MyRagdollCat.com

They’re LARGER than other breeds but that doesn’t mean they should be "chubbier". They’re taller, longer, larger heads, etc.

When was the last time your cat had a checkup? Your vet can tell you whether your cat is overweight or not for his size. This site also has some info http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1+2230&aid=660

You can check if she is overweight the same way you can with other breeds. Ragdolls are bigger in general, longer and wider. As long as you can feel the ribs, but not see them, they are a good weight. If you can’t feel them without pressing hard (remember though to press a little because they have longer thicker fur) then she is a little overweight. Ragdolls can be up to 20+ pounds, but some ragdolls are as little as other breeds of cats.

My mature male (neutered) ragdoll weighs 6kgs. He has the normal fatpad hanging from his stomach as they are supposed to have, but when view from above, his stomach is the same width as his shoulders and hips. His ribs can be felt under a thin covering of fat. My vet says he is the right weight for his breed. I think because people know this is a large breed, they sometimes overfeed them to make them weigh more. You see it on here sometimes- people boasting about how much their ragdoll weighs. They are meant to be large cats – large head, large bone structure etc, but no cat is meant to be fat. Different body shapes in different breeds effect the fat distribution, but as with all cats, the ribs should be detectable under the layer of fat, but should not be so easily felt that only the skin seems to cover them (they need a little fat underneath).

If you feed proper food then you won’t have to ask this question

Nutrition since there are so many bad things out there is very important to your cat’s health
Contrary to what you may have heard; dry foods are not a great thing to feed a cat.
Please read the label on what you are feeding? What are the ingredients? Do you know what they mean? Is the first ingredient a muscle meat like chicken or meal or other things?
http://www.catinfo.org/#Learn_How_To_Read_a_Pet_Food_Ingredient_Label
http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04/Perhach/PetFood/InterpretingLabels.htm
Dry foods are the number 1 cause of diabetes in cats as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, u.t.i’s, constipation, and a host of other problems. Male cats are especially prone to blockages
from dry food. Food allergies are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin are all symptoms The problems associated with Dry food is that they are loaded with grains and carbohydrates which many cats (carnivores) cannot process. ( Have a fat cat?)
Also, Most of the moisture a cat needs is suppose to be in the food but in Dry, 95% of it is zapped out of dry foods in the processing. Another thing, most use horrible ingredients and don’t use a muscle meat as the primary ingredient and use vegetable based protein versus animal. Not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive.
http://www.catinfo.org/#My_Cat_is_Doing_Just_Fine_on_Dry_Food
You want to pick a canned food w/o gravy (gravy=carbs) that uses a muscle meat as the first ingredient and doesn’t have corn at least in the first 3 ingredients if at all.
THE BEST CAT FOODS CONTAIN NO GRAINS NO BYPRODUCTS
Cats are meat eaters not cereal or rice eaters
Fancy feast is a middle grade food with 9lives, friskies whiskas lower grade canned and wellness and merrick upper grade human quality foods. I would rather feed a middle grade canned food then the top of the line dry food.
Also, dry food is not proven to be better for teeth. Does a hard pretzel clean your teeth or do pieces of it get stuck? http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bpo_ch4a.php

Please read about cat nutrition.
http://www.catinfo.org/
http://www.catinfo.org/feline_obesity.htm
http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutrition.htm#Dry_Food_vs_Canned_Food.__Which_is_reall

Vetinarian diets The reason your vet thinks so highly of the pet food they sell probably has more to do with money than nutrition. In vet school, the only classes offered on nutrition usually last a few weeks, and are taught by representatives from the pet food companies. Vet students may also receive free food for their own dogs and cats at home. They could get an Iams notebook, a Purina purse and some free pizza. http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04/Perhach/PetFood/Vets.htm
Nutritional Education Program website page for the American College of Veterinary Nutrition. Notice who they are receiving grants from for this program
http://mypetcarnivore.com/educational_grant.htm