Grateful for Maine Coons, lol!

[IC SARAH-CPP]

I thought I would post this because I know other people on here have Maine Coons, I think Kara and Jen.
Now I am not usually a cat person. Far far from it. I have 4 big dogs and have always been a major dog person. My husband is allergic to cats so I cant even get one but since I have been staying with my mom, I have fallen IN LOVE with one of her maine coons, Rascal! She rescued him and his 2 sisters from the TRASH at her school(she is a teacher) when the were a little less than 3 weeks old. Her and my stepdad bottle fed them every hour until they were old enough to eat the regular food. Well because they were rescues, they didnt know what kind of cats they were. They ended up letting her best friend have one of the girl cats and kept a boy and a girl. I thought he had a major weight problem b/c he weights 21 pounds but then I read on here that Jen's Paddington weighs I think 22 pounds! The girl cat is much smaller but from what I read online, that is normal for maine coons. When we took them to the vet she said they were maine coons and they often weigh that much. I feel bad b/c I made my mom put him on a diet !! I thought he was just really really fat, lol.
Anyway, they are SOO funny. I laugh every time I look at him. When he runs his belly jiggles from one side to the other. I have taken about 100 pictures of him on my digital camera. I am going to post one on here later. It is nice to have a pet to love b/c I miss my dogs so much. I am afraid they wont know me when I get to Hawaii but my mom says it takes longer than 2 months for them to forget you I hope so.
Love sarah

[patricia1]

You know pets can be such a joy to people. I have seen pictures of Jens cats and they look huge. I LOVE Cats and I am allergic to them. We to are dog people, I have 2 weenie dogs inside and 4 bassets outside. One is a puppy from the moms litter that we were not able to sell. And one cat. He was a inside cat. We got him as a kitten, and I loved him, but my allergies have been acting up and hubby got ringworm and then I did and I think it came from him. So right now he is outside and I hate it. Talking about weight, I know this is about your cat, but one of my weenine dog is a minature and she weighs around 20 pounds. She is so fat her belly just about drags the floor lol

[Sarojini]

LOL Yes, I have a Maine Coon, Paddington If you visit the link to my IC story, you can see a pic of me holding my big boy... in that picture, he was just over one year old, and Maines aren't usually fully mature coat- and size-wise until they are about 3 years old -- unlike other breeds. So, Pad looks huge in the pic, but imagine he is even BIGGER now. LMAO

He is so big that if he is begging for treats or people food, and I am standing up, he can stand on his hind legs and stretch up so that his front paws reach just under my boobs -- I am 5'5". A former co-worker of my husbands said, "That cat could kill you if it wanted to!" But, Paddington is the gentlest, calmest cat there is.

Paddington also has a little belly pooch that swings a bit -- Maines often get that. If it's really noticeable on your cat, he may need to lose a bit, but if it's just sorta like a little loose skin, that's normal

I am thankful every day for my Padster

[IC SARAH-CPP]

LOL, I looked at your pictures of Paddington and when I read how much he weighed, I figured that my moms cat was okay. His belly IS a lot of fat so maybe it is good that he has been on a little bit of a diet. My mom would feed all 3 cats in one bowl and just leave it here all day and I have a sneaking suspicion that Rascal was eating ALL the food, lol! He sits in front of his food bowl about half the day, even if it is empty.
How do you breathe when he is laying on top of you? That would be a lot of cat, lol. I want one now. I wish my husband wasnt so allergic. I cant really blame the guy though cause his eyes swell shut when he comes in contact with cat hair.
Paddington sure is a beautiful cat. Have you ever thought of breeding him with a hot girl maine coon?
Patricia- I LOVE weenie dogs! My best friend has a half weenie dog/half chiuaua(sp?) that is so funny. That is another breed I cant help but laugh at when I see them. Do yours have back problems? My best friends dog has back issues already, it is so sad. She is only 3 years old too.
Sarah

[lnseagraves]

I absolutely MUST weigh in on this conversation. My cat, Ruby is a Siberian Forest Cat which is a cousin of the Maine Coon. She's about as big, also is long haired and fluffy and has a bit of a personality like a dog. She scrounges for food, begs for food, plays fetch and I can even walk her on a leash. The best part though? I am ALLERGIC to cats, but NOT the siberian. For some reason, Siberians tend to be MUCH less allergic than other cats. Even the Manx and Sphinx (hairless) cats. She's beautiful, long haired and I have had NO problems with her. I even had no problems when I visited her breeder... who had over 20 un-fixed cats...... TWENTY! It was a surreal experience as I usually puff up in the eyes and itch EVERYWHERE with cat dander... Ruby, though is fully grown now and I have NO problems.

If you love the Maine Coon, or even just love cats but are allergic, look up a breeder and visit one. They are worth it. I love my Ruby-do. I'll try to post a picture of her when my husband gets home. HE knows how to do that, I don't.

[humpieumpumkin]

I have 2 maine coon mixes! I love them so much. They are brother and sister and are like my kids. Jim is big, but creepy is small for a coon, but a little bigger than a regular cat. Jens cat paddington, is huge compared to my kitties!

