Maine Coon Cats are known for majestic long fur and bushy tails. These features make them irresistible to owners and cat lovers who like to stroke and adore these adorable cats. However, the question remains, do Maine Coon Cats shed fur? Also, will your carpets and furniture pay the price for owning such a revered breed of cat?
Just like many breeds of cat, Maine Coon cats do shed fur. In many cases, they have a long luscious fur coat. This makes grooming your cat a must on the to-do list.
This will prevent them from getting hairballs, matted fur or getting things entangled that will affect the cat’s health.
Many breeds of cats around the world do shed fur or hair onto their owner’s carpets. This is not specific to just Maine Coons. It depends on the owners to ensure their cats are well-groomed. You must take to proper measures in the home to reduce the effect of any cat shedding.
Maine Coon Cats And Shedding
Due to owning such a luscious long fur coat. Maine Coon Cats can shed their fair share of fur around the home. Especially in places they like to sleep and adventure.
As a cat owner, it’s a small price to pay for having such a loving companion roaming around your home. Shedding for Maine Coons or any other cat breeds is normal and something you should be aware of before adopting.
Maine Coon Cats shed hair as part of their natural shedding cycles. This can vary greatly depending on a Maine Coons environment or living conditions.
If you keep your home warm or live in an area with warmer weather it’s a lot more common for many cats to shed evenly throughout the year. However, in most cases, Maine Coons will often shed most their fur during the summer months.
If your Maine Coon is a house cat it will often lose more hair or fur on average than cats that are allowed in and out of the house. This is due to them not requiring a thick winter coat or shedding most of the fur outside while exploring.
If your home has tiled or wood flooring you will notice your cats shed fur that collects at the edges of the rooms. This is normally a lot easier to clean than carpeted floors which have fur spread evenly or is commonly piled in the places in which your Maine Coon Cat spends most of its time.
Different Types Of Maine Coon Shedding
While some Maine Coons can have courser fur coats that shed less frequently, there are those which have finer fur coats which require more attention for both grooming and cleaning of problem areas of your home.
It’s important even with kittens to get them use to grooming early on so they may get use to grooming brushes and the sensation of being groomed.
Leaving a grooming regime until your cat is older is still achievable with the slow introduction of many grooming habits but it’s highly recommended to start them off early so they have time to adapt to any changes in your own habits.
What if your cat sheds more than expected? (Bald Spots)
Maine Coon Cats are generally very good at keeping their own grooming regime. They enjoy sitting and licking fur to pluck out and clean problem areas on their own. However in some cases, you may notice that your cat is shedding a lot more fur than normal, or perhaps is developing bald spots from self-grooming.
If you notice your Maine Coon is shedding more than normal or expected please consider some of the following reasons which may be the cause of your cat over shedding.
Your Cat May Be Experiencing Stress
In some cases, your cat may have become stressed which is not always easy to determine. It’s important to note any changes that may have occurred in your cat’s environment or home that could be the cause.
Things such as the introduction of a new household pet, having a baby or new household items such as hoovers could be a common cause.
They Might Have Fleas
Your Maine Coon cat may be shedding excessively due to having irritation or bites on the skin caused by fleas. Luckily this is solved quickly and safely using flea treatment that can be provided by your vet.
If you suspect your Maine Coon to have fleas it is important to check immediately for any signs by brushing the fur back to reveal the skin. Sometimes you may spot them, but most the time you will see redness, marks or irritation on the skin.
In any case, it’s highly recommended to keep up a monthly flea treatment routine. Outdoor Maine Coon cats are especially susceptible to attracting fleas into their luscious fur, so try pay close attention to your cats grooming or itching habits.
Your Maine Coon Could Be Suffering From Illness or Hormone Imbalance
If you ever suspect that your Maine Coon Cat is shedding due to illness or hormonal imbalance, we highly recommend making an appointment with your vet to have a health checkup.
Sometimes certain illness’s your cat is experiencing can cause them to act out of character and begin to over groom or pluck out patches of fur leaving bald spots.
In this event, it’s always best to have a qualified vet examine your cat for any sign of illness or hormone issues that could be the root cause of your Maine Coon losing hair.
Your Maine Coons Diet Might Be Causing Shedding
A Maine Coon with a poor diet can also begin to shed hair and fur onto carpets more frequently. This can sometimes be due to the owner actually underfeeding their cat as they would have become used to feeding them certain portion sizes when they were a kitten or younger cat.
Shedding can occur due to diet when your Maine Coon is not receiving the nutrients it needs each day to repair and replace its fur coat efficiently.
It’s always worthwhile looking for high-quality foods specifically formulated for your cats breed, size and age. Many pet food brands now provide food and kibble especially for most breeds of cat based on their age.
Your Maine Coon Might Be Having Trouble Grooming
You would think that keeping up a good grooming routine would come naturally to most Maine Coons, however, this is not always the case.
Surprisingly some Maine Coon cats require help due to their luscious coat being extensive and hard to manage all on their own.
The telltale sign of a Maine Coon that is having trouble self-grooming is normally when matted patches of fur appear. Often found under the chin, or around the hind legs of the cat where it is difficult for them to reach.
How To Reduce Shedding By Grooming Your Maine Coon Cat
Helping your cat to groom itself is a great way to reduce the amount of hair a Maine Coon sheds around the home.
