The Maine Coon, the largest breed of cat

The Maine Coon is the largest known cat breed. According to a legend, it would be the product of the mating of wild cats from the State of Maine in the United States with raccoons, "raccoon" in English, hence its name. He is an adorable and intelligent cat which makes him a very good pet.

• Size:                    up to 1 meter in length
• Weight:               5 to 10 kg
• Hair:                    medium length
• Color:                  brown (the most common) but also white, black, red
• Life expectancy: 14 to 20 years
• Gestation period: 65 days

Description and characteristics of the Maine coon

The Maine coon is imposing by its size – extraordinary for a cat – which gives it a wild appearance. The female is smaller in size than the male. The Main Coon is recognizable by its rectangular body and powerful muscles. Its muzzle is very pronounced and it has large, very erect ears on the top of its head, adorned with small tufts of plume-like hair.

Its large eyes are oval in a color that ranges from yellow to copper through green and gold. His hair is semi-long and silky with an unequal length on his body: it is longer on the back and sides. The Maine coon has the particularity of having a thick collar of hair around its neck, which it loses in summer. Its tail is very long and provided.

Origin of Maine Coon

The Maine Coon originates from the state of Maine in the United States. It could be the result of crosses between semi-wild cats from this region and Angora cats imported by European settlers to the United States. Appeared in the 19th century, it is really since 1950 that the Maine cool knows its letters of nobility. It has been a very common cat among Americans but also in Europe since the 1990s where the Maine Coon is the breed with the most entries in the Official Book of Feline Origins (LOOF).

Maine coon food

If the Maine coon is imposing, this does not mean that it should be fed a lot because this breed is prone to fattening. On the other hand, its food must remain rich all the time of its long growth. The Maine Coon will therefore consume richer kitten croquettes longer than other cats. His long coat requires more protein and fatty acids than the average cat. On the other hand, like all other breeds of cats, the Maine Coon needs food rich in proteins of animal origin (meat, fish, and shellfish) present in most boxes and kibbles for good quality cats. To be healthy, the Maine Coon needs plenty of water all the time.

Maine coon health

The Maine Coon is a highly inbred breed. As a result, certain diseases affect it more particularly:

• hip dysplasia: hereditary malformation of the hip joint resulting in the disappearance of cartilage. This disease develops all the more if the Maine coon is obese.
• feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: this is a genetic heart failure but which can also be due to a diet that is too low in amino acids.
• polycystic kidney disease: results in the appearance of cysts which compress the renal tissue and prevent the kidney from functioning normally.
• spinal muscular atrophy: nerve cell disease that results in atrophy and muscle weakness.