Considering getting a Maine Coon? Wondering, what are the pros and cons of Maine Coon cats? Then youâve come to the right place! Hereâs 20+ (completely honest!) Maine Coon pros and cons â speaking 100% from experience, with our own Maine Coon kitten, Cody. Are Maine Coonâs a good breed? What are the best and worst things about them? Youâll soon find out! So letâs get stuck in, shall we?
20+ (Honest!) Maine Coon Pros and Cons
So when it comes to the pros and cons of Maine Coon cats, thereâs a few things you should bear in mind.
- Not ALL cats are the same. This is generally, the pros and cons of Maine Coon cats, based on their typical behaviours and characteristics of the Maine Coon cat breed, but each Maine Coon will still have itâs own individual habits and quirks.
- The way in which your Maine Coon behaves, will be influenced by you â as an owner. (Which essentially means â you have the power to bring out the best of them!)
- Some Maine Coon pros and cons, will matter more (or less) to you, depending on what you see as important. Just remember â most âconsâ can be overcome or worked on; with any cat breed.
The Proâs of Maine Coon Cats
So letâs start off with the proâs of Maine Coon cats, shall we? (Because trust me â thereâs lots of these!) See, some of the best things about having a Maine Coon, include the fact thatâŠ
1) Theyâre Stunning!
Now letâs start by stating the obvious, because one of the common initial draws for getting a Maine Coon in the first place, is because theyâre so darn BEAUTIFUL!
In fact, theyâre regularly listed as one of the most beautiful cat breeds in the world, consequently making them one of the most popular cat breeds in the world too.
See, they have a very regal, lion-like appearance, with big square jaw, a little fluffy mane and massive paws! It makes them look WILD â especially with their glowing, gold eyes, masses of fur and long fluffy tail!
Only the best part? You can still cuddle them; giving you a stunning, friendly miniature lion / tiger cub of your own! (Or so it feels anyway.)
Alongside this, Maine Coonâs also come in over 75 different pattern and colour combinations, which means they still keep their individuality and uniqueness.
This makes their appearance alone, a massive âselling pointâ of Maine Coons. But what else is there to them? WellâŠ
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2) Theyâre Highly Affectionate
Maine Coons are social, loving animals that thrive on companionship. Itâs not that they canât be on their own. (They can.) But they certainly love being with you, around you, lying on you⊠the lot!
In fact, I canât even tell you how many times our Maine Coon Cody, falls asleep on me, in one day⊠And if heâs not asleep on you (with a preference for lying on your chest, face or shoulder!), heâll be lying next to you!
All in all, if you give your Maine Coon love, I can GUARANTEE, youâll get all that love back (and more!); making them truly beautiful animals â on the inside too.
Now it is worth mentioning thatâŠ
3) Maine Coonâs Attach To One Person (The Most!)
Now this is one of the Maine Coon pros and cons, that can be both a pro and a con (which weâll touch on shortly.)
See, Maine Coon cats decide early on, who they will imprint on. Itâs this pre-programmed drive within them to imprint â usually on the person who is the most mother-like figure to them. (Although this can be a man too!)
That person then becomes âtheir personâ and they are 100% dedicated to them!
Now thatâs not to say that they canât bond with other family members, or be affectionate with them too⊠But they certainly have their âfavourite.â
In our house-hold, that person for Cody, is me. (After all, Iâm around him every day, for most of the day, working from home.) But this genuinely makes us the best of friendsâŠ
Speaking from experience here now then, I can certainly tell you â that if you become âthe chosen oneâ for your Maine Coon, it creates a bond like no other!
Itâs heart-warming (if not heart-melting at times!), completely beats loneliness, gives you such close companionship and keeps you immensely entertained too!
This leads me another one of the best things about Maine CoonsâŠ
4) Theyâre Full of Personality!
Never in my life, have I met a cat with as much personality, as our Maine Coon, Cody. I mean have a watch of some of his funny kitten moments. (If that doesnât convince you, I donât know what will!)
Maine Coons are smart, inquisitive, and fast to learn and grow⊠Talking of growing, because of their size, they have a lot of energy, which means they like to play and explore, which means youâre never left feeling bored!
There are so many different games you can play with your Maine Coon â from Hide and Seek, right the way to cat ping pong! (Because yes â cat ping pong is a thing!)
In fact, because of their inquisitive, curious nature â they can even create their own games out of seemingly boring objects. (Itâs absolutely brilliant!)
