History:

The Maine Coon cats have been bred intensively since the beginning of the 70's. Yet, their phenotype still reminds that of the wild or semi-wild ancestors from the state of Maine in the US.

In the countryside one may still encounter robust, untamed "coons" (how they are being endearingly called) matching the phenotype of cats that were kept by first settlers, probably in order to kill of the pests. Contemporary Maine Coon cats remained big and muscular. It is also quite common to see the cat that is longer than one meter. Maine Coon's coat is heavy and water-resistant, which is very important in their life in freedom. It is longer on the stomach, chest and around the genitals to protect against wet and snow, and shorter on the back, shoulders and legs. In winter there also grows an imposing and thick collar, whereas the back feet get tufted in order to serve as "snow-shoes". The cat wraps around himself long and bushy tail (becoming especially thick during the winter) in order not to loose the heat. This tail being his representative part of the body reaches sometimes the length of his torso. It gives the impression of the cat being even bigger and more tremendous.

Strong bones, long legs with tufted feet, rapid growth, great resistance and elegance are typical for this breed. The characteristic feature of the Maine Coon is head with well-developed and distinctly wide snout. The cat should have high ears, wide at the base, pointed and characteristically lynx-like tufted inside. The eyes should be widely set at a slightly oblique angle, but not to look oriental. The Main Coon cats have an "owl" look which makes even the full grown and imposing animals look "kittenish".

Maine Coons seem to be more sociable and easy-going than other breeds of cats or pets in general. They strongly attach to people.

The Main Coon females are very solicitous mothers. They bring up 6 or 7 young without any problems. The kittens grow fast and they reach 5 kilos at the age of 9 or 10 months. Full-grown cats can reach up to 10 kilos. In breeding, traditionalists put a lot of attention to keeping the right size of Maines as well as to their solid, rectangular shape. On the other hand, the experimenting-supporters are more concerned with ameliorating the quality of coat and colors. There are two groups of colors: wild color agouti and one color cats. Recently, these are the one color non-agouti Main Coons that seem to have been more significant.