How to tell if your cat is a Maine Coon mix

The little Infographic below tells you the essential information that you need to know in deciding whether the longhaired cat that you have acquired is a Maine Coon mix or not. The basic default situation is this: 

If you've 'acquired' a longhaired cat such as a tabby and you don't know whether he or she is a Maine Coon mix or even a fully-fledged purebred Maine Coon, then your cat is NOT a Maine Coon and it is not a Maine Coon mix. That's the starting point. You have to beat that DEFAULT situation.

Infographic my MikeB at PoC.

And the only way to beat it is to have a DNA test done (I don't think they are available) which is rather pointless and it will obviously cost a little bit of money. Or your cat might show some genuine appearance characteristics strongly indicating that they are a Maine Coon mix or even a purebred Maine Coon.

Personal viewpoint

In my personal view there is not much point knowing if you cat is a Maine Coon mix because all you are proving is that you have a moggy that looks a little bit like a Maine Coon.

What is a Maine Coon mix?

There are varying degrees of "Maine Coon mix". A Maine Coon mix might be half Maine Coon and half random-bred cat. This would be a first-generation offspring from a mating between a purebred Maine Coon cat and a random-bred cat. 

Or a Maine Coon mix might be essentially a random-bred domestic cat with some Maine Coon DNA which you can't tell is there without a DNA test. 

You can't tell because the appearance is that of a random-bred moggy. The point here is that there is a wide range of Maine Coon mix cats. 

The half Maine Coon half moggy Maine Coon mix is the nearest that you'll get to the real thing but in my opinion, there is little benefit in owning such a cat if you want a purebred Maine Coon. A first-generation Maine Coon mix is technically a random bred moggie and nothing better.

Essential appearance characteristics

These appearance signs are essentially the classic Maine Coon muzzle which is stronger and squarer than the muzzle of a typical domestic cat together with large, triangular lynx-tipped ears. These are giveaways.

And of course, the size of the cat is a giveaway too i.e. larger than normal. Plus, the beautiful plumed tail, a shaggy coat and the ruff. These are the pointers to the fact that your cat has some Maine Coons DNA.

But they have to be all together. There has to be a package of appearance characteristics. One alone won't not tell you anything.

Classic Maine Coon appearance of a young cat. Image in public domain. The giveaway is the large, Maine Coon ears and squarer than normal muzzle.

Documents to prove it

The best test of all, of course, is that you have some documentary evidence providing a pedigree (family tree or lineage) or cat association registration papers which tell you that your cat is a purebred Maine Coon.

People who know that they have a Maine Coon cat because they bought the cat from a breeder don't ask whether their cat is a Maine Coon mix. That's obvious but they know the situation.

RELATED POST: Tootsie (a rescued “typey” Maine Coon).

Bought from a breeder or acquired elsewhere?

Questions about whether a cat is a Maine Coon mix only come from people who have acquired a longhaired cat, often a tabby, and are interested to know whether there is some Maine Coon in their cat.

You won't know unless you have a DNA test done or, as per the infographic, there is something outstanding about your cat which tells you that he or she may be a purebred or that there is a good chance that she is half-Maine Coons i.e. one generation from the real thing.

Although that would be unlikely because very few people will allow a purebred Maine Coon cat to breed with a non-purebred cat.

There is no point in that you end up with offspring which are essentially random-bred cat or moggies. This is why breeders don't do it. They want to maintain purebred characteristics. Breeders inbreed their cats to achieve this.

P.S.

There are very few purebred Maine Coon rescue cats around at cat rescues. For example, recently there were 3 in the UK with the Maine Coon Cat Club. Understandably very few Maine Coon owners give up their cats to rescues. The sort of person who buys a purebred cat is rarely the person who abandons their cat to a rescue center. Although it does happen! Here is an example:

Maine Coon abandoned because he was too big, too greedy and too demanding! Now loved and famous!