Do Maine Coons like dogs?

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Maine Coons like dogs if they are socialised to dogs just like any other domestic cat. By "socialise" I mean that they have been raised with dogs during the first seven weeks of their life. That's the basic, standard method of ensuring that any domestic cat gets along with dogs throughout their adulthood. In fact, socialisation is at the root of all domestication. Without a newborn kitten being socialised to people and other pets they would end up being feral cats. Domestication has to be 'trained into them' through socialisation.

Maine Coon is irritated by a snappy little pain in the bum terrier
Maine Coon is irritated by a snappy little pain in the bum terrier. Screenshot from video below.

The video shows a Maine Coon who is socialised to dogs and a dog who is socialised to domestic cats in general:



So, in this regard Maine Coons are no different from any other domestic cat either purebred, pedigree and random bred. When they're young they have to be familiar with dogs. They have to be around them, interacting with them, learning that dogs are not hostile. Some cat breeders will do this and perhaps some don't. All cat breeders must socialise their cats to people for the reasons stated above.

A factor which dictates how smoothly and efficiently a cat is socialised is their personality. More confident cats will be socialised more easily whereas a timid cat is likely to retreat from novel experiences and hide. This may present a barrier to socialising to dogs. And therefore, confident Maine Coons are likely to interact better with dogs at the outset.

And this is a two-way street. There are two parties. Clearly the dog has to be socialised to cats and be pleasant around cats.

Adult Maine Coons can be socialised to dogs but it will take longer.

The video shows a Maine Coon becoming pissed off with a little dog who is behaving irritatingly:


A socialised Maine Coon is not going to like a dog that is hostile to him or her! For the sake of clarity and to drum the point home, "socialisation" means that the newborn kitten rubs shoulders with, interacts with and lies next to et cetera a dog or dogs when they are very young and therefore, they learn that they should not be fearful of them but like them. 

There are some wonderful cat-dog friendships. It is greatly beneficial for a cat to be socialised to dogs.

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