Video:Maine Coon Cat Breed

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Transcript:Maine Coon Cat Breed

Hi, I'm Debbie Lamb and I own Dragon's Lair Maine Coon Cattery. Welcome to About.com.

Maine Coon Origins

Maine Coons are the only cat breed that's indigenous to the United States. The cats supposedly came over on the Viking ships and with the ships captains, and then they got loose in port and then they bred with local cats – and that's the history behind the Maine Coon.

Maine Coon Temperament

The Maine Coon is the only cat that written into its breed standard it says it has to have a gentle disposition. They're known as the gentle giants of the cat world. Um, they're the largest domestic cat and they're more dog-like in nature then they are cat like.

Maine Coon Varieties

They come in all colors. They come in brown, red, silver, whites, blacks, and combinations there of. The only colors they can't come in are pointed like Siamese.

Maine Coons for Families

They're very easy going. They're never vicious. They're just very laid back. They make a wonderful family pet. They're great with kids. They're great with other animals and they're very human oriented. Their humans are the most important thing to them.

Maine Coon Health Concerns

They can get hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. It's a heart condition and it occurs in some of the larger breeds of cats - not just Maine Coons. They can get that. They can get gingivitis because they tend to gulp their food – they don't just chew it. So, they have to have their teeth cleaned from time to time.

Maine Coon Grooming

You just take a long tooth comb and you just comb them periodically. And they really don't mat or anything like that, as long as you just comb them.

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