How to Select a Maine Coon

The Maine coon is a solid, rugged working cat that can withstand a harsh climate. Maine coons are known for their shaggy tails, tufts on the paws and ears, and longer fur on the belly for protection in cold environments.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cat Beds
• Cat Carriers
• Cat Collars
• Cat Combs/brushes
• Cat Dishes
• Cat Foods
• Cat Litters
• Cat Scratchers
• Cat Shampoos
• Cat Toys
• Cat Treats

1. Find a responsible breeder who will guarantee that your Maine coon is in good health and doesn't have feline leukemia virus (FeLV) or feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV).

2. Expect to pay between $200 and $400 for your Maine coon.

3. Pick up and hold the cat or kitten to check for good muscle tone.

4. Make sure that the cat isn't sneezing or sniffling, that the eyes have no discharge and that the ears are clean and pink inside.

5. Examine the cat's fur, which should be smooth but a little shaggy and have no bald patches or signs of dry or flaky skin.

6. Check for fleas behind the ears and at the base of the tail - flea dirt, which looks like black sand, is a sure sign.

7. Get a written sales agreement from the breeder that provides the breeder's health guarantee.

8. Take your Maine coon to your veterinarian as soon as possible to confirm that the cat is healthy.

9. Take home a kitten no younger than 12 weeks of age.

10. Plan to keep your Maine coon inside and to have the cat neutered or spayed. Vets say it's the best way to keep cats happy and disease-free and to prolong their lives.

Tips & Warnings

• Most Maine coons can be trained to use a leash.
• The Maine coon loves people but takes a laid-back approach when it comes to affection. This cat would rather hang out in a chair or on the floor next to you, but always wants to be in the same room.
• Maine coons generally get along well with other cats and even dogs, and prefer to play with toys close to the ground rather than climbing in high places.
• Although the Maine coon's hair is quite long, it needs to be brushed just once a week.
• Originally, many had extra toes (the condition is called polydactyly), but this trait has been bred out of the Maine coon.
• Maine coons tend to inherit hip dysplasia, which can cause lameness in extreme cases, and cardiomyopathy, which can cause a minor heart murmur or severe heart trouble in the worst cases. Ask your breeder if these problems have shown up in the cat's lineage.

[venturakeys]

on 1/17/2009 Oh my, there is nothing like a Maine Coon owner, because there is nothing like a Maine Coon.
Our Lana is the love of our life, and has a sweetheart of a disposition. it's a good thing, because she sort of rules the house.
She is amazingly intelligent. She is many ways is like a dog, and she loves to play fetch. She can pick up her toys with her paws, and throw them herself.
I love her voice, and she is not a vocal cat unless she needs something, like to go out. Don't worry, she is a total house cat, we built a glassed in courtyard just for her. It's filled with ferns, and other plants she loves to hide under, and that is where she goes potty, so it is easy to clean up, and there is no cat odor in the house.Is she spoiled? Absolutely!
But, when we got her as a kitten, we thought we were doing her a favor, (sort of) by giving her a great home. Well, Lana has done a million times more f

[dragonfairy70]

on 12/2/2006 The first Maine Coon which has sadly past was Nikida. He would eat his food with his paw. He also would bring toys back to me so I could throw them. They are very smart.

[dragonfairy70]

on 12/2/2006 Mika is my second Maine Coon she does like to be in the same room as me but next to me or at least where she can see me still. She is a Maine Coon and Eqyptian Mau cross. I also have here brother but he looks like the Mau more and he talks least and with a quieter voice. Mika love to talk to me like some said they are vocal.

on 11/22/2005 It is possible to train Maine Coon cats not to jump or bite. They are extremely intelligent creatures. Make sure you teach them with positive reinforcement - for instance excessive crying: as soon as they stop, praise them and pet them, when they start again, ignore them and tell them in a firm voice: NO! Cats also love routine and can get upset if their routine is uprooted and can lead to behavioral problems, such as litter box accidents, biting, not grooming themselves.
Maine Coon cats remain playful throughout their lives. Mine is now 8 years old, and although a little bit calmer, it is still very playful. They are lovely, sweet natured cats and make loving companions.

on 11/22/2005 If you have an abundance of ornaments, plants, or other clutter that you are attached to, a Maine coon may be challenging for you. My male Manitobe is nearly a year old now and still has an aversion to anything being on a surface that he considers his own. A book left on the drawers will end up on the floor, a pile of mail left on the coffee table will be laid beside and pushed with his back till it meets the same fate. Luckily this doesn't bother me and I've never really been into ornaments and photo frames, but when he went to stay with my Mother his habits were found more annoying. Mom claims she gradually succumbed to clearing every surface he could reach, and gave in to putting everything at floor level or away to beat him to bringing it down to the floor.

