Big Maine Coon Cat

The big Maine Coon cat (MC) is very impressive and the biggest purely domestic cat in the world (I am excluding the wildcat hybrids) but not all Maine Coons are huge. The MC is also the largest native American purebred cat. I suppose that is obvious. 

Sometimes people think that Maine Coons weight 30-40 lbs (13.5 to 18 kgs). This is not true. One breeder says that the average female MC weighs between 8-12 pounds and males weigh up to 18 pounds. These are cats in good condition. 

Obviously fat MCs are going to weigh 25 lbs sometimes. The shaggy fur covering a long lean body probably adds to the impression of size. Also when you compare them with some of the svelte, slender and slight modern oriental style cats they look enormous. I am thinking of the Oriental Shorthair for example.

That said the Maine Coon below has a head which is similar in size to the head of the person carrying him - there are some huge Maine Coons:

It can take 4-5 years for an MC to reach maximum size. The factors that dictate size are genetics (selective breeding probably played a part here too), diet and exercise! Intact males (not neutered) are more likely to achieve higher weights in meeting the cat's full potential due to the contribution of the cat's hormones to his development. By contrast a male cat that is breeding may have reduced coat density making him look smaller.

Other than selective breeding since the late 1800s to the present (the duration of the cat fancy) what makes the Maine Coon so big? Well this cat is not as big as people think as mentioned. Secondly, if the Maine Coon originates in ships cats imported from Europe about 400 years ago, these cats were probably large in the first place and then they developed/evolved naturally as farm cats. The farm cat/mouser lifestyle probably lead to the natural selection of larger cats.

25 lb Maine Coon - Jordy - He was a national champ in 2004

Jordy the 5 year old Maine Coon above, full name: Nascat Jordache of Coonoquan was featured in the Atlanta Magazine in 2007. Does be look a little bit overweight? Apparently he has a very laid back character and looks regal. He does look docile and well mannered in this picture.

Photo above: The judge said the cat "unfolds" indicating that Maine Coons are long and flexible more than simply big. Many breeders testify to their MCs being 5 feet from nose to tail (about 1.5 meters).

Photo above: His name is Shooter. I think he is the biggest Maine Coon I've seen - photo is copyright wendyophoto - this is a very impressive photograph. Wendy says, "This HDR was made from a single RAW photo taken at ISO 1600". See this image in large format. See also a lot of Maine Coon cats and great information.

There is a certain fascination with big animals including cats. In the UK there is the perennial sighting of the escaped big cat roaming around some parkland or farmland in the dusk. We never see evidence other than a poor quality picture. There are supposed to be dozens of wild beasts in England and someone I recall is setting up remote cameras to try and get that elusive evidence. Some think they might be large feral domestic cats. People do tend to exaggerate what they have seen.

In the same vein there is a fascination about the Maine Coon cat's size. We know that this breed can throw up some big cats but they are not all that big normally. And in any event if we are to compare cat breeds we should look at the average weight of male and female cats of each cat breed. The averages are much less than the one off large male.

All that said the Maine Coon is the largest cat breed if you're talking about CFA registered purebred cats. TICA register more cats and some are wild cat/domestic cat hybrids such as the Savannah and an F1 or F2 Savannah is bigger than a Maine Coon normally. The world's tallest "pet cat" was Magic an F1 Savannah of great presence.

You'll get some oddities caused by an illness and you'll get some very fat cats, one is illustrated on this page. These are larger than normal but not for the right reasons. It is, I feel, rather pointless to isolate large domestic cats that are large because they are overweight or ill. Worse it is a kind of freak show.

One classic way of breeding larger domestic cats is through hybridization with wildcats as they are sometimes but not always larger than domestic cats. In fact I made a comparison between the large domestic cats and wild cats on the page linked to above. The Savannah is the classic large domestic cat/wildcat hybrid at F1-2 level. The thing is, it is impractical to have domestic cats that are large beyond a certain threshold as keeping them requires special arrangements. In addition breeders need to breed the wildcat hybrids back to domestic cats for character. You can't really live with a wild cat in the house. This automatically reduces the size of the cat.

