Posts

Showing posts with the label European Maine Coons

Average weight of European male and female Maine Coons was 13.5 and 10 pounds respectively (2011)

-
Image
This European (Germany and France) study which was published in 2011 may surprise you. It may surprise people who know the Maine Coon cat well or they think they do.  We are, as I have said before, bombarded with beautiful pictures of beautiful and huge Maine Coon cats. These are highly exotic felines and the only thing you can say about them is WOW, they are enormous. Nice standard Maine Coon cat. Relatively recent photo. Copyright Helmi Flick. But, as also mentioned before they are rare. I think we need to keep our feet on the ground. This study does just that although it is about 12 years old. The chart below actually covers the weights of a range of cat breeds and non-purebred cats. But I am interested in the Maine Coon for obvious reasons. The data is the bottom line both for males and females. To see it a little larger please lick on the image. The mean or average weight of the 28 male Maine Coon cats weighed was 6.1 kg which is 13.5 pounds. The mean or average weight of the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What does a "European" Maine Coon cost in the United States?

-
Image
The price can be up to $3,500 and sometimes more. There are two distinct types of Maine Coon in terms of appearance and this is a fairly recent development. The European type Maine Coons bred in the US are bigger and more 'extreme'. The word 'extreme' means exaggerated features such as large bodies, stronger (larger) muzzles, larger ears, longer and denser lynx tips to the ears, bigger paws, more hair between the toes and so on. If you are interested read the article below and come back to this page. RELATED: The difference between American and European Maine Coon cats 3,500 dollars for a European Maine Coon. The image was created by an AI computer DALL-E which is why it looks a bit strange but it is unique. There are no other images anywhere like this! Thank God you are saying. 😎 Just more outstanding in appearance. These 'extra features' are is not demanded by the American cat associations' breed standards. It's the breeders who've created this in...
Post a Comment
Location: Washington, USA
Read more

What is the weight range of the Maine Coon cat?

-
Image
It is a useful question to ask because the answer might surprise you. I've mentioned it before, but the CFA, the leading cat association, do not insist through their breed standards that the Maine Coon cat should be big but TICA differ. The 'end product' is the choice of the breeders. The weight range of this popular breed reflects the cat association's breed standards. Dr. Bruce Fogle DVM in his book THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF THE CAT states that the weight range is 4-10 kg (9-22 lbs). The lower weight applies to females which as you might expect are generally smaller than males. And it is a weight which is not untypical for a large number of non-purebred cats. One website, 11pets, states that the average female weight is 11 pounds and the average male weight is 14.8 pounds. They also state that 25% of male Maine Coon cats weigh between 6 kg and 8 kg. And 30% of females way between 4 kg and 6 kg. Another website states that the average weight of a Maine Coon cat varies betwe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Terms and conditions of a Maine Coon cat breeder in the USA

-
Image
It's quite interesting to look at the terms and conditions between the seller i.e. the breeder and the purchaser i.e. the adopter of a Maine Coon in the USA. I've selected a TICA listed Maine Coon cat breeder: BELLATRIX. They are located at: Blanchard, Oklahoma, United States. Bellatrix MCO Maine Coon. Photo: Bellatrix MCO. This is a tortoiseshell. I believe that this Maine Coon cat breeder is from Belarus. They breed European Maine Coons which is understandable bearing in mind the Belarusian link. RELATED:  Difference between European and American Maine Coons . They say that when they sell a cat it will be subject to the following conditions. I'm using my words but based entirely on their statement on their website. They guarantee that the cat or kitten will be in good health at the time of sale. They are unable to state for how long the guarantee lasts because they can only guarantee the health of a cat at the time of purchase. What happens after that is dependent upon...
Post a Comment
Location: Blanchard, OK, USA
Read more

Maine Coon with an unusual coat and pattern

-
Image
This is an unusual-looking Maine Coon. It looks like a black smoke coat but the white spotting gene has created the white ruff (like a lion's mane) and the blaze down the middle of the face. The muzzle is very large in line with the modern trend for European Maine Coons. Maine Coon with an unusual coat and pattern. Photo: Pinterest.
Post a Comment
Read more

Difference between European and American Maine Coons

-
Image
In summary European Maine Coons tend to be bred more often to extreme, with larger ears and pronounced lynx tipped ears and large lion-like, chiselled muzzles compared to their American cousins. Plus, they might be more feral looking. I have also heard that TICA prefer more wild looking Maine Coons compared to the CFA more delicate or refined features and coat. TICA is an international cat association. The CFA is an American association. American Maine Coon. Photo: Helmi Flick European Maine Coon by Eurocoons based in Kansas , USA. Photo by them. European and American Maine Coons are the same breed. There are some differences. There has to be otherwise you wouldn't describe them as European and American Maine Coons. Also, it is worth noting that some American breeders in America breed European Maine Coons. The European Maine Coon is not only bred in Europe. American breeders appear to be importing Maine Coon foundation cats from Europe to start their own breeding lines. My ...
Post a Comment
Read more

