Maine coon project
What is this project? This began after much thought and many years of phone calls from families asking me what breed I would recommend to purchase as a playmate for their bengal. I started researching breeds and talking to families and decided the Maine Coon would be a great fit. I also noticed that there was one particular popular color in the Maine Coon breed that causes 40-60% deafness in the Maine Coon kitten with possible eye damage as well. Because of this, a small group of breeders have set out to create a similar color in the Maine Coon, but without the deafness/eye damage. For this project, we began by breeding a beautiful Maine Coon girl, imported from the Ukraine, to one of my Bengal males. Kittens were all DNA tested for health and diversity, and one kitten was chosen to proceed to the next generation. I have named this special girl "HOPE".
The three kittens produced by this pairing are all very beautiful, short-haired, and very sweet. They had the larger ears, long tail, and larger bone structure of the Maine Coon. I will be updating this page as this project continues but this project will also have its own website/ Cattery name as we progress.
If you are interested in a kitten for your family from this project, you can either wait for me to post available Maine Coon project kittens on this website, or you may contact me privately to be put on a notification list for when kittens arrive. Most kittens will be at least 6 weeks old when they are posted because we have to wait for DNA results to arrive first.
There will also be kittens from this project located in Colorado for families who are located on the West side of the country. When kittens are posted, their location will also be labeled. Please click "AVAILABLE PROJECT KITTENS" to be directed to a separate page for these kittens .
Brown & White Spotted Female
Brown & White Classic Male
Brown Classic Female
BELOW is Ursula. She was imported from the Ukraine and is an extremely affectionate girl. She is a TICA registered Maine Coon /Brown & White Classic
After deciding which kitten from the litter we were keeping for this project, which was Hope, the other kittens were posted on my facebook group, BENGAL KITTENS IN MICHIGAN
The post generated a response I didn't expect. I received many calls, texts, etc... from families who were very excited that we had "crossed their two favorite cat breeds". It also brought to my attention how many families "wished there was a shorthair Maine Coon". Of course this opened up many possibilities because I am capable of producing such kittens for families. This project we are working on will begin with kittens that are 50% Mainecoon, then 75% Maine Coon (2024), 88% Maine Coon (2025), 94% Maine Coon (2026), and finally Purebred Maine Coon 2027. This is of course our road map and there could be delays along the way. Each generation, kittens will be DNA tested to determine which ones we are keeping but I am able to keep the shorthair gene from the first pairing and move it all the way to Purebred with the shorthair. This would be a great option for families who are unable to have a longhair cat in their home but love the Maine Coon.
What are our goals for the look of line of Maine Coons we are working on?
Ears: We will select for large ears with long ear tufts: We feel this is a Maine Coon trait that cannot be emphasized enough.
Face: We will select for large muzzles and a sort of grumpy expression found in the European lines of Maine Coons.
Body size: We will select for big boned large kittens.
Coat quality: We will select for coats that are straight, silky, shiny, and that don't seem to mat as easily.
Coat length: We will of course have the longhair coats with the longer hair around the neck Maine Coons are known for, but we will most likely keep a line of shorthair Maine Coons as an option for families.
Feet: We have not decided yet if polydactyly will be a main focus, but we will most likely have them as an option.
Registration description: Similar patterns in cats can be called 2 separate names, depending on the breed. Because of this, we will be using the names for patterns based on the Maine Coon breed.
This project is strictly for families looking for loving family members and no kittens will be sold into any breeding programs
All kittens at every stage of this process will be TICA registered and families who purchase a kitten will be provided their registration papers when they bring their kittens home.