So you can certainly say that Maine Coonâs are very FUN cats, which are funny to watch and easy to interact withâŠ
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5) Theyâre Smart
Maine Coonâs are incredibly intelligent, in more ways than one. Not only are they fast learners, and good at training to do cat challenges or tricks, but they also learn from watching you so much.
For instance, I swear our Maine Coon Cody now eats with his paws as heâs seen us eating with our hands! (Itâs hilarious!)
Alongside this, Maine Coonâs also have a very high emotionally intelligence. This is often due to the deep bond they build with their owners⊠It enables them to better read human emotions and pick up on any changes in their ownerâs emotional state or behaviour.
For instance (hereâs a cute story for you now!) â
I was once poorly, and my partner left for work, shutting my bedroom door to try to help me get more sleep, as Cody was jumping around playingâŠ
However, Cody didnât like being shut out, so somehow opened the door himself (no joke!) and then â instead of continuing to play like he usually would â he lay down beside me and cuddled into me⊠I guess to comfort me!
Yes, they are amazing animals! (Are you starting to see that the proâs of Maine Coonâs will most likely outweigh the conâs for you?!)
Maine Coon Pros and Cons
6) Maine Coons Are Chilled & Adaptable
Maine Coonâs are generally quite calm, cool and collected. Theyâre very easy going and have a gentle nature; pretty much âtaking things as they come.â As a result, theyâre very adaptableâŠ
So long as they have you, theyâre happy, essentially! Or so long as they know youâre coming back, and feel safe wherever they are â theyâll usually tend to embrace it!
This makes them great to travel with. It also means you can take them many places you go.
For instance, anytime we go to visit friends or family â weâll bring our Maine Coon, Cody, with us, and heâll happily start playing or exploring, never phased by any other animals that are there.
We also now leave Cody with family, and heâs more than happy for a few days (which is a common misconceptionâŠ)
Yes, Maine Coonâs are incredibly loving and loyal (especially to one person), but theyâll still take things in their stride and embrace new people and new places. This leads us onto our next pointâŠ
7) They Can Be Left Alone
Another common misconception is that Maine Coonâs are so clingy⊠you canât ever leave them! Well, in most cases, this isnât true. Although they usually WANT to be around you, they donât NEED to be around you.
They can be demanding, and they do love their love, but theyâre also perfectly ok to be on their own every now and then, so they have still got a little independence.
This doesnât mean that they wonât get lonely if theyâre not getting the love they crave and the quality time they deserve, but if you want a day out, you donât have to worry about them being left on their own. (Like you would with a dog for example.)
Maine Coonâs can look after themselves⊠Theyâll just be ready to welcome you when you get home, as opposed to some cat breeds who like / need that space and time to themselves.
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8) You Can Take Them On Walks
Maine Coonâs are one of the best cat breeds for taking on a walk.
Why? Well because theyâre very trainable cats. They also like going where you going, and are able to trust you â which makes them then fully enjoy going on walks with you.
Now this is actually also a major âplusâ as it then, in turn, makes them one of the best cats to have in an apartment. See, itâs far better â if youâre going to have a cat in an apartment â that you can still take them outside.
So with a Maine Coon â youâre able to still give them the best of both worlds â with an indoor-outdoor life, thatâs now SAFE for them.
(After all, Maine Coonâs are a little ditsy. Theyâre not the best breeds to roam around on their own. Theft is also a big risk with Maine Coon cats, so by being able to train them to walk on a leash and go out with you â itâs the best option all-round.)
Furthermore â having a cat that you can take out and about with you, is HEAPS of fun! I mean, look at the adventures we get up to⊠(Itâs brilliant!)
9) You Can Have Them With Other Pets
Another wonderful thing about Maine Coon cats, is that, despite their size, theyâre actually a very sweet-tempered, gentle breed that arenât very territorial.
Theyâre relaxed, social and playful, which means they typically get along pretty well with other animals.
This means that if you already have cats or dogs, and want to introduce a new Maine Coon into the family â the process should be a lot easier⊠Especially if you introduce them from a kitten.
As mentioned, we bring our Maine Coon here, there and everywhere. Heâs always very inquisitive of other cats and just wants to make friends⊠And heâs even gone face-to-face with a husky!
So theyâre a great breed if you already have, or want to have, other pets too. On a similar noteâŠ
10) Theyâre Great With Kids
Maine Coonâs are the âpurrfectâ family pet. Their playfulness and fun character, keeps kids entertained, but their lack of aggression also makes them less likely to unpredictably lash out.
