Does anyone own one of these cats?
After owning three dear shelted adopted cats I decided to treat myself. We purchased a very sweet Maine Coon kitten this afternoon from a wonderful breeder.
She looks something like this (scroll down for pic) but with more white on her belly.
Her name is Lucy. My entire family is madly in love with her warm personality and beautiful face.
May I be the first to turn green with envy? 
A big resounding “Aawww”, and congrats !
We had one for twelve years, and I now have one among my three cats.
Wonderful, wonderful cats, maybe the best breed of cat you can own, if you don’t mind shedding. They do shed, in big clumps, a LOT. But they’re as friendly and affectionate a cat as you’d ever want, they’re smarter than most cats, playful, and they’re gorgeous. They get along well with dogs and kids, too, a big plus in my book.
I am firmly of the belief that an indoor cat is a happy cat, but if you must let your cat outside be advised Maine coons can be voracious hunters; I’d suggest belling him if he’s let out, unless you have a pest problem you need dealt with.
They can also be gluttonous eaters and rationing their food can sometimes be necessary. As I am sure you know the Maine Coon is the longest, heaviest and strongest of all domestic cats, and the toms can get astonishingly large; ours have topped out at 18 and 20 pounds, which is twice as big as most cats, and when you add on their bushy long fur they look gigantic next to the other cats. Supposedly they can get even bigger still, but 20 pounds is the biggest one I’ve personally seen. 20 pounds, however, is way too heavy and we’ve had to control his diet to get it back down to 16-17 pounds. Look out for that. Fat cats have all the same health problems as fat people.
I love them! I had one for 13 years, and currently have a Maine Coon/Ragdoll mix. Both, sweet boys, and unlike any other cats I’ve had. They have so much personality!
Do Maine Coon mixes usually have the long coats, or do they sometimes have shorter fur? Oscar (the grouch) has thick fur on the long side of the short hair spectrum, but he’s HUGE, and has the personality traits. He doesn’t meow most of the time, though he does vocalize, sometimes with meows. If he gets a whiff of human food, he gets excited and lets out what I call his “Woooooooooo!” cry. It’s a long oo sound, and doesn’t start with a “m” type sound at the beginning. He’s very easygoing, and smart. He LOVES to eat, (Mr. Clawbane described the gaze Oscar was giving his hamburger as “lustful” the other night. We’re still teaching him manners.) and believes he’s a lap cat. (Even though at less then six months old he’s the size of a small adult cat and too big for my lap when I’m on the computer, since the keyboard is on a pull out tray.) We feed him on a schedule and ration his food, because he was eating it all, then asking the other human for more within half an hour. He’s got a little bit of a paunch, I suspect he’s sneaking into the other cat’s food. That’s a problem, since she’s a grazer and only sneaks secret bites now and then with no pattern. Not to mention the fact that he’s on kitten chow, and she’s on Adult/indoor formula.
We have two part-Maine Coon cats. Midnight is about ten, and a female. Her tail doesn’t work, and never has. This hasn’t kept her from climbing, although now she’s arthritic. She goes outside on chaperoned walks. Despite her arthritis she caught a chipmunk (!) and a bird a couple of years ago. She was disappointed we wouldn’t let her bring them into the house, because she loves to brag – she likes to walk around and show off her catch to everyone, especially the other cats.
Clarence is the other Maine Coon, and he lost a fight with something BIG before he landed in the Cat Shelter where we found him. They patxched him up, but his head is asymmetric and he’s missing an eye. He is, nevertheless, the friendliest cat you’ve ever met, anf puts up with a lot of abuse from MilliCal, who didn’t know she was abusing him when she was younger. Clarence is a bit of a bully with the other cats, but most of the time I tyhink it’s simply aggressive play. Lotta, our (non-Maine coon) youndest, puts up with it, but Midnight thinks she’s too old and dignified, and hisses at Clarence. They’re both convinced they’re the alpha cat.
It it true about the shedding. Especially Clarence, who drops wholesale clumps of fur, and at all seasons of the year.
My family has had our Maine Coon, Max, for over 15 years. They are a great breed. Very chatty. Plus our cat has mitten paws - which is supposedly good luck.
My family also has a Maine Coon, going on 15 years now. My dad and I found him in a warehouse when he was only 4 weeks old. (The cat, not my dad)
His name is Monroe Marceau (Monroe because of the myth that Marilyn Monroe had 6 toes on each foot (kitty is polydactyl) and Marceau after Marcelle Marceau the mime) because he was mute for the first year we had him. He finally learned to “squeek” and “click” when he needed his servants (the family) to attend to his needs and whims. He’s the alpha in my parents’ home and is quite temperamental but plays “daddy” to their other 6 cats. He makes sure they behave and are well-groomed at all times.
He weighs in at 23 lbs by the way.
They’re wonderful and beautiful kitties. Congratulations on the new addition to your family!
