About The Maine Coon
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It probably won’t surprise anyone that I’m a little biased when it comes to Maine Coons. 😂 After years of living with and raising them, they are hands down my favorite breed.
Maine Coons are known for their large size, shaggy coats and beautiful appearance, but honestly, their personalities are what made me fall in love with them. They tend to be affectionate, intelligent, social and incredibly curious about whatever their people are doing. They have a reputation for being “gentle giants,” and while every cat has its own personality, that description fits the breed pretty darn well.
A Little Maine Coon History
The Maine Coon is a natural breed that developed in the northeastern United States and is closely associated with the state of Maine, where it eventually became the official state cat. Exactly how their ancestors arrived in North America isn’t known, and there are plenty of colorful stories about their beginnings. You’ll hear everything from Viking ships to Marie Antoinette’s cats. Those stories are fun, but they’re legends, not established history.
What we do know is that longhaired cats were present in North America and that cats who were well suited to the cold New England climate survived and reproduced over generations. The Maine Coon developed into a large, rugged cat with a heavy coat, long bushy tail and large paws well suited to that environment. And despite one very persistent old myth, Maine Coons are definitely not part raccoon. 😂 Cats and raccoons cannot reproduce with one another.
What Are Maine Coons Like?
This is probably my favorite thing about the breed. Maine Coons generally like being involved in whatever is happening around them. Mine don’t necessarily need to be sitting directly on top of me every second, but they absolutely want to know what I’m doing, where I’m going and whether they should be involved. Usually they have decided the answer to that last question is yes. 😂 They’re intelligent, playful and often retain a very kitten-like personality well into adulthood. Many chirp and trill in addition to meowing, and some seem to carry on entire conversations with their people. They’re also generally adaptable cats. When properly socialized, Maine Coons can do extremely well with children, other cats and cat-friendly dogs. Early socialization matters tremendously, which is one of the reasons it is such a big focus for us when raising our kittens.
How Big Do Maine Coons Get?
Maine Coons are one of the larger domestic cat breeds, but the internet has created some pretty unrealistic expectations about their size. They are large cats, but a healthy Maine Coon does not need to weigh 25 or 30 pounds to be a “real” Maine Coon. Males are generally larger than females, and there can be considerable variation between individual cats and bloodlines. They are also slow-maturing cats. Maine Coons continue developing for several years, so the lanky teenager you have at a year old may look very different as a mature adult. Size is only one characteristic of the breed, and bigger isn’t automatically better. Healthy body condition, structure, temperament and overall health matter much more to me than producing the biggest cat possible.
That Famous Maine Coon Coat
Maine Coons have a semi-long, shaggy coat designed for a cold climate, along with a long bushy tail and famously furry paws. Their coat can change considerably with age, season, hormones and climate. They also come in far more colors and patterns than many people realize. Brown tabby may be the classic look people associate with Maine Coons, but Maine Coons can be black, blue, red, cream, silver, smoke, solid, tabby, tortie and many other combinations. And one little misconception worth clearing up: tabby is a pattern, not a breed and not a color. The famous “M” on a tabby cat’s forehead isn’t proof that a cat is a Maine Coon either. Lots of domestic cats and other breeds have tabby patterns.
Health Matters
Like every breed, Maine Coons can have genetic and inherited health concerns. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other conditions are among the health issues responsible breeders pay attention to. This is why health testing and thoughtful breeding matter. Our breeding cats are DNA and health tested, and our kittens are backed by a two-year genetic health guarantee. No breeder can promise that an animal will never develop a health problem, but responsible breeding means doing what we reasonably can to reduce known risks rather than simply hoping for the best.
Want to Learn More?
Over the years I’ve put together quite a bit of information about Maine Coons, cat health, behavior and living with cats. Instead of trying to cram all of that onto one very long page, you can explore whatever interests you below.
Is Your Cat a Maine Coon?
Wondering whether a large fluffy cat is automatically a Maine Coon? This one clears up a very common misconception. Maine Coon vs. Domestic Longhair Cat
Polydactyl Maine Coons
Learn more about those famous extra toes, how polydactyly is inherited and why the trait has such an interesting history in Maine Coons.
MORE ON MAINE COONS LINK TO TICA: Maine Coon Breed (tica.org)
Maine Coons are known for their large size, shaggy coats and beautiful appearance, but honestly, their personalities are what made me fall in love with them. They tend to be affectionate, intelligent, social and incredibly curious about whatever their people are doing. They have a reputation for being “gentle giants,” and while every cat has its own personality, that description fits the breed pretty darn well.
A Little Maine Coon History
The Maine Coon is a natural breed that developed in the northeastern United States and is closely associated with the state of Maine, where it eventually became the official state cat. Exactly how their ancestors arrived in North America isn’t known, and there are plenty of colorful stories about their beginnings. You’ll hear everything from Viking ships to Marie Antoinette’s cats. Those stories are fun, but they’re legends, not established history.
What we do know is that longhaired cats were present in North America and that cats who were well suited to the cold New England climate survived and reproduced over generations. The Maine Coon developed into a large, rugged cat with a heavy coat, long bushy tail and large paws well suited to that environment. And despite one very persistent old myth, Maine Coons are definitely not part raccoon. 😂 Cats and raccoons cannot reproduce with one another.
What Are Maine Coons Like?
