today.

IRCA breeders continued to breed their cats outside the traditional cat fancy for over twenty years as Ann Baker still held the Ragdoll trademark and in 1994, a group of these breeders broke away and named their cats Ragamuffins Although it is possible that the few accepted colors and patterns of the Ragdoll breed are the direct and only descendants of Ann Baker's three foundation cats, it is NOT possible for Ragamuffins to have all the colors and patterns they offer without heavy crossbreeding. Herein lies the biggest difference in the two breeds. Ragdolls are accepted only in the traditional colors and patterns and the only accepted eye-color is blue. Because of crossbreeding, Ragamuffins can come in any color, pattern and with any eye color. The shapes of the heads and eyes are different in the two breeds and Ragamuffins have shorter and thicker coats.

Ragdolls are accepted in all major cat associations including CFA, ACFA, AACE, and TICA. Ragamuffins are only accepted by ACFA.

If you are interested in a pure-bred Ragdoll, then be sure you are getting a blue-eyed, pointed cat only. Please be aware of the differences as many breeders don't distinguish between the two breeds.