If Manitobe is anything to go by Maine coons, enjoy high speed rampages through the space available to them, especially in the morning when trying to detract you from getting ready to pay attention to them instead. They have excess fur under their paws designed for snow shoes - excellent in snow filled fields I'm sure, but highly incompatible with kitchen floors and polished surfaces. The sound of a loud pounding tear across the house is often punctuated by a loud crash of cat sliding off a table along with its content or simply the cat crashing into the fridge at high speed.

Again, I don't mind too much - 99% of the time I react with resigned humor - 1% I am extremely irritated at the latest minor catastrophe. Though my mother found it exhausting and being of nervous disposition she felt somewhat like she'd had a teenage delinquent dumped on her for a fortnight. She claims she couldn't sleep for him biting her toes and or jumping across her pillow to get to the windowsill and taking out the lamp on the way. While I think of it, do not put a glass of water on the bedside table! Without fail your cat will drink from it and it may also throw it over you in the middle of the night. Trust me, this is not a good way to wake up. Part of the problem I think was that Mani is still a baby really - when he stayed with her he was about 9 months old, still a baby, still kitten-like in behavior, but not in stature! His mental perception of his size seems not to keep up with his physical growth rate. I imagine in his mind he's still a diddy little kitty, while in reality he already makes my friends full grown cats look like comedy miniatures.

I guess my tip is be prepared for a bit of chaos, a bit of damage and all the things likely to come with a highly charged kitten caught in a rapidly expanding, strengthening body. Nearly a year old now I'm wondering if Mani will grow out of the kitten stage. When I had him neutered at 7 months, I was told I would see a change in behavior - that he would be calmer and softer - no sign of calmness yet!

These cats are wonderful - truly - but they are not normal! I wouldn't change Mani for the world, but my advice is before getting a Maine coon be aware they're not like your average cat and they are high maintenance. Forget ever having a bath on your own again - in fact forget being able to do anything alone. So, in honesty, here are the downsides:
- Their coats are too much for them to handle. Mine rarely even attempts to wash in the face of such a challenge. Be prepared to groom (even if it's a battle that leaves you shaking). It's also probably best to get your cat well into the routine of bathing, it may not seem necessary at first and by the time it does your cat may be big enough to make acclimatising it to bathing dangerous work. Be prepared to deal with the fact that long trousers and hair around the bottom can lead to a smelly cat and you may (like me) in exasperation end up clipping the hair around this area.
-Their tails are totally out of their control and pretty weighty. This means precious trinkets left on surfaces best be insured.
-They like to fight and they are strong - they bite you - they don't mean it nastily, it's usually followed by a lick, but they bite. I'm sure they can be trained out of this, but I haven't managed it and I am still hoping for the growing out of it miracle. I get up every morning to an ambush in the hallway of a cat appearing from behind a clothes rack to leap and wrap itself around my leg at thigh height and playfully sink its teeth in. I've learned to carry on walking with the cat attached. The key is to dedicate plenty of time to playing boisterously with your cat with a toy rather than your limbs.
- They love high spots though they're not the best jumpers in the world. This means they find routes upward. My cats bed since kittenhood is the top of my wardrobe. The route has been shortened as he's gotten bigger. As a kitten it was onto my bed, up to the bedside table, onto the chest of drawers and a leap to the top of wardrobe. Look around your home and see the routes a monkey would take and prepare these routes by removing all breakable items.

It may sound like I'm trying to put people off by saying all this - I'm not. I'm just saying know what you're getting yourself into. I love my cat, he never ceases to make me laugh. He's beautiful, he's clumsy, he's smart, he's incredibly companionable and having gotten used to him, my world would seem very empty without him. He's talkative, affectionate, playful and a natural court jester who everyone loves. People who don't usually like cats love him and say he's more like a dog. Since kittenhood he has played fetch - he adores Biro's and will drop them on me to throw for him and then retrieve and repeat for hours on end (or until he has lost every pen in the house). If I lift the sofa I will find pens, lighters, razors - just about anything! Everything is a toy, everything is a game - it is endearing and infuriating by turns, but endearment wins out for me. If however you are a neat freak, with a house full of surfaces of varying heights covered in trinkets, you either need to change dramatically or forget having a Maine coon. If you want a retiring, dignified independent creature this is not the cat for you. Getting Mani was like becoming accustomed to living with a cross between a Labrador puppy, a monkey and a three year old child - now as he ages there's also a wise sage in there who sometimes sits quietly watching me with a potentially unnerving intelligence. You have been warned!