Erika

[patricia1]

IC SARAH neither one of mine now has back problems. I have had these dog also growing up and 3 of them did. In fact one we had to put to sleep. He had it once real bad but got over it the last time he was complet. paral and the only way we could keep him was him living on a scooter. Weenie dogs are good at having back problems. My mom's friend breeds the part weenie dog part chia. I think she calls them chaweenies

[Kara29]

Maine Coons!!!

Yes,

I have two Maine Coons. Ghengus and Justin. Ghengus is 25 pounds and Justin is 17. They are my children since I can't have any. I spoil them terribly. I've loved every minute of them. They are 6 and 7 years old. And yes, I do have an obession with Maine Coons! LOL. It's OK, you can all laugh at me!

Justin



Ghengus


I also have a short video of Justin on my Photo Album: It's the 8th photo down, in blue, called "Justin giving lessons on being Nosey" http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r115/Karalynnree/

[sandramac]

My hubby & I waited 4 months for our brother & sister Maine Coon's, We lost our cat Max last March to cancer. Finally we got Ella & Izzy, But izzy was ill & it took 8 weeks to fiqure out what was wrong, he had a liver shunt, The suergon said he would be amazed if he lived a year. he will be 1 on April 14th, H's such a livley vocal little man! They said he would always be small, But he's long & full of personality, Still thinks he's a big dog, Ella is huge taller and very long. i also have another female 12 just plain domestic, but am so happy to even have my Minnie Maine Coone Izzy!he may be small but h'es huge in character !
Ps Im allaegic too ! LOL
Hugs Sandra

[Sarojini]

Well... since Paddington has been um, altered... we can't breed him with any hot girl Coons He would have made beautiful kittens though!!!

We HAVE shown him -- first as a kitten and then as a show alter when he was a bit older. He got third best of breed at his last show several years ago. He's gotten puffier since, so I bet he'd do even better now

As for him laying on me, well -- if he does get on my chest, I have to gasp "Paa--ding--ton...get...off..." because he really IS too heavy for that. He used to get on my chest when he was a small kitten and lay down facing me, with his paws on my shoulders, and just purr (he loves his Mama).

But , it's like he knows he is too heavy for certain things now. LOL Now, he will only lay on where my lap would be if I'm on my back (thighs and hips) because he knows I can hold him there, no problem. The rest of the time, he just curls up next to me or gets between my legs!

Rascal MAY be eating all the food -- my mom-in-law's kitty Spanky is a Siberian (like lnseagraves' kitty) is soooooo fat because he keeps taking all the food in the dish meant for both cats. AND THEN he starts on the dog food!!!! LOL!!!!

OH, btw, I am also allergic to cats... severely. But, interestingly, just like lnseagraves, I find that I'm not allergic to the Maine Coon breed as much... I too went to Pad's breeder's home where they had I think six kittens and at least five adults and didn't have a reaction at all during the hour we were there! With other breeds, I've had a full on asthma attack within 10 minutes. Of course, I also take my asthma/allergy meds just in case, and we do run air cleaners to help, but I'm not that bad at all. I stick my face right in Pad's fur all the time (as evidenced by my avatar pic -- that's him when he was 7 months old).

[donnes007]

I love maine coons! I just found out about them. I am allergic also and have two small dogs that would probably be horrified of a huge cat. I love them though. Jen, i thought Pattington looked like a maine coon but I wasn't sure -hes awesome! I such a pet lover. All the pic pf maine coons are awesome!

[Billsbaby]

i have a part maine coon cat.i have wanted a full breed maine coon since i was 8,so my husband and i agreed that when we get settled in in kentucky we will finally get my maine coon.i cannot wait.they are absolutely the most loving and beautiful cats around.

[IC SARAH-CPP]

OMG Kara, Ghengus is 25 pounds, lol! That is crazy. That is so funny how Justin is laying in that picture. Or sitting i guess, lol! Yes, my dogs are like my kids too. Some people just dont get that, but whatever. It seems like most maine coons are really loving.
Sandra, I am so sorry that your Izzy has a liver problem. Sometimes the vets are wrong about the life span though, lets hope so here!
Jen- Yes, I think Rascal is eating the other cats food. I have been trying to get my mom to try a different way of feeding them. We'll see though.
Wow, I didnt know Paddington was a show cat. Too bad he was fixed, I am sure he would have made beautiful kittens. How long do maine coons usually live? That is the one bad thing about pets they dont live as long as we do.
I am so happy to hear so many people here love Maine coons. That is why I posted this, I knew you would all appreciate how much joy they can bring to someone!
Love Sarah

[Moonheart]

Have any of you heard of Pixie Bobs? They're like small bobcats and sound very similar to the breeds you've described. They love the water and swim, they like to walk on a leash, and are just hilarious. They fetch and do other dog stuff. My aunt has them, and I had two until my husband got hurt and we had to spend so much time in the hospital.

[Kara29]

Maine Coon on LOST

Last night we saw a silver Maine Coon on LOST. We were very excited to see a Maine Coon as a TV Star!! Tee Hee!


Kara