Being inbred is NOT a genetic defect. It is a breeding decision. The results CAN be as positive as negative - and that is the reason it is common early in a breed. It sets the positive breed characteristics - and can also surface negative characteristics that then become easier to breed out.
When we get cats, like children, we take what we get and love them and care for them no matter what. I find your attitude about the cat at least as troubling as your claims about this breeder. The cat might be much better off if you found her another home where she will not be a disappointment and the owner will not feel like a martyr. I do not know about this breeder, but you can bet I would be trying to get my cat away from you.
(You speak of paying $600 and also of the kitten being a show prospect. In that case, at least you did not pay a show prospect price and the breeder was not price gouging you.)
I could understand your response if I was getting a stray from a shelter, but there is a specific reason why people pay large sums of money to buy cats from breeders. If no one cared about guaranteed health and temperament, breeders would be put out of business because people would only buy from shelters.
I hate to sound crass, but I paid for something specific, and didn't get it. That is the long and the short of it. I am a loving cat owner, and will care for Maddie until her end of days. But the fact still remains that, because she hates people and spends the majority of her days hiding, all I do is feed her and clean up after her. I have tried to pet her and socialize her, but she wants no part of it. I just feel cheated because I paid for a companion and got a furry blob . If you can't understand that this breeder is a shame to the breeding world, then you have issues Jan. You would probably blame a rape victim for being raped, too, wouldn't you!
Getting a pedigreed cat means you have a MUCH BETTER chance of having the breed characteristics. It does not totally assure it and breeders cannot accomplish that. Behavioral issues like hiding are even more difficult to predict because there are so many factors that can play a part. It can be genetics. It can be early socialization. And, yes, it can be factors in your own home. No smart breeder guarantees temperament, size, coat texture and quality, grooming ease or a long list of things that really cannot be controlled for each individual kitten - and these can also be affected by what happens after the kitten leaves the breeder. So, owners need to recognize that they may be "disappointed" in one respect or another and that is just a part of getting a living creature that is an individual, even though being a member of a breed that creates a narrower range for the characteristics. Your description of her does not really give the impression you are likely to bring out her best, whatever that might be.
As for the breeder, other than perhaps not wanting to interact with you (and you do seem to have an inappropriate sense of entitlement to some remedy for nature's decisions), I am not sure what she has done that is so terrible that she should be compared to a rapist. Nor is it obvious you are a victim of anyone other than Mother Nature.
Line breeding and in-breeding is an accepted amongst cat associations world wide, and is a double-edged sword. Sometimes you get the best of all qualities, other times you get the worst of all qualities.. that's just the russian roulette that all breeders who do this type of breeding, or ANY type of breeding if you really think about it. Line and in-breeding is usually used to set certain traits within a line (say the most brilliant blue eyes ever). Some will have that much-strived for shade of blue, others will have a much much weaker.
I dont think that an in-bred ragdoll is a retarded or defective cat. There are some cats who have had all the early socialization in the world who still turn out to be a skittish-basket-case like my moggie Cleo is (see this thread:
http://www.ragdollcatguide.com/forum/sho...p?tid=1424 ). All cats, purebred or not, are individuals, and some purebreds just dont act like their standard says they should. I've seen some extremely large-boned siamese cats who put a ragdoll's large bone-structure to shame..... and I've seen some pretty small ragdolls too. I've seen the friendliest persian (disclaimer: according to this persian breeder, persians are known to be "prissy" cats... I dont actually know too much about that particular breed) in the world, and have met the MEANEST ragdoll too... And I have had a moggie that acted very much like a ragdoll (floppy, large, extremely soft) but was just a plain ol' barn cat... then we've got Cleo, the skittish scaredy cat (she's getting better with medication).
The point is that just because you have a small skittish ragdoll, doesnt mean that this is a bad breeder. This could be just who your cat is, and there's little to no point in trying to change it. Trust me, I know the frustrations in dealing with an anxious cat who hides all the time... patience wears thin after putting up with it for so long. I've also had to deal with people calling me constantly about my cats and more or less harassing me to the point where I just avoided their phone calls. The ragdoll that they got from me was not the fluffy thing that most expect, that was not my fault, its just the way he was when he left. Today tho, the phone calls stopped because they were so busy trying to tell me that they wanted a fluffy ragdoll that they didnt realize that this kitten had blossomed into the most gorgeous long-haired ragdoll I have ever had the pleasure of meeting... they only noticed when they took a picture of him, and I sent it back asking them what the heck they were talking about... he looked fluffy to me lol.
I think you need to think about some things before you jump the gun and say that this is a bad breeder. For all you know, this person really could be in the hospital!! I recently have been put on bed-rest, and honestly, answering cat-questions and dealing with kitten-owners is not at the top of my priority list. Getting healthy for the sake of my baby and son on the other hand IS at the top of my priority list and I have even gone so far as to no longer guarantee that all emails will be answered within 24 hours... I get to them when I get to them. The last thing I personally need is more stress. And it could be the same for this breeder, for all you know they could be on their death bed.
Moonauggie, Have you tried to talk to your vet ?
There are some very good drugs out there that they may be able to put her on to help her with her anixity.
She is still very young I would not give up on her, hang in there she needs you more then you other cat needs you.
Thanks for your encouragement. I don't have the heart to "give up" on her, as I did make a commitment to care for her, and that is what I intend on doing. I realize that there is no guarantee on temperament. My chief complaint has been that the two times I contacted the breeder saying I had money and I wanted to buy a cat, she responded back immediately. The minute the cat was delivered, she stopped responding to correspondence. As I had mentioned, I didn't receive her paperwork to mail in to TICA for almost a year, and then when I did, I found out that the cat's father had been mated with his mother. After many, many phone calls, and e-mails, I have never heard from the breeder again. Initially, I just had legitimate questions about introducing her to the new cat, etc. I was never accusatory or anything other than cordial, so there should be no excuse for not responding. Again, it just gives me the impression that some breeders are just after the money. Her website is still active, so I find it hard to believe that if she was on her "death bed", she would still be breeding and advertising cats.
Again, I raised this post because I really do love the Ragdoll breed, and I don't want anyone experience the same problems that I have gone through. Thanks all!
Moonauggie I'm glad that you decided to pop back in. For a moment there I thought you had done a runner.
Regarding your Maddie she may not be retarded just painfully shy. It may just take time and a LOT of it to bring her out of her shell. I sympathise with your frustration regarding the breeder contacting you however I would encourage you to continue to think of Maddie as a companion rather than a "furry blob." To me such a description is a little disturbing whether you mean it as such or not. Don't think for a moment that Maddie doesn't pick up on these feelings as well. Have you spoken to your vet about this? It may be that rehoming Maddie might be the best thing if you can't bring yourself to accept her as she is. That's assuming she doesn't get better with time and loving attention on your part.
My Birman LiuLiu was a bit reclusive and aloof when we first got her. She was definitely well socialised and a retired champion to boot nevertheless it took her nine months to accept us as equals. Only then were we deemed worthy to enter her elite circle. Perhaps more patience is in order--just a thought.