Have you been thinking about getting a Maine Coon, but have started to wonder, “Can a Maine Coon live in an apartment?” This is a smart thought and it is definitely better to check such important factors before adopting or purchasing an animal.
If you live in an apartment but are desperate to get a Maine Coon, chances are you'll want your cat to be happy living in a smaller space.
Maine Coons can live happily in large apartments, provided that the owner spends most of his time at home. Large cats that live in apartments require daily walks in the fresh air and, ideally, access to a fenced garden. This highly intelligent and energetic cat breed requires a lot of entertainment and personal space to play, so small apartments are not suitable.
Deciding whether your Maine Coon can live in an apartment comes down to personal choice. There are many pros and cons to consider before bringing a Maine Coon into your apartment.
Read on to find out if you have what it takes to keep this popular cat breed in your apartment!
Positive qualities of the breed
In fact, these animals have a lot of positive qualities, ranging from their unusual appearance that sets them apart from all other cats, to their calm and peaceful character and, as a rule, excellent health. What else is remarkable about Maine Coons and what other advantages do they have?
Up to 3 years old kitten
One of the most amazing features of these cats is that psychologically Maine Coons remain kittens for a very long time.
The period of final intellectual maturation begins about two years after the animal becomes sexually mature.
Late maturation allows owners of such pets to enjoy their childhood longer, when cats are especially playful and active. True, it is necessary to take into account that a naughty over-aged “kitten” can cause some damage to the interior, but, as a rule, if the cat is properly raised, such incidents are extremely rare.
The development of intelligence in a pet up to 3 years also means that the period favorable for raising a cat is significantly extended.
Majestic appearance
Maine coons are very beautiful animals.
Their large size, fluffy fur, expressive look of intelligent eyes and tufts on the ears, making them look like a lynx, give these animals a majestic and proud appearance.
At exhibitions, Maine Coons always attract visitors, since it is absolutely impossible to pass by these furry giants of the cat world and remain indifferent to them.
Intelligence
Maine Coons are very smart and curious animals. They are understanding and smart, and therefore it is easy to train a representative of this breed to carry out the owner’s commands, as well as some tricks. The intelligence of these cats is so great that even without special training, the pet is able to learn many things on its own, however, sometimes this feature can be a problem. After all, Maine Coons learn to open doors and refrigerators without difficulty, simply by watching their owners and understanding how they do it.
Maine Coons are very curious, but to prevent manifestations of curiosity from turning into a tragedy, owners of such cats are advised to install special screens on the windows and immediately remove everything that could be dangerous for the cat.
Not vindictive
Many other cats are capable of remembering an insult for months, and when the owner has already forgotten to think about that incident, take revenge on him, for example, by tearing the upholstery of a sofa or curtain to shreds. Many, but not Maine Coons . After all, by their nature, they are very easy-going and gentle. Even if the cat was deservedly punished, he will immediately be able to figure out why he was punished. And, of course, he will not run to take revenge at the first opportunity.
Attitude towards small children
Cats of this breed are protective of children. They wait patiently until the baby gets tired of playing with him, never releasing his claws. Only if a child, being naughty, causes discomfort to the pet, will the pet simply get up and leave to hide somewhere where they will not annoy him.
Because these cats are patient with children, Maine Coons are recommended as pets for families with children.
Documentation
A professional breeder will never give away a purebred baby without a set of documents. When purchasing a kitten, the seller must hand over to the buyer:
- Contract of sale. It should reflect the main external features of the kitten, information about the state of health, and the price of the transaction. By agreement of the parties, additional clauses can be added to the document.
- Pedigree, as well as pedigrees of the baby’s parents with confirmation of their breed status.
- Veterinary passport with information about vaccination and other medical procedures.
- Detailed instructions for keeping the animal.
If a kitten is purchased for participation in exhibitions or for professional breeding, it is necessary to request documents confirming its registration in felinological systems.
Problems and disadvantages
However, along with undeniable advantages, Maine Coons also have some disadvantages, as well as difficulties in maintenance.
Price
One of the main problems that arises for a person who decides to purchase a Maine Coon is the high cost of purebred kittens in nurseries or from private breeders.
Often people, having decided that buying a pet with documents will cost them too much, decide to take what they think is a simpler and cheaper route.
They go to the market or open a newspaper ad and buy a kitten from their own hands, not from a nursery. In this case, as a rule, not only the baby himself, but also his parents or even more distant ancestors do not have documents about the origin. No one can say how purebred he is.
If buying a promising kitten is not affordable for the future owner, then it is best to take either a pet-class pet or an already matured animal that has been sitting in a nursery for too long.
Wool
The Maine Coon's coat is medium in length and very fluffy, which looks simply great in appearance.
But during the molting period, it comes out a lot and then flies around the house in clumps, so that you can find hairs in the most unexpected places, even on the kitchen table.
It is not difficult to avoid this problem: it is enough to comb your pet in a timely manner, ridding it of falling hair.
In order for the Maine Coon's coat to look great, it needs to be carefully looked after, using cosmetics for long-haired cats.
Maintenance cost
The large size of these cats initially implies larger monetary costs for their maintenance and care.
Maine Coons need high-quality feeding: either natural food based on protein products, or expensive and high-quality ready-made food.
It doesn’t matter which diet option the owner ultimately chooses: feeding the pet in any case will cost him quite a lot. Due to the fact that the Maine Coon needs a large litter tray, the consumption of litter also increases significantly compared to how much it would be used if the cat were of normal size.
Finally, despite the fact that Maine Coons are generally considered a healthy breed, sometimes it is necessary to go to the veterinary clinic if the animal becomes ill. And, for example, the cost of the operation depends on the amount of anesthesia given to the animal. Calculations are made based on the weight of the cat, and it becomes obvious that a Maine Coon will require much more anesthesia, and, therefore, the cost of the operation will be higher.
