Your Maine Coon Guide

Should I brush my Maine Coon daily?

- August 11, 2023

In my opinion, YES, is the answer to the question in the title but a little less is probably okay.

I'd suggest that as a minimum it should be three times a week but daily is better, I'd say. I don't think you can overdo grooming your Maine Coon provided you are not brushing through matts causing discomfort or pain. Of course, daily brushing/grooming to prevent matting is the answer.

Grooming a Maine Coon. Screenshot from the video on this page.

I think that regular and routine brushing of a Maine Coon with a grooming tool which is perfectly suited to grooming Maine Coons can only be a positive experience for human caregiver and cat alike.

Enjoyable for both

Provided the grooming is conducted in a respectful and caring way the cat will enjoy it. And so will the caregiver as it creates a nice bond and close relationship between cat and person. It also gives the owner the opportunity to check out the coat condition and the skin for health issues.

Grooming a Maine Coon not only prevents matting it removes loose hair strands that would otherwise fall out and find their way to the floor where they'd add to the existing tumbleweed hair balls lying around the corners of rooms or on the duvet cover.

Allergen

Grooming may also help to minimise the spread of the feline allergen Fel D1 in the dried saliva on the fur in dander. Dander is very light and it flies off and settles throughout the home causing an owner who's borderline allergic to cats discomfort.

Domestic shorthaired cats don't need grooming by their owner regularly although I do it every day as it pleases my cat and me. I'd suggest grooming a shorthaired cat with a flea comb daily to check for fleas anyway.

Fleas

Although the flea comb is unsuited to a longhaired cat as you can't get it through the coat. Is it fair to suggest that a long-haired cats are more likely to have a cat flea infestation than short-haired cats on the basis that it is much harder to flea comb them if not impossible? I think it is. All the more reason to regularly check for fleas. Flea dirt (feces) should be picked up by a grooming tool. So you can check for fleas that way. Flea dirt is usually situated at the base of the tail.

Bathing necessary for Maine Coons?

It is suggested, too, by the Maine Coon owner who made the video above that Maine Coons should be bathed a few time annually. I find that interesting as it is saying that Maine Coons become dirty and smelly whereas shorthaired cats don't under normal conditions.

The need to bathe Maine Coons implies that they are unable to keep themselves clean which is also surprising as domestic cats are known to be fastidiously clean! I can only conclude that the breeders have created a cat that has fur which is a health problem despite the coat being the most important part of the Maine Coon in terms of points scored at cat show competitions.

RELATED: MC fur is the biggest problem!

Grooming parlours?

Personally, I believe that the owner should do the grooming for all the added benefits it brings plus the fact that commercial groomers are unregulated and I'd be a nervous about leaving my Maine Coon at a grooming parlour. There have been some catastrophic health disasters at grooming parlours over the years.