Oh, yeah – Misnight “talks”. We swear that sdhe’s mastered some words. When she rubs up against the refrogerator she says “Hammmmmm!”, her name for any kind of sliced lunch meat. Other people who have heard her understand her to be saying the same word. She also says “Ouuuuut!” when she wants to go outside. Sometimes “Me Ouuut!” we might be imposing our worsds on her utterings, but it sure doesn’t sound like the “Haaammm!” she says at the refrigerator. Clarence vocalizes quite a bit, too, but his don’t sound at all like words. By comparison, neither Lotta nor our departed other non-Maine Coon cat, Maggie, make many sounds at all. Maggie seemed to think that making any noise was beneatrh her dignitry, and she made her point with extreme staring. Lotta , I swear, whispers “meow”.
The purebred I had, didn’t shed any more than the Burmese I had during the same time. But since the Maine Coon was twice the size as the Burmese, he would leave behind a larger fuzzy spot on furniture.
The Maine Coon mix, I have now doesn’t shed often but when he does it’s a huge amount. But the fur is in blobs (tumbleweeds), and easy to pick up.
Monroe does and says the same thing! In fact, Monroe’s favorite meat is ham. On holidays, when I’m at Mom’s, I help her prepare the ham for cooking. As, I trim it, Monroe stands at my feet, slapping my calves, and saying “Haaam” “Haaam.”
He does not say this for any other food. When he smells, ham, he lets you know it, and dammit, you’d better give him some. This is why we often call him “Tut.”
A kitty thread with no pictures of the new kitty!? I am astounded! I want pictures!
Congrats on the new baby. I’ve never had a Maine Coon cat but I’ve heard they are really loveable.
I had one for a while when I was 12. I saw “a while” because he was a stray that was roaming the neighborhood for a while, and I fed him some leftover meatloaf we had in the fridge, and convinced my parents to let me keep him after making an attempt to see if we could find owners that might have lost him, but I had him less than a year before a nasty neighbor ran him over on purpose because he hated me (at least, he’d told me he was going to, and my folks told me that’s who ran him over). I cried my eyes out. Anyway, he was a real sweetheart, a big gorgeous cat, and I was sure he could say a few words, too.
Thanks Maastricht and The Chao Goes Mu.
Give me a week and I’ll see if I can get some pics. She’s definitely worth sharing.
I signed a contract with the breeder. In the contract we agreed not to declaw or let her outdoors. We also agreed to have her neutered. None of this is a problem.
I wonder about her eventual size. The breeder said her mother was fourteen pounds. But she’s the runt of the litter. She had to be bottle fed because her mommy developed mastitis.
It’s a privilege to have her here. She spent half an hour in my lap night purring away. My toddler is so in love the first thing she said this morning was, “Mommy can I go play with Lucy?”
I’m so happy we have her!!!
Being the runt doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll be small. I adopted three shorthair orange tiger kittens at four months old from a local rescue organization, and the smallest of the three was Eddy. But when they grew up… Well, judge for yourself – that’s a double bed he’s sleeping on. Freddy is almost as big (weighed in at 16+ pounds at the vet’s recently) and Teddy is merely large.
I don’t know if the boys have any Maine Coon in them but it wouldn’t surprise me. They’ve got the friendly, easygoing disposition of that breed. Typical comment from those who see Eddy for the first time: “My God, he’s big!” 
Congratulation, Lavender BLue. I looooves all kitties, but in my opinion, Coon kitties are the best kitties, for all the reasons already mentioned above. They’re the closest thing in personality to a dog, but still have all the feline goodness. My Cosmo isn’t too talkative, but when he has something to say he lets out this kind of high pitched trill. He also has to paw at the ground before he takes a drink. Supposedly this is a genetic thing that has to do with breaking through the layer of ice on the frozen ponds and lakes and stuff. I just love their big, furry paws! And that old man ear hair; irresistable! 
Oh, I hope that’s what it means!!! My little (ok, she’s kinda chunky) Kelsey, does this before drinking too and my partner says it’s because she’s “slow.” Kelsey doesn’t have Coon markings but she’s large and has the features.
If anyone can validate the genetic thing, I (and little Kelsers too!) would appreciate it!
Omigosh, color me jealous over here! I LOVE Maine Coon cats - if we ever get one from a breeder, that’ll be the first cat we get. I want a cat that my kids can RIDE . (KIDDING!)
If you don’t mind me sneaking this in here, I have a question for those who know Maine Coons - can they ever come in black? (“Yes, I’d like to order the Maine Coon, in black, so he’s easy to accessorize.”) We originally thought my boy was Turkish Angora (he’s a NYC cat, so it’s very possible that he has some in him), but we’ve wondered recently if he’s possibly part Maine Coon because he shows a LOT of the traits. But I didn’t think Maine Coons could come in black - I know Angoras can, though. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s got both in him because he shows traits of both breeds.
I second your question Elza B. My Kelsey (mentioned above) is black but doesn’t meow, she squeeks, hencer her nick name “Skeekers.”