Theyâre also very friendly and loving, which means lots of cuddles for children who treat them right (and are gentle enough with them!) In most cases â they will become truly part of the family, and like your kidâs best friend!
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The Conâs of Maine Coon Cats
To complete our Maine Coon pros and cons, weâve got to turn it around now and look at the negatives of these furry little friends. See, you canât deny the fact thatâŠ
1) Theyâre Expensive
Letâs address the elephant in the room here, because you canât accurately weigh up the Maine Coon pros and cons, without bringing in the fact that these guys are expensive!
In fact, they rank as one of the most expensive cat breeds, typically ranging from $400-$4,000 (depending on whether you want certification of their breed â enabling you to also breed them yourself) and how rare the type of Maine Coon it is.
Not only are the upfront costs of buying a Maine Coon higher than many cat breeds, but because Maine Coonâs are the largest domestic cat breed, youâll end up having to buy bigger âeverythingâ for them, which then ends up costing more.
In fact, letâs break this down a little furtherâŠ
2) They Need The Biggest of Everything!
When you get your Maine Coon, youâll need a bigger Maine Coon cat bed, a bigger Maine Coon cat carrier, a bigger cat tree, bigger scratching posts (otherwise theyâll just knock those over) -and even a bigger litter tray.
They also outgrow things quickly, which is why we recommend, where possible, always buying a size up, or the biggest size you can⊠Because trust me, theyâll grow faster than you think and youâll only have to learn how to sell stuff online if you donât get the biggest from the get go!
(We had one cat bed that barely lasted a few weeks before Codyâs arms were sprawling out of it uncomfortably!)
Being bigger in size, as mentioned previously, theyâll also have more energy, but you donât necessarily need a bigger space â just more ways to tire them out, plus plenty of toys they can play with by themselves to keep them entertained!
3) They Have a Healthy Appetite!
Another unsurprising aspect of Maine Coons, is that they have a healthy appetite and do tend to eat a lot. Theyâre not typically greedy⊠They just get hungry because of their size!
Whatâs more, Maine Coonâs should eat a high protein diet, to keep them growing nicely, and keep their insides healthy (able to properly digest everything!)
The thing is, I was debating whether to include this on our Maine Coon pros and cons list, because â what do you think the problem with a healthy appetite is? Money. Youâd imagine it would be expensive.
But actually⊠raw food can be one of the most affordable cat foods of them all (whilst remaining high quality!), so itâs simply about swatting up and doing your research⊠Then itâs no problem at all!
EXTRA NOTE: Maine Coonâs are known to have sensitive stomachâs so as part of preparing for your cat / kitten, you should do your research before you bring them home⊠To avoid excess food changes that can upset their stomach!
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4) Maine Coonâs Need a Little âFur Maintenanceâ!
Now one of the biggest things that worry new or considering-to-be Maine Coon owners, is all that fur! And YES â Maine Coonâs do need a little TLC to keep their fur from getting matted. But hereâs the good news â
Although a Maine Coonâs fur is thick and long, they donât actually shed even half as much as as other long-haired cats, so it wonât be going everywhereâŠ
They certainly donât shed anymore than your standard âtabbyâ cat, or similar, anyway. And as their fur is finer, you barely even notice it.
What you do need to do however â is keep on top with brushing their coat, mostly to prevent their fur from becoming knotted or matted. Little and often is always best with thisâŠ
Just 2-5 minutes of brushing a day, helps to keep the fur-problems at bay, so certainly donât let this put you off!
5) Theyâre Messy (But Clean!)
We told you that our Maine Coon, Cody, insists on eating with his paws now, right?! Uh huh, Maine Coonâs can be known for playing with their food. Mostly because theyâre playful animals, with a lot of character!
They can also be messy, flicking litter out of the tray (they donât know their own strength, right?!) and with all of their fur â THAT can then become messy, with things getting stuck in it too!
Itâs worth noting however, that they may make a mess, but will tend to try to clean it up afterwards. Theyâre very clean animals⊠Just naturally a little messy. (Which sounds all too familiar to me! Ha!)
Maine Coon Pros and Cons
6) They Attach To One PersonâŠ
So we mentioned earlier that the fact that Maine Coonâs attach to one person, right? And although this is good for the person who they DO attach to⊠Itâs not always good for everyone else. (Unsurprisingly, right?!)