Abnormally large domestic cats of any breed including the Maine Coon is unlikely to happen because selective breeding over the years has dramatically narrowed the gene pool. Purebred cats often have a high Coefficient of Inbreeding as breeders search for the perfect appearance. This limits the occurrence of oddities in regards to size.

Apparently a Maine Coon has been 49 inches in length, that is about 4 feet. The world's longest domestic cat (now deceased sadly and he died young) was Stewie a Maine Coon at 48 and one half of an inch. Maine Coon cats are actually long rather than purely big. So a big Maine Coon cat will be very long and this is amply demonstrated in the pictures.

At a CFA cat show. Tabby and white. Photo by semarr

One last thing, photographic evidence requires some sort of scale to compare size with. A very big Maine Coon cat would look small against a very large person. And similarly you cannot tell a big Maine Coon cat from a photograph unless there is something in the picture to compare size with. There are also a number of hoax photographs on the internet. These are photographs manipulated using Photo shop type software.

Each picture on this page have been selected as showing a big Maine Coon cat with something to scale by (except for Jordy! but his weight is recorded as correct). It is for that reason I am showing people where possible as well as cats in the photograph.

All the photos are published here under creative commons licenses granted by the photographers and each is credited below as requested under the terms of the license.

Big Fingol - almost 28 lbs - Photo by Jackdaw (Flickr)

Update 30 March 2010:

Here is another big Maine Coon cat being shown off for his or her size:



Go to the Largest Domestic cat breed analysis

Photos - note: the credits have been superceded by the inclusion of fresh pictures in the public domain:

• 3rd down on right this cat according to the person in the photo weighed about 25 lbs, the top end for a Maine Coon cat. copyright BeryIM
• 4th down shows how long the Maine Coon can be copyright BeryIM
• 5th down well yes a big Maine Coon Cat and fat one too - copyright Foxtonque
  
• 6th down another large cat but the scaling is misleading because the cat is nearer the camera. photo copyright semarr. Taken at a CFA cat show

Big Maine Coon cat to Home page

Maine Coon Cat Colors

Above: Daydream van Siduroy a Black Tabby Classic with White, for me one of the nicer Maine Coon cat colors. This fine cat lives with Dani and Rick at cattery Yeri Shaes in the Netherlands. The photograph is by Dani and is copyright Dani.

You don't want me to list all the Maine Coon cat colors with photographs do you? That would be a bit tricky as the cat associations allow a very wide range of colors for the purebred Maine Coon breed. It is almost limitless. However....

Gloria Stephens in her book Legacy of the Cat says that the Maine Coon colours are:

• Traditional color: Black, chocolate, cinnamon, blue, lilac, fawn, red, cream and white.
• Sepia and mink color: seal, chocolate, cinnamon, blue, lilac, fawn, red and cream.
• Pointed color: seal, chocolate, cinnamon, blue, lilac, fawn, red and cream.
• Pattern: solid colour, tortoiseshell, agouti tabby, mackerel tabby, spotted tabby, classic tabby, silver, tipped colour and parti-colour.

The Maine Coon is recognised in all colours and divisions of the traditional category. Early Maine Coons were brown tabbies. Patterns and colours were added as the breed developed.

These three are probably siblings.
Two have a very unusual coat pattern with a dark mask over the face
while the third is a grey tabby. All three are tabbies, however.

The range of colors does depend a bit on the association though, as there are some restrictions. For example although the CFA list over three pages the various colors and patterns, they do say that in competition a cat will be disqualified if there is evidence of white lockets (small patch of white in the chest), white buttons or white spots. The same fate awaits cats with signs of hybridization (crossing/mating with another cat breed) that results in the Himalayan pattern (pointed), the all over ticked coat of the Abyssinian and chocolate or lavender colors. Other than that for the CFA anything pretty much goes and you can see the entire list if you click on this link.

Here are the CFA colors. It is a very long list which I have presented poorly but completely!

