Your Maine Coon Guide

Do Maine Coons have a temper? This is a question asked on one of the top Maine Coon websites which Google favours. And I've got to say that it is a slightly stupid or misleading question. That might sound arrogant of me but I will explain myself. No domestic cat has a bad temper unless they are ill. Although they might be suffering from audiogenic reflex seizures or other environmental problems. I'll look at illness first.  Pain When a cat feels pain inside their body, they may be quiet about it. They might go quiet. They might sleep more than normal and find a quiet corner in the home. But you don't really know what's going on at least initially. So, you pick up your Maine Coon to give him a cuddle. They are very cuddly. Your Maine Coon companion cries out and strikes out at you as if in retaliation. You don't understand. You might think that your cat has suddenly developed a bad temper but he hasn't.  He/she has simply responded to feeling pain when you picked...

Answer to the title question:  While SMA can cause discomfort and weakness, it is not typically considered a painful condition in cats  (source: ChatGPT) .  That does not say it does not cause pain. It does say that it causes discomfort which is a mild form of pain isn't it?! This is one of several inherited diseases linked to this cat breed, all of which cause discomfort to varying degrees. Hip dysplasia simply causes pain, bad pain I'd suggest as it causes arthritis - bone on bone. There is a question mark over whether it is cruel to breed this cat under the current circumstances as managed by the cat associations .  They accept these problems. They should not. It is unethical to continue breeding cats like this. Note: UC Davis in the US have a DNA test for this disease. Affected by SMA. Image in public domain believed. RELATED: the above picture accompanies a page on 15 facts about this disease -  LINK . Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic disorder tha...

Maine Coons in general have shorter lifespans than the domestic cat population because of inherited diseases. Generally, with exceptions, there are more 'disabled' Maine Coons than in the general domestic cat population too because of the same reason. The infographic highlights some pointers that can make things a little better for elderly cats. It is a little strange to me to think that Maine Coons (MCs) become adults later than most domestic cats. I am not sure why but we are told that it might take until the age of 4 to become adult. By that time, they may have a heart murmur due to HCM.  Lifespan And we are also told that their average MC lifespan is around 12.5 years. The average moggie might add another 5 years to that. This is 40% more! Weird. Perhaps the data is slightly inaccurate.  But what is accurate is that MCs will be older earlier than normal in general - there will of course be exceptions. This I think makes the infographic useful. There is another usefulness. ...

The question in the title is important for Maine Coon owners because this condition is present in about 30% of cats of this breed at various stages of their lives. It needs to be managed by their owner and the options are limited in respect of preventing or treating feline hip dysplasia. The Cornell Feline Health Center tells us that this inherited condition is, indeed, painful . For example, it causes the avoidance of physical activity. The reason why is because it is painful to engage in these activities. If the hip is touched by their owner, the cat may give a clear indication that it is painful. A Maine Coon cat might persistently lick or chew at the hip area. Another sure sign that the area is painful. That answers the question. Why painful? The pain emanates from bone-on-bone contact. This occurs because the cat inherits a malformation of the ball-and-socket joint which connects the cat's thigh bone (femur) to its hip. The socket (acetabulum) is in the hip and the top of the ...