10.05.2022

Can Ragdoll cats be left alone? Better not, but here's how much time you have

Your Ragdoll cat probably demands as much attention as the neediest of children.

From getting under your feet while you’re carrying the shopping bags in to insisting on going upstairs ahead of you, there is a good chance your feline covers more mileage around the house than you every day.

Playtime can also be frenetic. Ragdolls are known to be enthusiastic and forthright chasers of toy mice, feather wands, and laser pointers. They can even wreck whole rooms if a game gets out of hand.

Can Ragdoll cats be left alone, or is this a quick way to get your house trashed and your neighbours traumatised by the sound of crying feline? Untamed reveals the details!

“Seriously??? Going out AGAIN???”

Source: Pixabay

Is your Ragdoll cat lonely?

Ragdolls have been bred for generations to be companion cats.

Many other breeds—such as Siamese, Abyssinian, Burmese, and Bengal—tend to be selective about when and whom they socialise with.

Ragdolls want to be with you all the time, and clear signs of this clinging behaviour include:

• Following you around
• Watching your every move
• Checking up on your whereabouts
• Crying when you are not being attentive enough

Under the right circumstances, a cat who wants to be with you can be classed as a true friend. If your schedule involves long absences from home, there may be an issue.

Cats are creatures of habit, and Ragdolls, in particular, value routine and predictability.

If your schedule is haphazard, you may notice your Ragdoll displaying signs of separation anxiety, such as:

1. Avoiding you
2. Hiding away for extended periods
3. Not eating
4. Being aggressive
5. Overgrooming or compulsive cleaning

Avoiding you

If your usually effusive Ragdoll suddenly starts giving you the cold shoulder, stress is a likely cause of such behaviour.

Ragdolls will typically not be subtle in displaying their displeasure, so you might first experience prolonged bouts of crying and pawing before they start ignoring you.

The silent treatment is often a sign that something is seriously wrong.

Hiding away for extended periods

Ragdolls are normally to be found wherever you are.

Your Ragdoll hiding away in a quiet corner is a sure sign that all is not well. It is most likely a reaction to your prolonged absence.

Not eating

Any sudden change in their eating habits deserves investigation because Ragdolls are finicky eaters.

The cause could be related to the type of food you’re offering. If you have recently swapped from wet to semi-moist or dry, started experimenting with raw or B.A.R.F. recipes, or if the ingredients in the product have changed, voluntary anorexia could be your Ragdoll’s way of telling you to reverse your decision.

Not eating can also be a sign of stress and needs to be addressed quickly. If your cat foregoes food for more than 24 hours, the health consequences can be severe, including:

• Rapid weight loss
• Lethargy
• Liver damage

Being aggressive

Ragdolls are famously boisterous at play, and it’s not uncommon for toys to end up destroyed in short order.

If the same aggression is turned on you, this is a sign that you are not in your Ragdoll’s good books.

Overgrooming or compulsive cleaning

Ragdolls shed heavily and are prone to regular hairballs.

When stressed, they can begin to groom obsessively, resulting in:

• Even more frequent dry heaving and hairball depositing
• Patches of raw, bare skin, similar to the symptoms of a food allergy
• Clumps of hair left around the house

Furniture can become collateral damage when a Ragdoll is left alone.

Source: Pixabay

How long can you leave a Ragdoll cat alone?

If your schedule demands absence for hours during the day, Ragdoll may not be the right cat breed for you.

Looking after your Ragdoll should be high on your priority list, so you shouldn’t leave them alone for more than eight hours.

One factor is in your favour as a Ragdoll parent with a busy schedule. Ragdolls are heavily nocturnal creatures and sleep through most of the day.

Your Ragdoll will often wake you up and announce playtime at sparrow’s because they have already been playing for hours and want you to join the fun.

If left alone for more than eight hours, your Ragdoll will start to become:

1. Bored
2. Hungry 

The devil finds work for idle hands

A bored Ragdoll is a dangerous thing.

Out of sheer ennui, you can expect to find sofas, tables, and chairs scratched, plants destroyed, and cushions scattered (if not torn to pieces) on your return.

Food hunts are not going to happen

Ragdolls are not known for their hunting skills.

When it comes to food, they are most comfortable finding their meal in its usual place, having just been served by a loyal and obedient human. These kitties will rather go hungry than fend for themselves while you are out.

To make matters worse, Ragdolls are fussy and highly sensitive about the smell of their food.

Pouches or wet food—even dry food in some instances—quickly loses its enticing aroma after being served, rendering it unappetising to your Ragdoll. Your feline might avoid anything in the bowl—wet or dry—and rather starve until you provide a fresh meal.