European Maine Coon with clown's face and comet cloud coat

-
Image
This is a cat from Eurocoons in Kansas, USA. They breed European Maine Coons. Their foundation cats come from Ukraine. Ukraine is affiliated with Russia as I see it and the Russians breed amazing Maine Coons so the pedigree is there and their cats do looks awesome. They feed them raw food with love. You can check them out for yourself because I don't know them and I can't speak for them. All I can do is repeat what they say on their websites. They are very ambitious judging by the number of websites they have. And they've deliberately focused on the European Maine Coon on the basis that it is different to the American Maine Coon. This is their 'Quiet Arya'. He looks very placid being held aloft. His coat is amazing. His face is tortoiseshell and his body looks smokey with mittens on the toes. A great looking and unusual looking cat. Note: European Maine Coons are the same breed as American Maine Coons. It is that the interpretation of the breed standard is slightly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Popular posts from this blog

The extreme Maine Coon face

-
Image
This is an example of extreme breeding. This is a Maine Coon but this cat is an extreme and rare example of this breed. This is not the way they look normally. This face is almost like an aggressive robot with the piercing eyes and the huge muzzle.  Or like a lion's head. The head looks enormous and very heavy. It looks unreal. But it also looks very impressive.  And purchasers like impressive-looking domestic cats. But this not the face of a Maine Coon that wins cat show competitions as it does not fit the breed standard as accurately as the more moderate winners (see below).  In fact, the CFA standard is clear in that the cat should have a balanced appearance although this cat was not bred under the CFA breed standard as I understand it (see below).  Click here for more on the kind of MC which wins at shows . Maine Coon selectively breed to have an extreme face. Image in the public domain. And the Maine Coon is meant to be a large cat, the largest domestic cat b...
Read more

Maine Coon Size - this is a huge one!

-
Image
  Enormous Maine Coon with a head bigger than the person holding him. Pic: in public domain. Maine Coon size is very important to both breeders of this cat and the public. I sometimes think that the public is more obsessed with Maine Coon size than the breeders are. The bigger the Maine Coon the better. There is a fascination about it and I confess that there is nothing much more impressive than a huge Maine Coon. They've been bred like this through selective breeding but please remember that they weren't always like this. The original Maine Coons were regular farm cats in the state of Maine in 19th-century and before. They were robust, rugged, medium-longhaired moggy cats but impressive nonetheless. Their impressiveness led to breeders deciding to breed them which in turn led to the breed being accepted by the cat associations and then to win cat shows and become perhaps one of the most famous breeds in the world. The breed standard for the Maine Coon as provided by e.g. Cat F...
Read more

Comparison of a black smoke Maine Coon at 6 weeks and 6-years-of-age

-
Image
This is a cross-post as the image is so damned good. It is amazing because the cat is amazing. To put the same cat at different stages of their life in the same photograph is a nice idea especially with this Maine Coon (MC) who has an amazingly heavy face. It is so mightily masculine to be almost unbelievable. He has a priceless expression on his face too. Very serious compared to the innocence of his face when he was 6 weeks old. He looks a bit coy when 6 weeks old and a slightly grumpy middle-aged man when 6 years old. Comparison of a black smoke Maine Coon at 6-weeks and 6-years-of-age. Image in pubic domain. No doubt he is huge too. You get a clear sense of that in the image. There is a serious and less impressive side to this image. It's the backstory that people don't really want to read about and discuss or in fact do anything about: heart ( HCM ) and joint disease. The bigger and heavier the MCs are the more predisposed to heart disease they are. Here is the posts on...
Read more

Eerie picture of a Maine Coon sitting like a human on a chest of drawers

-
Image
This is a slightly scary picture according to those who've seen it. One social media user said it was the devil and "If I walked into a room and saw that, I would assume some shit is about to go down". There is a ghostly stillness and sinister feeling about the image. 'Eerie' is a better description. This attractive cat appears to be completely at ease and comfortable sitting on top of a chest of bedroom drawers. The lighting from below (deliberate?) enhances the eerie effect. It seems possible that this is a photo-edited image but if so, it has been done with great skill. However, I don't think this is Photoshopped. Rethink: to be honest, the more I look at the picture, the more I feel that this is a photo-edited image. It is just too unnatural to be real. Although some domestic cats get themselves into some very strange positions. Maine Coon calmly sitting just like a human on a chest of drawers. Picture source unclear. Image deemed to be in the public d...
Read more