One of the main reasons its important to help your Maine Coon groom itself to reduce shedding is because, when they lick themselves, hair and fur they swallow develop into hairballs which can sit in their stomachs often making the cat feel uncomfortable and be sick to remove them.
Some Maine Coons can enjoy being groomed by their owners, while others may dislike this task. It’s important to start a grooming routine with a young Maine Coon kitten early on so that they get use to the tools involved and the sensation of the brush going through their fur coat.
If your cat does not like being groomed you can gently introduce this to them. We do not recommend using gloves or grooming tools on your cat that might scare them. If you do this they will begin to dread having their fur coat groomed and may actually begin to change their characteristics and trust towards you.
Grooming your Maine Coon
You will want to first ensure you have the right tools for the job.
This includes the following:
- Metal wire grooming brush (Firm brush)
- Rubber grooming brush (Recommended if your cat dislikes grooming)
- A mat or blanket (To protect carpets or flooring from removed hair)
These tools allow you to easily and carefully brush matted areas of hair and fur on your cat while reducing the risk of spreading the hair around the home.
It’s a good idea to let your Maine Coon sniff and inspect the grooming tools if it’s new to grooming, allowing them to get used to it and not see it as a threat or something to be wary of.
Many owners take the opportunity to play with their cat. This helps them feel more relaxed and more open to being touched. It also allows the owner the opportunity to inspect the cat for shedding or matted areas that need to be dealt with.
Taking extra care take the grooming tool and begin to gently brush through your cat’s fur coat. If you find problem areas such as a knot in the hair, hold the fur under the knot and gently brush the ends that include the knot until it is removed.
If you find a large matted area of your cat’s fur that is hard to remove, gently keep brushing this area throughout the day to try to reduce it. It can take some time and it’s important to let your Maine Coon take a break from grooming where they might on rare occasion solve the issue themselves with your help.
For any reason, if you cannot remove the matted fur or knots with the grooming brushes we do not recommend cutting the knots with scissors. This is because they are sometimes very close to the cat’s skin and there is a high risk of hurting your cat or breaking the skin which can lead to infection.
As a last resort, we instead recommend seeking out the help of a professional groomer or vet who will use clippers to remove the problem area. Hair or patches cut with clippers will usually regrow quickly and are a lower risk approach to problem matting or knots.
It’s a good idea to have the vet check for matting or shedding as part of their normal health checkup.
A Maine Coon cat left with un-treated matting or knots in its fur will feel uncomfortable and is at high risk of developing sore spots on its skin. Ensuring you groom your cat regularly and use the tools and help available to you to keep your cats fur in top condition is a top priority.
How To Keep Your Maine Coons Fur Clean
Some owners of Maine Coons try to reduce shedding by giving their cats a bath to remove loose fur or dirt. This is normally only done when really needed and they use warm water (not hot or cold) to soak and wash the fur with pet-friendly shampoo.
While some Maine Coon cats may like water or being around it. It’s always a different story when you try to bath your cat with most of them showing a strong dislike to this task.
If your Maine Coon hates having baths when needed, there are other options available. You can use special cat-friendly wipes designed to carefully remove dirt from your cat. Some of these wipes are scented but we recommend non-scented versions as we fear scented wipes could alarm or distress our two cats.
It’s important to know that bathing or cleaning your cat’s fur to prevent shedding can remove natural oils that protect the fur and skin, so it should only ever be done if really necessary.
If your Maine Coon is especially matted or dirty we recommend also seeking the help of an experienced cat groomer who will both remove the problem areas of the fur, and wash your Maine Coon cats coat.
How To Prevent & Remove Maine Coon Fur From Your Home
Following on from some of the information above to prevent your Maine Coon from shedding fur around the home. You can also try some of the following tips to try to prevent the spread of hair or fur around the home:
- Provide your cat with sleeping areas or beds.
- Ensure they have areas of your home to relax in peace and are not always moved by your daily activity
- Keep track of your cats sleep and play habits – Where do these occur around the home?
- Always keep a Lint roller handy!
As for the above tips, we swear by keeping a heavy supply of Lint rollers on-hand as they let you deal with hair on carpets or furniture as they arise.
Of course, you will never be able to truly control your cat’s habits or places it likes to roam or sleep around the home. However, you can ensure you have the right cleaning tools on hand.
Here are some other useful cleaning aids to help you remove Maine Coon shedding:
- A good Vacuum cleaner (HEPA filter Vacuums are best to also reduce allergens)
- Stick sheets (Help you to remove cat hair from upholstered furniture)
- Electrostatic or Microfiber dry Mop (Great for picking up hair on wood, laminate, or tiled flooring)
- Pet hair gloves (Gloves that are specially designed to pick up cat hair in hard to reach areas of your home)
Conclusion
As has been covered, the answer to “Do Maine Coon Cats Shed?” is a definite and overwhelming YES! They do indeed, and they shed quite a lot!
Following our tips for grooming to prevent shedding, cleaning your cat’s fur coat and preventing and removing the cat hair from your home. These will all go a long way to ensure your cat lives a happier life.
It will also help ensure you as the owner have a much more pleasurable time owning these beautiful cats as pets and let you focus on what is important which is spending time with them, playing and having fun together!
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