Organising your schedule around your cat may seem excessive, but your Ragdoll needs your presence to be happy. More than eight hours of absence each day is more than they can handle.

Can Ragdoll kittens be left alone?

Ragdolls are highly intelligent and trainable cats.

If you begin young enough, Ragdoll kittens can be taught to adapt to your routine, as long as it is a routine and not just random, unpredictable absence.

Only reaching maturity at around 18 months, Ragdoll kittens need you to train them extensively from weaning until around 11 months. 

Any routines learned during this time will stay with them through adulthood and into their senior years. If you can invest this time into teaching your feline companion to expect your absence during the working day, you should have no problems with stress in later life.

Helping you read the paper.

Source: Pixabay

How can you make it up to your Ragdoll cat?

Besides reorganising your life to suit the whims of your Ragdoll, the diet can help keep them happy.

It will ensure your Ragdoll can enjoy life to the fullest with or without your presence. The best nutritional choices for your cat can also alleviate some of the conditions caused by your absence.

You should base your choice of food on the following criteria:

1. Ragdolls are fussy
2. A long coat needs special care
3. Ragdolls play hard

Ragdolls are fussy

Whatever food you choose must taste good, so opt for a diet close to what your cat would eat in the wild.

It means meat, meat, and more meat. Cats typically hunt and catch:

• Small birds
• Mice and other rodents
• Lizards and reptiles
• Snails, slugs, and even frogs
• Insects, particularly large flying ones like moths

Cats love the taste of healthy food (feline, not human healthy food), so you can best curry favour with your Ragdoll if you serve meals high in animal protein.

You will be onto a real winner if you provide a proper dose of calories by including animal fat (ideally as cat jelly or gravy). The taste of animal fat will drive your Ragdoll wild.

All forms of animal protein are also highly digestible—measurable through their biological value (BV) or the percentage to which cats can metabolise them.

The BVs of the most common animal protein sources in cat food are:

A long coat needs special care

Your Ragdoll’s fur is made up of 98% protein.

The best you can do to keep your kitty’s coat sleek and shiny is to feed a diet rich in animal protein.

As a bonus, the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in animal fat also help regulate your cat’s inflammatory response, further improving the condition of their skin and coat.

Ragdolls play hard

Ragdolls’ games can border on the brutal, and this requires energy.

The diet should ensure their calorific needs are met without delivering energy through carbs, grains, or cereals.

Carbs are good for fast-burn energy, but any unburnt carbohydrates are stored as fatty cells, leading to obesity.

This nutrient also causes quick and substantial insulin release to manage blood sugar levels. It can put undue pressure on your Ragdoll’s system and result in:

• Acute pancreatitis
• Chronic diabetes

The best food to reward your Ragdoll after a long day without you contains:

Untamed has the answer!

If you want to keep your Ragdoll happy and healthy, Untamed is the way because our food offers the ultimate balance of nutritional value and great taste.

Every tin of Untamed is packed with the kind of goodness your cat needs, including:

1. Huge amounts of exclusively animal protein
2. Vet-formulated recipes

Huge amounts of exclusively animal protein

Untamed food contains more than twice the amount of meat or fish you find in most commercial cat food products.

You can be sure that your Ragdoll will devour every tin with gusto—whether you choose Chocka Chicken, Tuck-in Tuna, Full-on Fishy, or any other delicacy.

Vet-formulated recipes

Created as homemade meals, Untamed products have been honed by vets to deliver the best possible nutrition for Ragdolls.

Besides having a beneficial effect on your cat’s coat, Untamed food can help with:

• Preventing urinary tract diseases (UTIs), such as cystitis or bladder stones
• Maintaining digestive health, so no diarrhoea, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constipation, and stomach sensitivity
• Helping with weight management issues and obesity
• Avoiding allergic reactions by cutting out known allergens

On top of this, Untamed is committed to the health of our planet, ensuring that we:

• Source from ethical, cruelty-free, sustainable suppliers
• Use 100% recyclable packaging
• Run all our operations on a carbon-neutral basis

Try Untamed and allow your fluffy friend to thrive!

The perfect everyday treat for your Ragdoll!

Image (c) Untamed

Get Untamed to reward your Ragdoll for being such a doll

Treating your Ragdoll for patiently waiting for you couldn’t be easier!

All you have to do to get a cat food trial pack from Untamed is:

1. Tell us all about your Ragdoll
2. Choose the best meal plan
3. Order your initial trial pack

The goods will arrive in a day and ease the separation anxiety issues. We will keep you stocked up to make sure your kitty stays calm and happy. Our cat food shipping service is absolutely free.

According to our clients, you can expect the following results after stitching your Ragdoll to Untamed: