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The Maine Coon is one of the oldest natural breeds on the North American Continent. They are usually large and always very beautiful! To top their beauty off they are also (mostly) extremely friendly and social. My experience is that the Maine Coon is not made for solitary living, they love having people and other pets around. They are very playful and alert. Even if all them don't sit on your lap all day long they do love to be cuddled several times a day.

There are many stories about how the breed developed. The one I like the best is the one about the French Queen Marie Antoinette and the Swedish Nobleman Axel von Fersen. It might not be the most likely but it is the most romantic and that's enough for me! It's been said that von Fersen, who was desperately in love with the Queen, tried to save her from the guillotine by arranging to take her to the States. (The story doesn't say this but I assume that he also planned for them to live there happily ever after!). All Marie Antoinette's belongings, together with her beautiful Persian cats, were stored on a ship bound for America, but we all know that the Queen didn't make it. Her cats did, however, and the story tells that several of them ran off as soon as the ship docked along the Maine coastline. After that they naturally mixed with the large, native barn cats and that is how the breed came to be. It's not really that unbelievable, is it now? 

What is it like to grow up as a Maine Coon?
Well, Tai-Pan has some answers for you!

At birth everyone finds you extremely cute. I myself know nothing of the world yet but everyone is so nice to me and takes such good care of me, it's really ok!

Then you start to grow up, get even cuter than before and of course, at this age I think I know everything that's worth knowing and I'm very capable of handling any sort of situation that comes up!

I know, for example, that to get real big you need a lot of sleep. And I'm all for that!!

I have to learn to hang 10 which means that I have to behave at shows when someone holds me just so someone else can see that I'm really handsome! Like I didn't know that already!

At shows you might as well try to be social and get to know your neighbor! This you do, of course, before you know any better and all the hormons get a hold of you! This particular neighbor was the biggest cat I'd ever seen, my eyes almost fell out of my skull but he was very nice! And so was I, just to be on the safe side!

And then you come home, full of new experiences and want to tell everyone. You want them, of course, to get extremely impressed with what you have had to live through only to get washed down by force because you smell different from the rest of them!

You are allowed to watch TV and cheer on your favorite sports person (in this case it's Anja Pärsson flying down the hill)! This is ok as long as you don't turn the TV upside down or you fall down from it head first!

You are certainly NOT allowed to climb up the kitchen shelf! It was all in good fun until I decided I wanted down. Thankfully my paws are so big they kept my balance but I can assure you that not a single cook book was in place afterwards!

You learn how to show your very best sides  in front of the camera continuously!

And you have to sleep some more since you are still growing!

Holy cow! You have to learn to be nice while you're being bathed! I really thought that I would get out of it with this melancholic look, but it didn't work!

You learn to hate shows! But it was fun to sleep in my new bed behind the sales table. At first it worked great until I found out that I preferred to be UNDER the table chasing feet that passed by instead!

This is hardly a bed you buy a big cat! But I decided to make it mine because I was the only one that had legs long enough to reach the floor so at least I didn't fall out of it!

Well, all ideas are good until they are tested! Here we are trying to see how much of me can fit in a transport made for a cat about the size of 5 kg (10lb). It's a good thing I'm patient because it was truly hard work to just get my rear into it!

I keep myself as clean as any good cat will do but if you have an iron lady in the house that always thinks you are dirty you might as well get used to a life time of being cleaned by force!.

This one's name is Nora, personally I call her Big Bertha, because she is one strong dame! I'm big but she's bigger and means business so I'm slowly trying to get used to her routine!

One bad part of being big is that it takes her forever to get me to the point where she's satisfied with the result but by now she thinks I love it and it won't be long before I strike back!

You have to get used to staying overnight in different hotels. As long as there's a window where people can see me and admire me, that's ok!That's truly the best part of being away from home, everyone thinks you are the cat's meow and I really like that! As long as it's ordinary people and not some judge at a show, I can't stand those guys even looking at me!

Well, you grow and you grow and get bigger and bigger but so far I'm only two years old and have a lot of growing to do yet. My mom has said that I'm big enough now but I'm going to make sure I grow some more. I have figured out that the bigger I get the harder it is for her to control me and that's just great!

Guess what this slightly surprised, slightly concerned face is? It's my mom's Good-Luck-Charm-Paw! It belongs to me but since I no longer have to go to shows with her she always kisses it for good luck before she leaves. No need for a rabbit's foot in this house!

Generally, I must say, I much rather be a handsome Maine Coon than anything else!!
 

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