This is probably my favorite thing about the breed. Maine Coons generally like being involved in whatever is happening around them. Mine don’t necessarily need to be sitting directly on top of me every second, but they absolutely want to know what I’m doing, where I’m going and whether they should be involved. Usually they have decided the answer to that last question is yes. 😂 They’re intelligent, playful and often retain a very kitten-like personality well into adulthood. Many chirp and trill in addition to meowing, and some seem to carry on entire conversations with their people. They’re also generally adaptable cats. When properly socialized, Maine Coons can do extremely well with children, other cats and cat-friendly dogs. Early socialization matters tremendously, which is one of the reasons it is such a big focus for us when raising our kittens.
How Big Do Maine Coons Get?
Maine Coons are one of the larger domestic cat breeds, but the internet has created some pretty unrealistic expectations about their size. They are large cats, but a healthy Maine Coon does not need to weigh 25 or 30 pounds to be a “real” Maine Coon. Males are generally larger than females, and there can be considerable variation between individual cats and bloodlines. They are also slow-maturing cats. Maine Coons continue developing for several years, so the lanky teenager you have at a year old may look very different as a mature adult. Size is only one characteristic of the breed, and bigger isn’t automatically better. Healthy body condition, structure, temperament and overall health matter much more to me than producing the biggest cat possible.
That Famous Maine Coon Coat
Maine Coons have a semi-long, shaggy coat designed for a cold climate, along with a long bushy tail and famously furry paws. Their coat can change considerably with age, season, hormones and climate. They also come in far more colors and patterns than many people realize. Brown tabby may be the classic look people associate with Maine Coons, but Maine Coons can be black, blue, red, cream, silver, smoke, solid, tabby, tortie and many other combinations. And one little misconception worth clearing up: tabby is a pattern, not a breed and not a color. The famous “M” on a tabby cat’s forehead isn’t proof that a cat is a Maine Coon either. Lots of domestic cats and other breeds have tabby patterns.
Health Matters
Like every breed, Maine Coons can have genetic and inherited health concerns. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other conditions are among the health issues responsible breeders pay attention to. This is why health testing and thoughtful breeding matter. Our breeding cats are DNA and health tested, and our kittens are backed by a two-year genetic health guarantee. No breeder can promise that an animal will never develop a health problem, but responsible breeding means doing what we reasonably can to reduce known risks rather than simply hoping for the best.
Want to Learn More?
Over the years I’ve put together quite a bit of information about Maine Coons, cat health, behavior and living with cats. Instead of trying to cram all of that onto one very long page, you can explore whatever interests you below.
Is Your Cat a Maine Coon?
Wondering whether a large fluffy cat is automatically a Maine Coon? This one clears up a very common misconception. Maine Coon vs. Domestic Longhair Cat
Polydactyl Maine Coons
Learn more about those famous extra toes, how polydactyly is inherited and why the trait has such an interesting history in Maine Coons.
MORE ON MAINE COONS LINK TO TICA: Maine Coon Breed (tica.org)
THE ORIGINAL MAINE COONS BELOW.
Fun Cat Fact of the Day. What did the first recognized breed standard of Maine Coons look like, here they are above.
The breed standard with dogs and cat breeds does change over time. So, the breed standard is now, may not be the exact breed standard in 50 years.
Purebred cats are very NEW to the world of cats compared with the Domestic Cat that is the original cat and not a breed. Domestics have been around for 10k plus years. Whereas Purebred cats are a few hundred years old to even much newer. There are a few old natural occurring purebred breeds such as the Turkish Van but that’s rare in the purebred world.
Unlike dogs (such as mutts do come from purebred dogs), purebred cats actually originate from the Domestic cat. The Domestic cats are not mixes from purebreds, that’s a huge misunderstanding among cat lovers. Domestics also have short and long hair and are the foundation stock of purebreds. They come in every color and pattern too. Short hair is most common and long hair is a lot less common.
Domestics makeup 97% of the total cat population. Purebred cats and that’s 71 breeds, only makeup 3% of the cat population. Are indoors and over 85% are spayed and neutered.
Domestics are considered an invasive species in most countries around the world. They are originally from the desert overseas and made their way around the world on ships during the continental trade. Sailors enjoyed their companionship, they were great for vermin control, and considered good luck.
The breed standard with dogs and cat breeds does change over time. So, the breed standard is now, may not be the exact breed standard in 50 years.
Purebred cats are very NEW to the world of cats compared with the Domestic Cat that is the original cat and not a breed. Domestics have been around for 10k plus years. Whereas Purebred cats are a few hundred years old to even much newer. There are a few old natural occurring purebred breeds such as the Turkish Van but that’s rare in the purebred world.
Unlike dogs (such as mutts do come from purebred dogs), purebred cats actually originate from the Domestic cat. The Domestic cats are not mixes from purebreds, that’s a huge misunderstanding among cat lovers. Domestics also have short and long hair and are the foundation stock of purebreds. They come in every color and pattern too. Short hair is most common and long hair is a lot less common.
Domestics makeup 97% of the total cat population. Purebred cats and that’s 71 breeds, only makeup 3% of the cat population. Are indoors and over 85% are spayed and neutered.
Domestics are considered an invasive species in most countries around the world. They are originally from the desert overseas and made their way around the world on ships during the continental trade. Sailors enjoyed their companionship, they were great for vermin control, and considered good luck.
SOURCE: Read more at http://cattime.com/cat-breeds/maine-coon-cats#384USm7mSteSMzXI.99