Larger pet sizes require higher costs of feed, filler, supplements and other “consumables” for its maintenance.
Aggressive leader
Maine Coons are leaders by nature. They have a tendency to dominate other animals, and if there are other cats or dogs in the house, such a pet will actively fight with them for the place of head of the “pack”.
If the Maine Coon lives in a rural area, then it is advisable to limit his freedom of movement and let him go for walks only under the supervision of the owner.
The reason is a highly developed hunting instinct, forcing these cats to chase rodents and birds.
Toilet
Maine Coons love to rake up the litter with their paws. This is why it scatters in all directions if the walls of the tray are not high enough. Due to the large size of these cats and the fact that they eat quite a lot, there is a problem associated with a strong odor from the litter box. The cat is big, so it leaves a lot of waste products.
Getting rid of an unpleasant “aroma” in the house is not difficult: just choose the right tray and litter, and also clean the cat litter box in a timely manner.
Special air fresheners designed to eliminate animal odors can also help.
Characteristics of Maine Coons
In order to learn to distinguish a real purebred Maine from other cat breeds, you should know its features:
- Head slightly elongated. Unlike other cat breeds, in which it extends slightly in width. A large skull, rather high cheekbones and large ears, which always end in tassels. It is the presence of this important detail that distinguishes Maines from other cats.
- Their eyes are oval shaped. Coat color and eye color usually harmonize well with each other.
- The body is muscular and very large. Adult cats can reach 40 cm in height, and their length including tail is about 120 cm.
- The limbs are also distinguished by well-developed muscles. This breed is distinguished by the presence of long hairs between the fingertips.
- The tail is very long and fluffy. Its length can reach 36 cm.
- Maine cats have very long and fluffy fur. In addition, these cats have a fairly thick undercoat.
Peculiarities
In addition to positive and negative qualities, Maine Coons also have breed characteristics that are not characteristic of any other cats in the world.
Consider, for example, their manner of quenching thirst.
If ordinary cats simply come up to a bowl of water and lap it up, then for Maine Coons this process is much more complicated.
Having approached their drinking bowl, these cats begin to intensively dig the floor around it and only after that begin to drink.
Having quenched its thirst, the cat again begins to make raking movements with its paws. Why does Maine Coon do this? He follows the instincts developed during the time when these cats led a semi-wild lifestyle in the forests of North America.
According to them, the cat must first dig up a source of water, and after quenching its thirst, cover it again with earth to hide it from prying eyes. Another amazing feature of these cats is that they love to eat by picking up pieces of food from their bowl with their paws. Because of this, the place where the Maine Coon eats often has to be cleaned.
The third feature of Maine Coons is that they are not at all afraid of water.
They can play with running water from the tap, and some representatives of this breed love to swim.
gulliver cat
The pros and cons of the breed are closely interrelated. The disadvantages of the breed largely appeared with the departure from the wild and careful selection by man. The prototypes of the breed are cats that lived on US farms in the 19th century. In the official history of the Maine breed, the animals are described as large and strong. Their features - tassels on the tips of the ears and between the pads of the fingers, a fluffy tail and huge eyes - are still carefully preserved by breeders.
But as it merged with civilization, the animal became more vulnerable, lost its natural immunity and became more susceptible to various diseases.
Today's Maine cats have forgotten how to catch mice. Menacing in appearance, they have an affectionate character. Maine Coons most often live in apartments, where their main function is to be a companion for humans. This significantly affected their weight - the normal weight for a cat is 7-12 kg, and cats can gain from 6 to 9 kg in adulthood.
Increased weight often leads to an increased likelihood of injury and a longer gestation period. It is now considered normal for a Maine cat to lamb during a gestation period of up to 72 days. For comparison, in other breeds pregnancy is allowed up to 65 days.
Food for Maine Coons
Many breeders wonder what to feed Maines. There are different opinions on this matter. Some say that animals should be fed only with special foods, for example, such as INNOVA, ACANA, ROYAL CANIN. Others prefer natural products.
Each owner decides for himself what to feed the animal. The main thing is that the food is of high quality and varied, since its health will depend on what the animal eats. It is imperative to take into account the age of the Maine Coon and its weight, since the amount of food must be strictly dosed. Kittens should not be overfed as this can be harmful to their health.
If the owner decides to feed the pet with specially developed food, he should give preference to high-quality products that were developed for large breed cats. More and more breeders give their preference to the ROYAL CANIN food line. This is due to the fact that the products in this series contain various vitamins and microelements that are necessary for the health of pets, fill them with energy, strengthen the immune system, make the coat shiny and beautiful and give it a healthy shine.
Another important point in feeding animals is the need to adhere to the feeding regime. Typically, food packaging contains detailed instructions. If the owner decides to feed the kitten only natural food, he should not forget that cats are predatory animals, which is why fish and meat must be present in their daily diet. Among meat products, it is best to give preference to beef, turkey, and chicken.
Kittens can also be fed raw meat. To do this, it is chopped into small pieces and then scalded with boiling water. When choosing fish, it is better to choose low-fat fish. It is given to kittens only in boiled form. In this case, it is advisable to remove all the bones so that the animal does not choke.
If a pet eats homemade food, it does not receive all the vitamins that are necessary for its growth and development. That is why you should supplement his diet with various vitamin preparations. In addition, cats happily eat porridge, cottage cheese, cheese, vegetables, etc. , which can be mixed with meat products .
The main thing is to observe moderation when feeding cats, since excess weight can cause many dangerous diseases.
