Maine Coon Cats for Sale…or Return?
Ok, so the title of this article Maine Coon cats for sale or return is tongue in cheek but its to make a serious point. When you find a Maine Coon cat for sale that seems like a perfect match it’s easy to let emotions take over. Even though you ‘know’ you’ve found the right one for you there are still quite a few important checks you’ll need to carry out. Once you commit to buying your chosen cat there’s no going back without exceptional reasons – there’s no sale or return agreement if it doesn’t work out 6 months from now!
If you’re setting out to find the best Maine Coon cats for sale, go about your research with your eyes wide open. Maine Coons, like all other pets are not created equal. Even cats of the same breed with established pedigrees are still unique of course. Not all cats are the same ‘quality’ even from the same litter.
Some are healthier than others. The personality will vary and physical features may look similar when kittens are very young but offer clues to how they will develop. The investment of time and money is significant so go to the effort of taking time to find the healthy and gorgeous kitten you really want. Remember you can only have one (or two maybe) even though you may want to take quite a few of them home once you start looking J
Here’s a 3 important things to investigate when you think you’re getting closer to making a buying decision:
1. A Registered Maine Coon Cattery – You’ll want to know if the breeder has a registered cattery and if they show their cats. This is important because it demonstrates a commitment to the breed and to the community of owners, breeders and judges who are able to share knowledge about health issues, concerns and maintain the integrity and strength of the Maine Coon breed. Anyone who isn’t making a wider contribution to the Maine Coon breeding community when they are breeding and selling cats may have good reasons why but important when getting a feel of who you’re dealing with.
An important addition to this is to understand that buying a kitten from a breeder who shows, is that kittens are far more likely to bred for temperament on the basis that show cats have to relaxed, happy around people and not timid.
2. Breeding Standards – Investigate signs of inbreeding. You can easily do this with reputable breeders by asking to see the pedigree and identifying whether close relatives have been bred together. This doesn’t necessarily cause a problem but most breeders you talk to will not recommend this as the healthiest form of breeding for the cats.
Ask about the titles the kitten’s parents have been awarded and check back through the lineage to find out if there are champion grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. This is significant because it tells you that impartial experts have judged the breed standards running through the lines over time.
3. Health Problems – Be as confident as you can you are buying a healthy cat from a reputable cattery with a good breeding history before agreeing a Maine Coon sale. Although most breeders will take the kitten back within a certain period of time if there is a problem, the heartache and stress of taking on a kitten that becomes ill is not alleviated greatly by knowing the breeder will take the kitten back or refund you the money. There are never any guarantees as such but you can do your research and minimize your chances of been unlucky.
All pedigreed animals have some potential inherited health risks. Reputable breeders will talk openly about issues because they will be working on breeding programmes designed to prevent problems in their litters. If you are talking to someone who wants to see you a cat and doesn’t acknowledge health risks in Maine Coons, you may view this as a red flag.
Finding the perfect Maine Coon cats for sale at the right time and price for you can take a little time but I promise from personal experience it is worth it.
Next>>>Tips and Information if you’re looking for that special Maine Coon kitten for sale
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Click here to see one of the earliest Maine Coon cat pictures ever taken
Found a Maine Coon For Sale? Read First
Young Brown tabby Maine Coon
When first discovering this majestic breed, and with no prior knowledge of purebred cats, I made the common mistake of rushing into the process of finding my new gentle giant. I remember thinking all I needed to know was, A. How I would go about finding a ‘real’ Maine Coon for sale? B. The next thing on my mind was girl/boy? Maine Coon cat/kitten? C…and finally what colour?
However, there’s much more to becoming a Maine Coon owner than simply finding a cat you like the look of. Here’s a few thoughts which may be helpful for anyone looking for a Maine Coon. First answer a few questions for yourself…
1. What attracts you to the breed ? size, personality, looks, reputation, etc
2. Will your Cooncat be just a pet (indoor/outdoor?) or do you want to show the cat, become a breeder – all of these factors will depend on how you approach people with Maine Coons for sale
3. Do you want a cat/kitten and do you want to adopt or buy a pedigree kitten or perhaps a retired show cat.
A pedigree Maine Coon has to meet certain set of criteria to be legitimately sold as a Maine Coon. There’s nothing wrong or inferior about Maine Coon look-alikes or a Maine Coon mix. You just don’t want to pay pedigree cat prices for a non-pedigree cat.
To add to the complex picture even all pedigree Maine Coons are not created equal. Breeders often refer to ‘pet quality’ kittens. This means it is unlikely they would have the physical features to make it as a show cat. Maine Coon kittens with the potential to become champions are worth more. Again a ‘pet quality’ Maine Coon can come with papers verifying pedigree but should cost less that a potential pedigree show cat.
As for our own Cooncats, we paid the same for both (around $700 equivalent), although as King Henry has matured it turns out he was probably sold as a show quality cat even though he is definitely considered ‘pet quality’. This is because of the shape of his muzzle (apparently!) but of course he’s always a champion in our house 
We actually enhanced a photo of King Henry to create the black Maine Coon picture which appears as the ‘mascot’ for this website. 
I guess we followed a rather hit and miss path to finally becoming ‘owned’ by our Maine Coons making mistakes along the way. So far we’re ‘owned’ by a classic tabby Maine Coon, King Henry and a silver tabby called Jester, both pictured below. (to this day I’ve still never seen a black Maine Coon ‘in the flesh’ but I know they are very popular and always in demand).
I guess the main point is don’t rush into anything as soon as you find a Maine Coon for sale you like. Take your time and do your homework. Like everything else in life once you start looking they suddenly begin to show up in your everyday life. A quick Google search and you’ll see plenty of advertisements for Maine Coon kittens for sale.
There’s also plenty of useful information on this website.
This website organises information for new, experienced and future Maine Coon owners in the following information categories:
For some of the more general information about the breed including Maine Coon size and weight there are useful articles in the Maine Coon breed section. There is also some useful general information about the Maine Coons on Wikipedia.
For more information on things to do before agreeing a Maine Coon sale click here > Maine Coon cats for sale
Anyway please do leave your comments and feel free to ask questions below.
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