Our Favorite Links

These are some sites that I use and some I just want to share. 

If you are interested in the history and development of the Ragdoll Breed please visit the Ragdoll Historical Society site.

I feed my cat Royal Canin.  Kittens up to 4 months eat Baby Cat.  Kittens up to 1 year they eat kitten food.  Adult food is for cats  from 1-7 years.  Senior food is for 11 years and up.

There are 4 stages to the flea life cycle.  #1-the egg,  #2-the larva,  #3-the pupa, and #4-the adult flea.  It takes at least 3 months to break the flea cycle and I use COMFORTIS in my cattery.

Comfortis is the best flea control that I have used.

Foster and Smith Pet Education.com is a good, one stop site to find out what you are looking for, for just about any animal.



There is a lot of controversy as  to whether you should vaccinate your Ragdoll for FIP.  Ragdolls do not do well with this vaccine and can make them very sick.  The vaccine will make all future test show up with a false results.  Giving your ragdoll this vaccine will void any health warranty that comes with your kitten.  Please view this link below on FIP vaccines.

All of my kittens are sold with a contract stating that you will not declaw your cat/kitten.  There are a lot of resources on line to help with whatever your issue is with your cat that may having you thinking that declawing is your only alternative.  Please view the link below.

Animal Legal and Historical Center is where you can find the laws for any state for animals.  Just type what you are looking for in the search bar.

WINN is dedicated to the health and welfare of all cats and has a lot of good info on there site as well!

What do I need to bring home a new kitten?  You will find a lot of information on this site on what you need to get and what you need to know before bringing your new kitten home. 

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

There is some controversy about HCM and some breeders believe that if all of there breeders are tested and are all  N/N  for HCM that none of there kittens will ever get HCM but that is not the truth.

A genetic test showing a -/- result of the parents means that the likelihood of HCM negativity in your kitten will greatly increase. This does not mean that your kitten will never have HCM. The causes of HCM are multifactorial which means your Ragdoll may contract HCM at some point during the lifespan. A breeder telling you otherwise is misleading you, and is most likely misinformed his/herself.

The inherited form of HCM is autosomal dominant, which means that carriers or heterozygotes (ie, those having one copy of the gene) will be affected. Although all cats with the mutation will be affected, the age of clinical onset and severity can vary considerably.
It is important to note that there are many forms and causes of HCM. HCM leads to a thickening of the heart wall, particularly on the left side. This in turn, can lead to heart failure, embolism and death.

A “clear” result means that the cat does not have the specific mutation that has been found to be associated with HCM in the breeds mentioned. As the test does not detect other causes of HCM, a “clear” result does not mean the cat will never develop HCM.

2 DNA tests are available that identify the mutations that have been associated with HCM in cats.

The HCM Maine Coon test detects the A31P mutation associated with HCM in Maine Coons.

The HCM Ragdoll test detects the C820T mutation associated with HCM in Ragdolls.

Both mutations are found on the MYPBC3 gene.

Your BEST chances of having a Ragdoll who will remain free of homozygous HCM for his/her lifespan is to purchase a kitten whose parents and grandparents have a -/- test result.

These gene defects are common in Maine Coon and Ragdoll cats, with some studies showing up to 30-40% or more of cats carrying one or two defective genes. However, the relationship between the presence of the mutated gene and the development of HCM is not perfect. The gene defect appears to increase the risk of disease, but not all cats with the defect develop HCM and some cats in these breeds that develop HCM do not have these defects. It is likely that other (as yet unidentified) gene defects and other environmental and biological factors all influence the development of HCM.   So without a doubt, the study of HCM is ongoing and they only thing that a breeder can do is to make sure all of there breeders are tested N/N for HCM.

UC DAVIS is where I send most of my DNA testing to be done, such as the HCM testing.

The USDA site is the one I use to check requirements on importing and exporting my cats.


NC State University

Gerlinda is who I used for my website design.

Go Daddy is who I use for my web server.

http://www.rfwclub.org/Gcolor.htm Ragdoll color

This is the WAY BACK MACHINE–Internet Archive–

http://archive.org/web/web.php

Skunks

Since there seems to be a lot of skunks here in Tennessee, here is a tip for treating your dog that has been Skunked.

1 quart (4 cups) of 3% fresh hydrogen peroxide

1/4 cup baking soda

1-2 teaspoons of liquid soap (dish washing detergent)

Lather your pet in this mixture and wait five minutes, then rinse with copious amounts of water.  Repeat if necessary.  It is possible this may bleach your pet’s hair, but it is not toxic to their skin. Note that this mixture doesn’t store well, so you will need to make a fresh batch if your pet gets sprayed again.

If your pet’s eyes seem to be affected, rinsing them with copious amounts of tepid water for 20 minutes may relieve some of the discomfort.

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http://ragdoll-cats.com/vaccine.htm

http://www.dr-addie.com/downloads/650_fip_fcov.pdf

http://www.dr-addie.com/Prevention/earlywean.htm


This is a great cat litter! My cats love it.

https://www.purrfectpost.com/mondo-standard/

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