7 Things to Know About Maine Coons Before You Adopt One
They’re the closest thing to a dog in the cat world
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Three years ago, I had the difficult task of persuading my now-husband to get a cat. He was adamantly a dog person — he liked cats, but he was convinced they were inferior to dogs as house pets.
Now, he loves both our cats with his whole heart, but when I was trying to convince him, I found the best method was to find a cat that met his needs.
He said cats weren’t loyal? I found a breed that was. He said he wanted to walk a dog? I found a cat breed that loves walks. He said dogs are just bigger and therefore easier to snuggle and love? I found the biggest cat breed there is.
My research pointed me to one breed that met all his requirements: the Maine Coon.
I want to point out that all cats are amazing, wonderful, charming, and interesting in their own unique ways! We’ve had moggies (mixed-breed cats) all my life, and I’ve loved them all dearly. However, when we wanted to adopt cats of our own in the UK, we found that shelters required us to provide indoor-outdoor access for cats, and I knew I wanted to keep my cats safely indoors.
Here are the seven things you should know about Maine Coons before you adopt one.
1. Maine Coon cats are extremely loyal
Maine coon cats decide, early on in their kitty lives, that they have a “person.” They are 100% dedicated to their chosen person, following them from room to room, being distraught if they leave the house, and always choosing to spend time with their person above all other people.
It’s so cool to have a cat who is so devoted to being with you. I am my cat Astrid’s “person” and whenever I go anywhere in the house, she’s always a step or two behind me. She sleeps at the foot of my bed every single night and comes running when I call for her.
This kind of obsession is typical in some other cats, but almost all Maine Coons show this devotion to their one person.