See, it doesnât matter what others may do â your Maine Coon will be friendly, they can be loving, but they will never really share as deep of a bond as with âtheir chosen human.â
For me, this can be a negative â as I know how our Cody is with me â and itâs kind of sad that he wonât give others the same love, and they canât see him the way that I see him!
I mean, some people even think that our Cody ânever purrsâ, yet all I have to do is pop him in my arms or give him a little chin rub and itâs PURR, PURR, PURR! So it can be a shame that heâs not like this with everyone!
I mean, watch him here with me⊠Itâs adorable but I 100% get preferential treatment!
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7) They Can Be Demanding!
Now you must have expected this one, when it comes to the Maine Coon pros and cons⊠Canât you tell by everything that weâve revealed about their character so far, that they can be pretty demanding?!
They love company. And theyâre not as independent as other cat breeds. Thatâs why theyâre often referred to as dog-like-cats. As a result, you may find that:
- They donât like being shut out of the room that youâre in.
- Theyâll follow you around⊠Literally EVERYWHERE! (Toilet and everything!)
- Theyâll talk to you⊠A lot! (But remember â Maine Coonâs donât meow very much, but instead â chirp!)
- Theyâre always climbing onto you or rubbing into you for cuddles and love!
- Some may cry and suffer from separation anxietyâŠ
The thing is, itâs all about setting boundaries. Yes, Maine Coonâs like frequent human attention, or even simply being in your company (especially if youâre their chosen human!), but if they get used to also being apart from you, especially from a young age â it is more manageable.
Donât let them boss you around. Teach them the rules (especially when it comes to feeding, bed time and play time), and youâll find this far less of a problem. On a similar noteâŠ
8) Maine Coonâs Can Be Pretty Noisy!
Maine Coonâs are very vocal and talkative, which can be seen as both a pro and a con.
On the one side â theyâve got a lot of character and give you the companionship as they will literally reply back in a chirp when you talk to them, or go âoff on oneâ, chirping away to you to try to tell you things.
On the other side however â itâs not helpful when youâre trying to work, sleep, or talk on the phone. (I often have people saying to me on the phone, âOh, I can hear Cody!â But in all honesty, you canât NOT!)
Whatâs more, because they like to be around you for so much of the time, you can feel like you donât get alone time. But â the biggest thing Iâd say about this is â you get used to it, and would certainly miss them if they wasnât there anymore!
9) Theyâre LITERALLY Scaredy Cats
Now, despite their size, Maine Coonâs can be known to be âscaredy cats!â Uh huh. You wouldnât think it, right?! See, although theyâre happy to explore new environments (especially if theyâre with you), they can be a little wary or skittish.
They will also often jump at noises, put their ears back or become overly alert⊠And then thereâs things like â hiding every time the post gets pushed through the door!
Too much stimulation can also be overwhelming with them. (Think a room full of loud people⊠Yep, thatâs not âthe dreamâ for a Maine Coon, who would much rather prefer to be tucked up, just the two of you!)
But remember â they are ok. Itâs just their nature. And like we said as one of the proâs of Maine Coon cats â theyâre still adaptable. (Theyâd just be one of the âscreamersâ on a rollercoaster, if they were a human, for example!)
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10) Common Health Conditions, BUTâŠ
Now itâs worth being aware that there are some common health conditions in Maine Coons. The three most popular being: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), hip dysplasia and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)â
However, these are typically inherited, which means you can check with your breeder (and if theyâre legit, they will have paperwork to prove this) to make sure that their cat-parents have been genetically tested and they are not a carrier of these⊠Therefore dramatically dwindling their chances of these health concerns⊠being of any concern!
This therefore isnât something to put you off getting a Maine Coon, but it is definitely something to be aware of and to check out properly, before you buy your Maine Coon. (Itâs better to be super on the ball with this one!)
Thatâs All For This One
So there we have it â that rounds up the 20+ (REAL & HONEST!) pros and cons of Maine Coon cats, based on our experience with our Maine Coon, Cody.
Now some may see the Maine Coon pros and cons as different, from others, so weâd love to hear your experience⊠COMMENT BELOW!
But as a whole, these are the biggest things that weâve found since bringing our Maine Coon into our family.
Thinking of getting your own? Get prepared. Get excited. Then go for it! Because I promise you â once you have your new furry friend in your life, you wonât ever look back!
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