Why are Maine Coons so popular?

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One website author says that Maine Coon cats (MCs) are so popular because they have great personalities. True, but I believe that it is not the first reason for their popularity. All domestic cats, provided they are socialised to people and other pets and are treated nicely, have good personalities.

Maine Coons are popular
Maine Coons are popular due mainly to their appearance and this photo tells you why! Image: in the public domain.

In my experience of living to an advanced age, the MCs are popular because of their impressive appearance. The first thing most people are attracted to is appearance. This applies to almost any 'object' living or inanimate. 

Humans mainly live visually. The dominant sense is vision. And humans love nice looking things.  They like to have attractive possessions. This observation is supported in all manner of contexts.

Cars come to mind. For most people, particularly women, whether they buy a particular car or not is down to its appearance. And most people who make the decision on what type of cat to adopt are women. They are also involved in selecting the car in families! The car manufacturers are very aware of this.

Perhaps it is fair to say that women are keener on appearance than men (in general) and men are more interested in function (in general). Of course, I am generalising. And this is not a criticism. It seems to me to be an observable fact. 

The MC is the most impressive of domestic cats because it is the largest domestic cat breed other than the F1 wildcat hybrids such as the Savannah. Size counts. Size equates to strength and women like strength as well as appearance.

Another factor in the MCs popularity is that there is a massive range of coat types to please everyone.

But the MC didn't look this in 1903 - see image below! I guess you knew that. Back then they looked like 'ordinary' cats. You wonder where it will all end up.

"Tobey", Maine Coon, from the "Book of the Cat", 1903 (Court.B.Kus)

And let's not forget the strong muzzle which is a defining feature of this breed. Other than their size the pronounced, squared-off muzzle is the major appearance feature plus the famous lynx tipped ears. If an MC is breed to extreme, it is the muzzle and lynx tips which become stand-out features.

It should be stressed, however, that MCs were not always popular. Their huge popularity is a fairly recent development brought about by the internet and a plethora of huge MCs. These are monumental cats which impress all who see them.

However, at one time the breed was at risk of becoming 'extinct'. Their decline in popularity occurred with the arrival of the Persian cat in 1900. This was about 30 years after the MC became a cat breed; the early years of the breed, which regained its popularity in the 1950s.

In the 1980s the breed was recognised by all cat associations (registries). But it has been a slightly bumpy road to stardom. 

RELATED: Cat breed popularity – top 3 at 2022: Bengal, Maine Coon and Persian.

MCs are now in the top 3 most popular cat breeds as of 2022 - see above. The Persian has been very popular for a long time, but the appearance of the flat-faced Persian is very controversial due to the inherent health issues associated with this extreme appearance. This problem has been resolutely ignored by the cat associations which support the brachycephalic head of this historically popular breed.

With people becoming better informed about inherited health issues in purebred cats they have learned that there is a price for the baby-like face of the Persian which has had a negative impact on its popularity leading to, in turn, an uptick in the popularity of the MC.

So inherited health issues are a modern factor in cat breed popularity. And this is where I have to mention the well-known health problems of the MC, two of which are hip dysplasia and patellar luxation which are common in MCs, particularly the very large cats. It is a downside to the impressiveness of the large individuals which are such good promoters of the breed. HCM is also an inherited disease in MCs.

RELATED: 15 facts about hip dysplasia in Maine Coon cats.

Thinking about the factors that dictate cat breed popularity I think it is hard to disagree that they are in the following order of priority:

  1. Appearance - stunning appearance including large size is a powerful attractant;
  2. Inherited health - people are becoming more aware of these issues which are ultimately down to poor selective breeding. This is the responsibility of the breeders and the cat association which combined are the cat fancy;
  3. Character and personality - a close third place but I have decided this because all domestic cats have similar but slightly different personalities. They are all members of the cat family with their very distinctive feline character. The differences between the MC and other cat breeds in this regard is not huge. But they are said to easy-going and generally get along well with children and dogs. This is a plus point about which potential adopters are aware.

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