Brown tabby, brown patched tabby, silver tabby, silver patched tabby, red tabby, blue-silver tabby, blue-silver patched tabby, blue patched tabby, cream tabby, cream silver tabby, cameo tabby, brown tabby and white, brown patched tabby and white, silver patched tabby and white, red tabby and white, tabby and white, patched tabby and white, black and white, blue and white, red and white, cream and white, tortoiseshell, blue-cream, calico, dilute calico, tortoiseshell and white, blue-cream and white, chinchilla silver, chinchilla blue silver, shaded blue silver, shell cameo, shaded cameo, shell cream, shaded cream, shell tortoiseshell, shaded tortoiseshell, shell blue-cream, shaded blue-cream, black smoke, blue smoke, cameo smoke, cream smoke, tortie smoke, blue-cream smoke, chinchilla silver and white, shaded silver and white, chinchilla blue silver and white, shaded blue silver and white, shell cameo and white, shaded cameo and white, shell cream and white, shaded cream and white, shell tortoiseshell and white, shaded tortoiseshell and white, shell calico, shaded calico, shell blue-cream and white, shaded blue-cream and white, shell dilute calico, shaded dilute calico, black smoke and white, blue smoke and white, cameo smoke and white, cream smoke and white, tortoiseshell smoke and white, blue-cream smoke and white, calico smoke, dilute calico smoke, OMCCC - other Maine Coon cat colours.

As for TICA all colors are acceptable with a penalty in competition of a cat that has lockets (as for the CFA). They also say the cats with "particolors should have white feet. Particolors as I understand it and as listed by the Maine Coon Breeders and Cat Fanciers Association are cats with these colors: Tortoiseshell, Calico (Tortoiseshell and white), Blue/cream calico, Blue/cream, Blue/cream white and the Van pattern.

The combined set of colors could be bracketed as per the Maine Coon Breeders and Cat Fanciers Association:

Solid, Parti Colors, Bi-Colors, Tabbies, Tabbies with White, Shaded, Shaded with White

The GCCF recognizes over 60 Maine Coon Cat Colors. All colors come with or without white. For example, a black Maine Coon with white would be bicolor and a Tuxedo possibly (if the white was down the chest). The GCCF Standard of Points states that the colors include: solids, tortoiseshell, tabby mackerel and classic tabby patterns - without and with silver, shaded coats and smoke coats, particolor and bicolor,

I don't have access (because of copyright laws) to photos of all the colors but I can do three things:

1. Show a slide show of some great champion Maine Coon cats in a variety of coat colors.
2. Links to some other pages on this site about cat coats generally.
3. Links to the relevant pages of the cat associations or clubs with their list of colors and pictures.

Some Maine Coon Cat Colors - Slide Show:

The original slide show is busted because Google stopped running the software. Below is a substitute which shows some Maine Coons:

Links to pages on cat coats:

• Black
• Tabby
• Torbie
• Dilution
• Black Tortoiseshell
• Tortie Torbie and white
• Tabby and White
• White
• Solid and White (bicolor)

Clubs - relevant pages on Maine Coon Cat Colors:

• [UK] The Maine Coon Cat Club - this is the UK club affiliated to the GCCF. Click Maine Coon Cat Colors for their gallery of colors.
• [USA] Maine Coon Breeders and Fanciers Assocation. Their list of colors

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Go to Maine Coon Cats on the main website

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Long haired cat coats

Long haired cat coats - a very long haired black (smoked?) Persian cat. Black hair mats less apparently. Is such long hair natural - it depends - photo copyright alasam.

Are long haired cat coats natural? The long haired Persian particularly can have very long hair indeed. It'll need human grooming as the cat cannot cope on her own. If the cat is a purebred Persian Longhair, a show cat, then the hair will be unnaturally long. Or will it?

It very much depends on your point of view. All the wild cats that I have seen including the Scottish wild cat have short but dense fur. You don't see long haired cat coats on wild cats. Scotland can be pretty cold and wet but nature has decreed that the best coat for these conditions is the one found on the Scottish Wild cat - a typically thick but controllable tabby coat.

But wild cats are wild cats and domestic cats are different or at least we want them to be different. Even though one originates in the other. So if you think that the domestic cat is a completely different animal to the wild cat and is meant to live on carpet and sofas etc. then pretty well anything goes as long as health is not compromised in the breeding process.

That said it seems silly to me that fur should be bred so long that the cat can't groom herself successfully and needs us to help. That seems unnatural even for a completely domestic cat.