No part of a Maine Coon cat should be exaggerated

-
Image
It is interesting to read that the premier cat association, the CFA (Cat Fanciers' Association) - the cat association which really dictates (with TICA) how Maine Coons should look - makes it clear that no part of the cat should be exaggerated, and the cat should be "well-proportioned and balanced".  In other words, any form of extreme appearance such as a particularly heavy muzzle or particularly large ears with extra-long lynx tips are not going to be seen as advantageous in terms of winning cat shows or in terms of having an ideal appearance. As soon as I read that no part of a Maine Coon should be exaggerated, I immediately thought of the extremely large, extreme-bred Maine Coon cats that often come from Russia. These cats have very heavy muzzles.  Lion-faced Maine Coon with exaggerated features. Image in public domain now. In fact, their heads look like the heads of lions. I get the impression that breeders have selectively bred their cats over years to look like male...
Read more

Average lifespan of Maine Coon cat

-
Image
How long do Maine Coon cats live for? What's the average lifespan? Do they live shorter lives than the average random-bred family cat? These are difficult questions to answer accurately. In fact, I don't think we can answer them accurately because nobody has been counting. Nobody has a database or carried out a full-blown survey and therefore you will read anecdotal evidence i.e. statements by breeders or people who think they know the answer and these answers get repeated on the Internet. I am not sure that they are accurate. Picture of a Maine Coon who looks like a middle-aged man. Photo: Pinterest. My research indicates that people believe that Maine Coon cats live between about 10 and 15 years old. Some may live longer than that and some may live shorter lives. One well-known Maine Coon, Rubble, lived for 31 years and was at one time the oldest domestic cat in the world. But there will always be exceptions and this article is about the mean or the average although these ...
Read more

Tortoiseshell Maine Coon with split-face

-
Image
Maine Coon with "split face". Photo: Screenshot. This is a very impressive Maine Coon. As you can see she is a tortoiseshell and as you probably know almost all tortoiseshell and calico cats are female. There are a few male tortoiseshell cats (and this might be one of them). Their sex is caused by a genetic aberration because the genetics of tortoiseshell cats dictates that they are almost always female. About one in 3000 are male as I recall. Also, it is not that unusual to see this extreme pattern on the face which creates the appearance of a "split-face". This is not what is called a "chimera" but a normal variation of the tortoiseshell pattern. Sometimes you do see what some people call "two-faced" cats with this sort of face due to a sharply defined pattern down the middle of the face. But the genetics behind that is different to this normal tortoiseshell variation. This is a particularly extraordinary looking Maine Coon cat. Not all Maine C...
Read more

2 top Russian Maine Coon cat breeders which ship internationally

-
Image
I am writing this from the West; specifically, near London, UK. There will be quite a few people living in the West who'd like to adopt a Maine Coon cat and they would like to adopt one from a Russian breeder because they do have a certain style.  I sense, although I don't have hard evidence to support this feeling, that the top Russian breeders of Maine Coon cats might be superior to breeders from other countries.  I am putting aside Putin's invasion of Ukraine when writing this article. Some people might object to dealing in anyway with a Russian business on account of that barbaric and illegal invasion. We should remember that Russia has quite a strong cat fancy. They like their cats and they love their purebred cats particularly the Maine Coon. It is in fact a cat breed which is quite naturally suited to the Russian way of life and climate. There's lots of space in Russia with a relatively low population and therefore there are going to be houses with large grounds ...
Read more

Are Maine Coons illegal in some countries, states or territories?

-
Image
One Maine Coon website asks if Maine Coons are legal? My initial response was that it is a bizarre question (second thoughts below), but I'll answer it in my way. I say that it is a bizarre question because the Maine Coon is an entirely domestic cat by which I mean NOT a wild cat hybrid and therefore there is no reason whatsoever to declare it illegal in any jurisdiction unless that there is some other fanciful reason to ban the cat (there might be - see below). Are Maine Coons illegal in some countries, states or territories? No, to the best of my knowledge. Image: MikeB I know of no jurisdiction anywhere in the world that bans Maine Coons which makes sense. Conversely a similar sized domestic cat, the F1-F2 Savannah, is illegal in many jurisdictions (states, territories and countries) because it is a wildcat hybrid. The cat has some wild cat DNA which some legislatures consider to be detrimental to human health and welfare and to the conservation of wildlife (if the cat escapes t...
Read more

Difference between Maine Coon and domestic long hair

-
Image
The difference between a Maine Coon cat and a domestic longhaired cat comes down to the fact that the former has been artificially bred (selective breeding) whereas the latter has usually procreated according to natural selection. Natural selection is random breeding and therefore the domestic longhair is a random-bred cat whereas, selective breeding produces a purebred, pedigree cat registered with a cat association.  Difference between Maine Coon and domestic long hair. Infographic by MikeB. And because each individual Maine Coon cat is registered with a cat association, if they are in genuine Maine Coon, their appearance should comply with the association's breed standard . The breed standard tells breeders what their Maine Coon cats should look like in order that they can win cat show competitions if they want to enter their cat into these competitions. And so, as the appearance of Maine Coon cats is moulded to the guidance of a breed standard (see a section below from the...
Read more