This is a big cat

[EstimatedProphet]

[skylarmae]

1. this photo does not compute - my brain isn't processing this at all (eom)

[qnr]

2. or a reeeally small person and apartment - wow n/t

[Philostopher]

10. I've seen other pics of her and the cat.

It's both -- that's a Maine Coon, and an unusually large one at that; she's small, about five feet tall and a hundred pounds soaking wet. I also saw pics of the cat near a regular domestic shorthair -- it is very large.

[qnr]

14. ah, thanks. Thought it was a Maine coon cat, wasn't sure though n/t

[Lorien]

16. Probably this photo:

Not the same cat, but a similar Maine Coon.

[Philostopher]

17. Nah -- I saw the pics on Snopes

and remembered it wrong -- it's a picture of the cat in the original post sitting next to another, smaller Maine Coon and positively dwarfing the sofa they're both sitting on.

I like that one, though -- it definitely shows the scale of a Maine Coon compared to a normal American cat!

I've never seen a Maine Coon myself that was any bigger than my short-haired female, who may well have come from a very well-fed feral mom. She's about 14 pounds and only qualifies as mildly overweight -- she's not as big as a Maine Coon, but she's big for a female non-breed cat, that's for darn sure! I don't have a decent shot of her with anything else for comparison, though.

[Lorien]

18. Me and mine at 10 months

(blocked out my identity completely; too close to the election to put our pics up here)

Oberon is only 10 months old here; far from full grown (4-5 years for male Maine Coons). I'm 5'8", BTW.



Are you sure the cats you've seen are MCs? A lot of people think their large, longhaired cats are Maine Coons when they're really a mixed breed. My Oberon was a bargain priced kitty from an MC breeder (his coat has brown in it when it should be silver, making him worthless to a breeder, but perfect to me)! MCs have very heavy boning,large muzzles, lynx tips on their ears, and incredibly furry paws. Males can be upwards of 30 pounds (without being overweight), though the average is 22 lbs.

[Philostopher]

24. I've probably seen a very few true Maine Coons.

And they were females, and small. We had one come through the shelter where I volunteer. I will also say the one who came through was perhaps only a year and a half old -- I didn't realize, at the time, it often takes MC cats up to four years to reach their full growth, so maybe she hadn't made it yet.

I've never seen a purebred male Maine Coon, but I'm aware they're usually about the size of our dog. I'd love to have one -- Mr. Nownow and I like big cats. We just keep finding strays!

I've seen some of your other pictures of Oberon -- he's beautiful. I just don't think we could handle a long-haired cat. We have four shorthairs and a longish-haired dog (his pic is my avatar, he's a 20-pound Pomeranian, possibly crossed, we don't know because he came from a humane society with no papers). We probably always will have a house full.

[Kire]

3. that's a kid in a cat suit

[jukes]

4. but actually

just a pretty good photoshop.

[EstimatedProphet]

6. You think it's photoshopped?

Maybe it is-found it on the net.

[NYC Liberal]

8. Check Snopes:

http://snopes.com/photos/animals/bigcat2.asp

[jukes]

15. i stand corrected

snopes is pretty reliable; i am not.

[Droopy]

7. Nope it's authentic

I saw it on an earlier thread and there is a breed of domestic cat that actually gets that big.

[Droopy]

5. I wouldn't want to be responsible for the litter box.

[helnwhls]

9. It's not the size that counts

[zanana]

11. That's a Maine Coon cat

They can be huge. I've seen them this big, so I don't think it's photoshopped.

[aquart]

26. A Maine Coon once punched me clear across the room.

Never annoy a Maine Coon.

[CatWoman]

12. I'd love to have that cat

put these other assholes in their places :D

[Lorien]

13. He's an average sized Maine Coon with a petite owner

The owner is 5'4", and the cat is a Maine Coon (which generally weigh 18-35lbs. when fully grown).

I have one as well, and these are his grandparents:





My cats (kittens in these photos); nine month old Oberon (the Maine Coon) with five month old Puck:



Maine Coons take 4-5 years to reach full size.

[ikojo]

19. They have some HUGE paws!

I'd love to have a Main Coon cat...they are absolutely beautiful!

[Lorien]

22. You can ADOPT one through this site:

www.petfinder.com.

Otherwise, the pedigreed variety (and sometimes breeders have cats up for adoption too) require you to Google "Maine Coon Cattery" along with your state (most states have several MC catteries).

[flaminbats]

20. must they be giants?

http://www.kgordonmurray.com/h19.html

[FizzFuzz]

21. awwwww!!! dis is some serious furrball action goin on here!

I want one!

[rppper]

23. OK OK...my Max is no maine coon, but he is a BIG FRIGGIN CAT!!!

here he is....



he is 35 inches long from nose to the tip of his tail, 10 inches across at his hind qtr, head is 6.5 inches by 4 inches, stands almost 15 inches high at his head and weighs in at 22lbs. he is a lynx/siamese mix and is surprisingly lovey and docile for a half wild cat.

[Lorien]

27. He's a beauty!

love the coloration and the crossed blue eyes. :-)

My domestic shorthair spent several years at 27 pounds-not long, just fat! He trimmed down when the kittens came to the house; guess he found his inner kitten after 15 years!

Oberon (my MC) is 45 inches from nose to tail tip. MCs started out as crosses between wild cats (lynx/ bobcats) and longhairs that were brought over from France and Norway in the early 1700s. For a long time, MC breeders didn't want to acknowlege their possible wild ancestery, but recent DNA testing has proven that the breed is decended from those "forest cats".

I know some people that keep rehabilitated bobcats and lynx who were rescued from fur farms; they are very docile, and hardly seem any different from domestic cats (save that the lynx are as tall as labradors)!

[barb162]

25. how much does he weigh