If you think that we like domestic cats because she is a true cat meaning that she has retained a lot of the characteristics of a wild cat, then to breed very long fur looks wrong and it doesn't matter if the cat is an indoors cat or not.

I'm of the second category. I like things natural and normal and believe that if we stray too far from the natural balanced cat we face problems of health and contentment for the cat.

Apparently the dilute colors (cream for example) mat more than the solid colors (black for example). It may have something to do with the hair strands being finer in dilute colors.

You don't see wildcats with matting as far as I know. Nature would have let the cat down if she had allowed the cat to evolve with a coat that matted. Matted coats are less effective at keeping out the cold and wet.

One last point, some animals other than cats have very long fur so very long fur is not unnatural but quite unusual.

Long haired cat coats to grooming a Persian cat

Bengal cat adoption

Marbled Bengal cats like water - photo copyright Janesdead

Bengal cat adoption concerns many topics...

Who are the parties?

When you adopt a cat there are three parties, the seller or administrator of a rescue center, or pet keeper, on the one hand; the buyer/adopter on the other hand; and the cat. Which is the most important party? - the cat.

How do you make a decision to proceed with Bengal cat adoption on the most fundamental level?

We ask ourselves, "what is right for this cat?" In answering that question we need, I think, to treat the adoption of a cat as something similar to the creation of a child. Extreme, you think? I don't agree. A child becomes independent at about 20+ years. A cat is permanently dependent to about late teens. The demands are not dissimilar. Both need feeding, warmth and love. Both return love in their own ways. There are many other similarities.

I have a page on the main website about choosing a cat which covers this subject from a different angle but in more detail, it's called "Choosing a cat breed".

Anyway, lets assume that we tick all the right boxes and have decided objectively (along the lines as set out in the Choosing a cat breed link above) that a Bengal cat adoption is good for a specific but yet undetermined Bengal cat. What next?

Bengal cat behavior

I have discussed the behavior of Bengal cats quite a lot on other posts. Click on the link to read about Bengal cat behavior. Or go to the main Bengal cats for sale page on the main website. In short the Bengal cat is pretty inquisitive, active and intelligent and will I think demand a fair bit of interaction from you. Can you do this? Is there enough space for this active cat? Will you keep your cat in permanently? Is there enough things to do? Can you build an enclosure? These cats have bling and they stand out, this makes then liable to theft. If you are clear on these issues and want to proceed the next question is.........

Adoption means buying or rescuing

What is it to be? Like for like and all things being equal Bengal cat rescue must be the preferred decision. Personally and this is purely personal, if I was going for a Bengal cat adoption now I'd check out Bengal cat rescue first (this link leads to a comprehensive list).

I think we all have to do that at the outset. And I am not criticising the breeders or saying don't go to the breeders. I'm just saying that if we agree the criterion for decision making on Bengal cat adoption is what is right for the cat then we must start at a rescue center. In addition to the lists of Bengal cat rescue centers and groups set out on the linked page above there is a page on Purebred cat rescue as well. This linked page covers all the angles and lists non-purebred cat rescue centers as well because you can sometimes find purebred cats at these centers or half purebred cats (mixed breed cats that have a lot on the Bengal in them).

So you tried rescue and it's failed to work out.

Bengal cat breeders

You'll need to know the prices, the breeders (this takes you to a list of USA breeders mainly in Texas and Florida - this is a growing list though so things change) and the appearance.

Bengal cat health

Before you go to a breeder I'd check out the results of my research into Bengal cat health. I used to think that Bengal cats were almost universally healthy but this is not the case. I am not saying there is a problem here, just that it is better to be armed with information before buying. This is better for the cat, the breeder and you. Click on the link to read about Bengal cat health.

- The cat always comes first -

One last point, the higher Bengal cat generations (F4-F1) are CITES regulated and subject to travel restrictions.

Photos:

• all photos published under a creative commons license
• Second down copyright Janesdead
• Bottom picture - copyright Swiss Bones - this is typical of Bengal cats as they like to be perched high up. This is a throwback to the Asian Leopard cat who likes to climb trees for safety.

Bengal cat adoption to Bengal cats for sale

Bengal Cat Prices

Bengal cat photo copyright alexanderino published here under a creative commons license kindly granted by the photographer

Bengal Cat Prices have come down dramatically, as expected, since the days when this cat breed was talked about as a new and exotic breed, in the late 1980s and 1990s.


