How Often Should I Brush my Ragdoll Cat ?

Brushing a Ragdoll cat is very essential as they have long plush hair. Although ragdolls groom themselves its very important to brush their hair in order to maintain their healthy coat.

Ragdoll cats must be brushed at least 2-3 times a week in order to prevent tangles and to remove all lose, dead hair. Kitten Ragdolls are less fluffy and may require brushing 2 or 3 times a month. Ragdolls are long haired cats and are known for shedding in which brushing is essential to keep the shedding in control.

Ragdolls are not born with their beautiful coat, it normally develops from the third year of the cats life and therefore younger ragdolls wont need much brushing. The older ragdolls with their fluffy coat intact will require Brushing more frequently as it will ensure their coat remains healthy and tangle free.

Ragdolls are also very well known for their excessive shedding. One of the ways that will help is consistent brushing as it removes the hair that is detached and settled on the cats body.

How to Brush a Ragdoll cat?

Brushing your ragdoll cat can be very difficult for you and extremely painful for the cat since they have long hair. Therefore you must be gently, controlled and use the right equipment.

1. Start with a wide-toothed comb or a brush as its necessary to remove all major tangles and knots first.

2. Start with the cats stomach. Cats love this position How Often Should I Brush my Ragdoll Cat ?as their backs are against the floor. Brush using slow, controlled strokes with the grain.

3. Make your way from the cats head just down to the tail. Make sure to be gentle and do it slowly as it can be painful. Once the top is done turn the cat to get another side.

4. Brush their sides. Use one hand to brush while the other holding the cat in place.

5. Once you done brushing all round, have the cat on their paws and gently line brush. This type of brushing is required to remove tangles from the skin, outwards and to brush all the hair in one direction. Line brushing is when you brush each layer of the cats hair at a time.

6. Once all the major tangles are out you can try a finer toothed-comb to get all the fine knots and tangles out. You can also try to brush against the grain as it does a better job to remove unwanted hair, but remember to be very careful because this is very painful.

What Kind of Brush Should I use to brush my Ragdoll?

Brushing plays a very important role in your cats well-being and therefore its crucial to get the right type of brushes in order to make this process easy.

Best overall Brush for Ragdolls

Bristle brushes are the best for ragdolls as it provides enough resistance with each stroke while also being gentle. It removes tangles and knots making sure the cats hair remain smooth and free.

Brush for Shedding

The professional double sided pin and bristle brush is perfect for ragdolls as it has two functions to de-shed and also for gentle daily brushing. This brush is versatile and works from within to remove lose hair.

The other option is the furminator. It works best to remove fur which drastically decreases shedding. But make sure to take it easy as it can rip the hair from the cats skin. Its mostly used for thick furred cats but works just as well on ragdolls.

Do I Have to Brush my Ragdoll cat ?

Ragdolls are not necessarily high maintenance but they do require brushing and basic grooming.

Ragdolls are long-haired cats and you must brush their hair. Cats do a pretty good job grooming themselves but since ragdolls are long-haired it requires much more effort and time. This means that the cat isn’t fully capable of doing this effectively as they have limited reach.

Therefore the cats grooming which consists of brushing, bathing and trimming will ultimately depend on you. Ragdolls have one of the most fluffiest and plush coats from all other cat breeds and it must be looked after and monitored.

How to Reduce Ragdoll Shedding ?

One of the biggest challenges of owning a ragdoll cat is trying to reduce the amount of hair the cat sheds. These cats have lovely, silky and plush thick coats and therefore it sheds off very easily.

The best way to reduce ragdoll cat shedding is to brush the cat 2-3 times a week with a slick resistant brush. Bath the cat once a month and maintain the cats coat with a good quality shampoo and lubricant including an healthy diet.

Brushing is the most important way to reduce shedding as it removes the dead hair that detach from the cats body. Brushing isn’t as straight forward as it may seem. The aim of brushing is to try an remove most of the lose hair. This requires

Brushing with a variety of combs and brushes wide and fine toothed with good resistance. A normal soft bristle brush will only remove the lose hair from the surface and not from the inner layers.

Brushing in layers from the cats skin outwards will allow for the most lose hair to be removed.

Brushing against the grain removes a lot more hair than normal brushing.

Another factor that helps to reduce shedding is the use of a good gel or cat hair products. This will help in keeping the detached hair from falling since the has a greasy effect and will give enough hold preventing the hair from falling. Therefore the cats hair will only be removed when combed or brushed out.

Shaving a cat is also a way to reduce shedding as it will remove most of the hair. Its often required with cats that have excessive mats which cannot be removed.

While shedding is natural, excessive shedding is a concern. If your cat is experiencing rapid hair loss be observant and if the symptom persists consult with your vet immediately as the cat might be lacking certain vitamins and minerals which the food isn’t providing.

The other cause for rapid shedding could be a symptom to a greater health issue or pest/parasite infestation. In some cases it could be an allergic reaction to the shampoo or stress related.

Trimming Ragdoll’s hair

Cutting or trimming your ragdolls hair can be very difficult and daunting, but at times it is required since their hair grow too long which makes it difficult to maintain and untidy especially around their bottom.

Using a pair of round-tipped scissors hold the hair away from the cats skin and cut. You want to cut the areas around the cats bottom to make sure no faeces get trapped on their coat. If you intend on shaving your ragdoll, get a good pet clipper with a guard, preferably #10.

Normally trimming is the best way to maintain and tidy up removing tangles and mats. Shaving however, is required if the cat have excessive mats and tangles. Shaving does require more effort, you can decide whether to do it on your own or at a groomer. When shaving/trimming the cat you can use the below techniques for each part of the cats body.

For hygiene purposes remove all excess hair around the cats anus using scissors.

A good option to reduce shedding is the lion cut. With this cut the cat will be shaved but will retain the hair around the face.
The use of clippers can be used to get ride excessive mats around the belly area where it normally occurs.

Guidelines for shaving a Ragdoll with matted fur

Matting is very common in ragdolls. Most of the time it can be removed however when the cats fur has excessive mats the only other pain-free option is to shave or trim the cat. Here are a few guidelines to follow.

Have the cat well rested or sedated.

Lubricate the clippers properly and choose the appropriate guard.

Plan the cut and make sure you know what style of cut you going to do. You can from the lions cut, a complete shave or a quick trim.

Start with each part and stretch the skin to make sure you done nick the cat.

Gently glide the clippers on the surface of the cats coat removing the hair.

With matted fur it will be very difficult since the fur can get caught on the clipper guard. Be gentle and work your way with each area.

When shaving leave about 1-1/2 inch of the cat hair as their coat protects their skin from the sun.

Be careful when cutting around sensitive areas like the cats paws, head and anus.

Once done, bathe and blow dry the cat until completely dry. If shaven hair remains on the cat it will be uncomfortable and may poke the cats skin.

When shaving or trimming your ragdoll always do it with a partner as it can get rough at times if the cat resists.