We have mentioned that Maine Coons are the largest domestic cat breed. Maine Coon is also considered the most popular cat breed for 2023 by The International Cat Association (TICA) and the second most popular breed in the world for 2022 according to The Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA).
A lot of people are curious whether a Maine Coon has a good temperament and a good breed of cat to have at home. We will cover both the personality and temperament of a Maine Coon here.
Before we discuss the personality and temperament of a Maine Coon, let’s define what temperament is so as not to confuse it with a cat’s personality. Temperament is a Maine Coon’s nature, it has a permanent effect on its overall behavior. A Maine Coon’s personality on the other hand is shaped and molded by several factors affecting their growing-up stage and how you tolerate their reactions and behaviors.
A cat’s temperament is something you might not have control over, as this comes to them naturally. Its personality is something you can “correct” if necessary much like how you correct kids so they won’t exhibit bad behaviors once they reach adulthood.
Before discussing their nature or temperament, here are the personalities of cats in general and what personality Maine Coons normally fall under.
Contents
“Feline Five” Personalities
A Research was made in 2017, wherein 2,802 cats were studied and rated by their fur parents/owners and it revealed that cats have 5 main personalities. These personalities are called the “Feline Five”. No, it’s not a movie, though it seems to sound like one. Feline Five is the result of the study and it shows that Cats do have personalities just like humans do.
We humans have the “Big 5” Personality Traits (extraversion/extroversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, openness, and conscientiousness. Our feline counterparts have the “Feline Five”. The difference is instead of having openness and conscientiousness, cats have dominance and impulsiveness.
The “Feline Five” shows that Cats have these personalities: Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Dominance, and Impulsiveness. Of course, each cat can have a combination of any of these personalities but one personality type should be more prominent compared to the others.
From these 5 personalities, Maine Coons’ most dominant personality would have to be AGREEABLENESS. This is because Maine Coons are considered the perfect feline companions for toddlers/kids, as well as other household pets like dogs or other cats.
However, your Maine Coon might exhibit other personalities from the Feline Five as personalities are shaped by the way you handle or treat your feline friend. To check this, we’ll briefly mention each of the Feline Five below.
1. Neuroticism
These cats are shy, anxious, somewhat insecure, suspicious, and fearful of other people. These cats don’t like to meet other people and need a longer time to warm up especially if being adopted as an adult cat. They are a bit clingy to their humans and stay away from the unknown including strange places and people. If you want your Maine Coon to be less like an introvert, socialize and gradually expose them to other cats, pets, and other people. Make their circle bigger.
2. Extraversion
Extroverts are active, curious, inventive, smart, vigilant, and decisive. They are not afraid of exploring and meeting new people or other pets. They also explore every nook and cranny in the house. This personality type can be the second most prominent in Maine Coons. If you’re wondering who outsmarted you, who was able to break into something, or who has found something you’ve hidden. This type is probably the culprit! Do not physically punish them if they become too mischievous, instead, put them in a “time-out zone” so they know they have not been on their best behavior.
3. Agreeableness
They are the most affectionate of the bunch, they are quite gentle to humans especially kids, and very friendly to people outside their circle. They get along with most people as well as other pets such as dogs. If you see your Maine Coon playing with your dogs and kids and tolerating their antics, your cat falls under this personality. This is probably the best personality type and good news, Maine Coons naturally fall under this type. Maine Coons are even considered the “perfect family cat” because of their agreeable personality and gentle temperament.
4. Impulsiveness
These are the reckless ones or the troublemakers. They are quite unpredictable and they often underestimate everything. As a result, they become regretful and call out to their humans for help. If your cat ends up being “stuck” somewhere or injured, wherein you have to go to a lot of trouble to get them out or have to get them to the vet often, this is your cat!
5. Dominance
These cats display some sort of dominance, bullying, and aggressiveness not only to other cats but to other house pets as well. They tend to bully other pets and even their owners. If your cat is feared by your other pets and has been bossing you around, or even scratching you even if it’s not in its defensive state, then this has to be their personality. Usually, this can be corrected but if left on their own, pets can have this personality throughout the rest of their lives.
