MAINE COON

The Maine Coon cat is a naturally occurring breed whose origins have been described in fantasies and legends that greatly add to its charm. According to some observers the Maine Coon descended from cats that had been sent to the Undited States from France by Marie Antoinette. Others believe that a sea captain named Coon brought Perisan and Angora cats to this country, and Coon’s cats, after jumping ship, introduced the longhair gene to the New World. Persons knowing little about cat behavior and reproduction used the term Coon cats for another reason: they believed the Maine Coon resulted from a cross between a racoon and a cat. This is genetically impossible, even though many of the first longhaired domestic cats were brown ticked or seal brown in color and had tabby rings on their tails much like the racoon. Legends notwithstanding, early settlers undoubtedly brought the ancestors of the Maine Coon to America, and these were very likely the first domestic cats to arrive o the North American continent.

COONORAMA FRED & DIANE MADISONVILLE TN 423 420 0022 E-MAIL coonorama@webtv.net