The Maine Coon – Biggest Cat Ever?
OK, so the Maine Coon is THE biggest of the domestic cat breeds, a male typically weighs between 9 to 18 pounds, although we see the biggest Maine Coon boys much bigger than this. With their muscular body frame and 2 to 3 inches of long hair, they always look bigger too. Their tails are usually at least as long as the length of the body.
Generally, a big Maine Coon can be expected to grow up to 30/35 inches in length, with their tails being up to 14 inches long. The Cooncat is not fully grown until it reaches between 3 to 5 years of age, so a younger cat has a lot of growing up to do until it reaches maturity.
What is the record for the biggest domestic cat?
There have been world record holders for the heaviest cat, though the Guinness World Records eliminated this title because of reports that cat owners were purposely over feeding their cats to try and break the record. Before the record was eliminated, there were three cats recorded with the heaviest weight. First was Himmey, a neutered tabby living in Australia, who weighed 46 lbs., 15.25 oz. Another named Poppa, an 11-year-old tabby, weighed 44.5 lbs. Lastly, there was Tiger, a long-haired part-Persian, weighing 43 lbs.
What is the record for the biggest Maine Coon cat?
That honor goes to Verismo Leonetti Reserve Red. This large Maine Coon was titled the 2006 Guinness World Record Holder for Longest Cat. Leo is a purebred domestic cat with a CFA pedigree. He measures 40 inches from the tip of his nose to the end of his tail. He weighs 35 pounds, which is almost twice the size reported average for the breed. However, the record title is for his length, and not his weight.
A news report with the cat’s owner, Frieda Ireland, and the vet, Doctor Rovner confirms a healthy Maine Coon! Though he is the longest cat and above average in weight, he is his natural size and not overweight. Leo has a larger body frame, which can easily carry the extra pounds.
Guinness compares Verismo Leonetti Reserve Red to the same size as an eight-year-old child. Leo’s paw would fit into a child’s size two shoe. Leo won the record after beating the last record Guinness World Record holder, named Snowbie. Leo won by a full 6 inches in length over Snowbie so is offcially the biggest Maine Coon ever ?
At the time of writing I haven’t been able to source a picture of Leo – if you know how I could find a picture of Leo or any other very large Maine Coon cat pictures for this site please let me know…
Perhaps your MC is a large Maine Coon ? share photos 
Next>>>Information on the black Maine Coon
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Click here to see one of the earliest Maine Coon cat pictures ever taken
A Big Maine Coon Is Great But It’s Unique Personality is Really Special
When first getting hooked on this breed I really wanted a BIG Maine Coon. If I’m honest it’s what initially caught my attention and attracted me to the breed. The first time you see a really big Maine Coon cat in all its glory it really is something. The largest Maine Coon I met (before my own Jester arrived who hasn’t stopped growing yet) was called Madison and weighed in at around 18lbs. Male MCs will take up to four years to reach full maturity and can grow over 20 lbs although most common are cats between 12 and 16 lbs. Girls are smaller.
Jester and Youngest Daughter 2007
Although the size of an MC certainly grabs the attention it’s the personality of these gentle giants that has made a permanent impression on us. I remember talking to a friend and telling her how a Maine Coon changed my life and King Henry has become one of my inspirations. ‘He’s my guardian angel’ I said and I truly meant it. Even though she isn’t a Maine Coon fan or even a cat lover, I could see it almost brought tears to her eyes. She commented how lucky I was to have such a loyal friend and companion. I’ve found the Maine Coon personality to be very special.
Henry has stayed close to me throughout the good and the bad times and I think he has really made a difference to my life and my well-being. Big statement I guess… although I’m sure you feel the same way about your pets.
The idea of a big Maine Coon caught my imagination as soon I ‘discovered’ the largest domestic breed but never ever expected such a distinct personality from a cat. I’d always had moggies and each one had their own quirks and likes/dislikes. The Maine Coon breed comes with its own personality. You may have read about ‘clown-like’ behaviour, fascination with running water, kitten-like antics and so on. I’ve noticed over the years many truly unique personality traits and characteristics.
Big Maine Coon cats traditionally gained admiration and respect for its uses as a farm cat keeping the rodent population in check. Perhaps the domesticated Maine Coon of today still maintains a 19th century work ethic. Maine Coon owners usually agree on the various “roles” they seem to undertake. Both my cats have lived up to the breed reputation of being keen to “supervise”.
Jester lives up to his name and entertains us with his playful nature. Henry has many roles including “The Protector”. My baby girl was born in April 2007. I started having quite painful contractions on my due date. Henry sensed my discomfort and stayed by my side until it was time to get myself to the local hospital. My mum turned up to look after my eldest son and even though she owns moggie cats, she was fascinated and astonished by Henry’s loyalty and sensitivity. He didn’t try and lay on me or cause a nuisance of himself. He just lay by my side and occasionally touched me with his big furry brown paw as if to say ‘Hey kiddo, you’ll be OK’. Every time, my mum or my partner came to see me, Henry stood up like a Mere cat surveying the situation as if he was protecting me from them.
Henry is protective of his family members but also of his house. Although, he’s not a particularly big Maine Coon and he’s usually a placid cat, he seems to become very assertive whenever he’s in the house on his own. So much so, that cat sitters don’t seem to stick around for long. The last time we went on holiday and left Henry to look after the house, we employed a local cat sitter to come in every day and feed and water him and change his litter tray etc. On the last day of our holiday, we received a call from a frazzled woman telling us she’d been chased out of the house by Henry and was in such a panic that she left her mobile phone in the kitchen. I wonder if he would be so brave if he found real intruder. LOL
I believe Maine Coons really do have personalities unique to the breed and you can read more about The Healer, The Babysitter, The Guardian and The Supervisor – Next>>>Maine Coon Personality
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Click here to see one of the earliest Maine Coon cat pictures ever taken
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