Dominance is a primal instinct for most animals including us. It doesn’t become obvious until a cat reaches its adulthood. Maine Coons usually take 3 years to around 5 years to fully become physically and mentally mature. During this time, you will see some signs of superiority and alpha syndrome that you should correct immediately.
Warning Signs Of Dominance
- Aggressively marking and spraying urine all over the house to mark their territory.
- Pushing other cats or pets away from their respective beds or areas where they sleep in.
- Stealing toys and food from other pets.
- Ignoring other pets and becoming too jealous when you give attention to other cats or household pets.
- Regularly fighting, hissing, and showing their claws to other cats or pets without being provoked.
- Scratching you or other members of the family without any reason.
- Overly demanding about food and attention, even if you have just done feeding or paying them attention.
Why Are They Trying To Be Dominant or Aggressive?
- Scared and fearful of something.
- Someone is disrespecting its boundaries.
- Territorial because not spayed or neutered.
- Pregnancy and recent birthing may affect aggressiveness levels.
What You Can Do
- Understanding Feline Body Language. If their ears are backward, sideways or they have airplane ears (lying flat), most likely they are annoyed, angry, or frightened. If their pupils are dilated, they are feeling kind of nervous and might act defensively to any stimulus. If their tail is tucked between their legs, they might be scared or anxious and if the tail trashes back and forth, they are angry or agitated at something.
If their back is arched and their fur is standing on its end, they might be scared, triggered, or angry. Hissing or yowling can also indicate annoyance, anger, fright, or distress.
Once you see these signs, make sure to stay away from your cat, and put other pets or other cats in a separate room away from the cat who’s exhibiting these signs.
- Always Intervene. When you see your cat being a bully and becoming too aggressive to other pets, pull them apart and put them in different spaces to show that fighting will not be tolerated. Train them by using keywords such as “NO FIGHTING” before putting them away from each other. Do not punish your cat physically as this will only make their aggressiveness worse.
- Don’t let them boss you around. Do not reward bad behavior such as asking for treats all the time or when they feel like it. Treats should be a reward to compliment their good behavior.
- Spay or Neuter. Males tend to fight if they’re unneutered. Intact females who breed often might develop constant maternal aggression.
- Safe space or Sanctuary. Create hiding spots or perches where your cat can hide or escape whenever they feel threatened.
- Don’t share bowls, litter boxes, beds, and safe spaces. Each cat should have their own bowls and other properties to prevent fighting over them.
- Correct and train them. Reward good behavior with treats and reassuring words especially if they exhibited bad behavior in the past. As much as possible, if cats are often fighting, keep them separated especially during meals.
So as you can see, your Maine Coon’s personality isn’t like its temperament, it is something that can be molded or changed. Their surroundings and the way you and your family treat or nurture them dictate their overall personality and traits.
The Grand Feline Temperament of Maine
Now that we’ve discussed your Maine Coon’s possible personality, let us look deeply into its nature and temperament.
1. Gentle Giant
Perhaps the main reason why they’re the most popular breed aside from their huge size is that they are patient, friendly, laid-back, sociable, and extremely tolerant to kids as well as other pets. This earned them the nicknames: “Gentle Giant” and “Friendly Giant”.
Their friendliness and tolerance level are on another level and so popular that they are nicknamed, “dogs of the cat world”. They’re one of the friendliest breeds of cats. They are not easy to swipe at others and they are known to be very patient. When they get bothered by kids or other pets, they usually give warning signs such as soft growls and flattened ears.
There is, however, a need to properly introduce other pets, especially new ones, so give them time to adapt. This gives Maine Coons a chance to warm up, and oftentimes, this procedure takes a short amount of time.
Male Maine Coon cats are friendlier and easier to approach than females. Males love to be the center of attention. So, they try to impress their humans. Whereas, females take a little more time to warm up to people and other pets.