Introduction

I would have thought prices at the date of this posting are similar to any other purebred cat. Breeders remember sell to the "public" and to other breeders who are often colleagues or people they know well through meeting at cat shows, on groups such as Yahoo Groups and perhaps as part of an organizing body.

Breeders sell pets to the public and they sell breeding cats, studs and queens to their work colleagues (not all breeders sell to breeders, though). This trade between Bengal cat breeders is often international, USA to UK and Europe being a classic route as the USA is the home of the Bengal cat and I suspect the biggest and best Bengal cat breeders are in the USA. So what do they charge? Breeders probably sell retired show cats to the public too.

These Bengal cat prices are for pets (not breeding or show cats which are expensive and top of the range in terms of type - appearance). Please note that the price is very much dependent on quality and quality is decided by reference to the breed standard for the relevant cat association, most often TICA (an international cat association based in the USA). The breed standard concerns breeders but is is largely based on a subjective approach, it is about aesthetics so you might prefer a cat that is non-standard in fact and therefore cheaper.

Another factor, price is dependent on the generation of the cat. SBT cats (4th generation and lower) are the norm for pet cats. But you will see F1-F3s and for sale. These will be more expensive usually as they approach the wild Asian Leopard cat in temperament and become more "exotic" and therefore more in demand (to some people).

Finally, pet quality is not show quality. In terms of showing they wouldn't win but in terms of pets they are winners like any other domestic cat. They may lack qualities like contrast between the spots, have white in the wrong place and the background color, body shape, wild look or any other matter relating to breed quality is strictly not the best.


My research indicates this:

UK

Bengal cat prices are between £300-500 (GPD) - this price range is typical but you could, I am sure, pay lots more for a special cat (in terms of appearance). A breeder in Manchester (Lyndazbengals) charges £400 for a classic brown/black spotted Bengal cat, £500 for snow colored cat and their silver tabbies sell at £550. These prices are similar to USA prices (below).

The best breeders will probably have a waiting list of customers who have tried to buy before and failed because of demand. You can read more about the Bengal cat and see a list of breeders (mainly USA currently but a growing list) here: Bengal cats for sale.

Bengal x kittens (half Bengal cats meaning not purebred) sell more cheaply, understandably. The prices range from about £65 to £150. I would be careful in buying non-purebred Bengal cats. Top breeders won't sell non-purebred obviously and only good breeders will ensure the cat is well socialized and fit with all the necessary injections and certificates etc. And in any case you might as well go to a rescue center and try and find a purebred Bengal cat that needs rescuing.

I am not saying that people who sell non-purebred Bengal cats are not good breeders just that it is more likely that there may be less of the good ones.

USA

If you visit one of the top breeders websites, Bengaland run by Hugh and Peggy they say kittens are priced individually and are unable to provide guideline prices. This is a top Bengal cattery and I'd expect prices to be higher. You get a lot for your money though.

It would seem that the top catteries price by cat as quality (in terms of breed standard quality is variable).

Etché a well known breeder in Florida quotes some Bengal cat prices, which can be taken as good guidelines. The quote "gold" (I suppose the standard brown/black Bengal cat) at $400-900 (USD) and silver at $800-1200 (USD). This is a top breeder so you'll probably find cheaper but it's all about quality not only in the cat but the other important things such as health, certificates and very importantly personality i.e. well socialized.

Update 9th October 2008: A Florida man had his $6,300 Bengal cat called "Buddy" stolen from his apartment. He left the front door unlocked while taking his dog for a walk. Two things: very expensive Bengal cat price. The cat was probably an F1, F2. Second point: very strange he left the door unlocked. The neighbors saw nothing. Did he make an insurance claim? Was the cat too much for him? If the cat was an F1, this is what it is like living with one: Chausie cat breeders.

You might like to visit the main page on this cat breed for more information and links to the breeders mentioned on this page. The page is here:

Bengal cats for Sale

There are links on this page to breeders (this list is growing all the time), mainly USA breeders in Texas and Florida.

From Bengal Cat Prices to Bengal cat behavior