2. Intelligent
Maine Coons are known to have an above-average intelligence compared to other breeds. Genetics also has a play in how intelligent your Maine Coon is. Generally, Maine Coons can adapt quickly to their surroundings including the people and pets they have to interact with. They are highly trainable and immediately recognize patterns. This makes it easier to establish routines. They are considered to be dog-like because they can be trained to do “tricks” such as rolling over, high-fives, playing fetch, and closing doors. They can even open water faucets!
3. Empathetic and Affectionate
Maine Coons are very empathetic and can sense whether their owners need emotional support. This is one of the reasons why many are training them as emotional support animals for those who love feline companions. They easily develop special bonds with their owners and are known to follow them around the house. They love to show affection but they are not needy. Make sure to train them not to be clingy as they might develop separation anxiety.
They love to be touched or stroked. Because of its large size and physical similarities to a lynx, having Maine Coon for a pet feels like you are actually petting a wild cat.
4. Water Lover
If you want a cat who is not afraid of getting wet, Maine Coon is the cat breed for you. Maine Coons are well known to be water lovers. Their fur is naturally water resistant so they can splash around but don’t get cold easily. They are also good swimmers and like some dogs, they enjoy playing with water.
5. Good Hunter
Maine Coons have excellent hunting skills. Initially, this was the reason why they became a popular breed. Their paw size and high prey drive make them good hunters. Their hunting skills developed naturally and have become an intrinsic part of their whole being. They are known to catch all kinds of pests in ships, barns, and homes.
6. Active
Maine Coons are a very active breed. Because they are the largest breed among domestic cats, they tend to get overweight. This poses health issues. This is also the reason why Maine Coons should have enough room to climb, run, and hunt. Cat shelves and other similar facilities should be installed to keep your Maine Coon happy and healthy. It is also advisable to take them for walks with a leash on.
They also love to play with their fur parents. They also love cat toys and Maine Coons are known to still be playful like kittens even though they have entered their senior years.
7. Unusual Voice
They use their voice to ask for attention or food. Their voices are quite unusual and unique. Maine Coons squeak, trill, or chirp like a bird instead of meowing.
8. Independent
Unlike some cat breeds, Maine Coons may be affectionate but they are not clingy or needy. They can be fine on their own for long hours. Though it is in their nature to be quite independent, the personality of your Maine Coon can differ depending on the way it has been brought up and what it got used to. So, make sure that you set the expectations properly to avoid raising them to be clingy.
Other Notable Things About Maine’s Big Furballs
1. You Can Walk Them on a Leash
Because of their large size and their dog-like demeanor, Maine Coons are probably the best cat breed to walk around with leashes. However, it is important to note that this routine should be started early on as kittens so it is easier to embed in their “system”.
2. They Are Perfect Therapy Cats
They have the gentle temperament, supportive personality, empathy, and trainability to be certified as therapy cats. You only need to enroll your Maine Coon in a therapy cat training program and do the necessary paperwork. This will turn your Maine Coon from a pet to an emotional support animal.
3. Best Cat for Newbies
Maine Coons are a great breed for first-time cat owners as they can easily bond with owners and they are low-maintenance and are good to be kept around kids and other dogs. They can also be trained and are an easy transition from having dogs to cats.
4. They Love Being Brushed & Groomed
Most Maine Coons love to be groomed and brushed; however, owners should be able to let them get used to it. Though Maine Coons have thick furs, they are effortless to brush.
In Conclusion
Maine Coons are generally the best breed of cat to have for newbies and families especially if you have kids and other pets. They have one of the best temperament among the cat breeds and they tend to get along well with any human or pets.
They are low-maintenance and not quite as needy as other breeds and they are best for people seeking emotional support from their pets. They can also be trained as emotional support animals, making them quite useful to people who constantly undergo depression and emotional distress.
Their friendliness is attributed to genetics plus how they are raised. Maine Coons provide the best kind of companionship as they form bonds quite easily.
The way Maine Coons are raised as well as their environment should be taken into account. This can heavily affect their personalities. Even though they are quite sociable in nature, you still need to socialize your Maine Coon. Also, introducing new pets or other pets should still be standard procedure to avoid jealousy.
