TARASCANI MAINE COONS

The Maine Coon is a semi-longhaired cat of medium Foreign type and is distinguished by its large size, bone structure, rectangular appearance and flowing coat.

The Maine Coon evolved as a working domesticated cat in a rural environment; this role is reflected in a muscular cat of rugged outdoor appearance with a characteristic weatherproof coat and the demeanour of an alert capable hunter.

Head - Medium in length, the nasal bridge being equidistant from the ear line and the tip of the nose, with the width being slightly less than the length of the head. Allowance should be made for additional breadth or jowls in mature males.

The muzzle should be square with firm chin: chin, upper lip and nose leather should fall in a perpendicular line. Cheeks fairly full, with high cheekbones. Bite level. Nose of uniform width with shallow concave curve at the nasal bridge when viewed in profile, and without a sharp break or stop.

Ears - Large, tall ears, wide at base and tapering to appear pointed at the tip; set high but well apart.

Eyes - Full and round, spaced wide apart with a slightly oblique aperture and set. Shades of green, gold or copper; coat and eye colour may be unrelated. Odd or blue eyes are permissible in white cats.

Body and Neck - Body large to medium size, solid and muscular with breadth of chest. Long body with proportionate limbs to create the characteristic rectangular appearance; square rump. Neck moderately long; particularly thick and muscular in mature males.

Legs and Paws - Substantial legs with large round paws; toes carried close, five in front, four behind.

Tail - Long, at least the length of the back, wide at the base and tapering towards the tip.

Coat: Waterproof and virtually self-maintaining, consisting of an undercoat covered by a more substantial glossy topcoat. Fur shorter on the head, neck and shoulders increasing in length down the back, flanks and tail. A fluffy appearance is undesirable.

Breeches and belly fur full and shaggy. Frontal ruff beginning at the base of the ears; heavier in males than females. Tail fur long, profuse and flowing; not bushy. Ears feathered and preferably tufted at the tips; the ear feathering should extend beyond the outer edges of the ear. Paws tufted, with long tufts emanating from under the paws, extending backwards to create a snowshoe effect.

1. Since the Maine Coon is slow to mature (taking up to 4 years), allowance should be made as to their size when judging younger cats. The balance of the cat is of uppermost importance.
2. The cat loses coat during the summer months.
3. Different coat colours may have different textured coats

1. Wrongly registered adults, kittens or neuters.
   NOTE: These should be marked as wrong colour on judge's slips and disqualified.
2. Blue or odd eyes in cats of a colour other than white
3. Van Patterned Cats

1. Cobby body shape and/or fine bone structure
2. Bi-Colour or Parti-colour cats that exhibit more than one third white or do not exhibit some white on all four paws, belly and chest
3. Definite nose break or stop
4. Straight profile or pronounced nose bump
5. Untufted paws
6. White markings (including buttons, lockets or spots) anywhere other than those referred to in the SOP
7. Overall even coat length
8. Persian like coat texture
9. Serious colour or pattern faults
10. Any defect as listed in the preface to this SOP booklet

1. Unsound base coat in Solid or Tortoiseshell coloured cats
2. Tabby markings in adult Smoke coloured cats
3. Heavy tabby markings in Shaded coloured cats
4. White extending beyond the throat in Non-Silver Tabby cats registered without white
5. Tarnishing in Silver Series cats
6. Heavily brindled coat in Tabby cats

Chocolate, Lilac and Siamese Points are not allowed.

The fur should be sound to the roots in colour and free from any shadings, markings and patches of white hairs, except that red series solid cats may well show tabby markings. Nose leather, Paw pads and eye rims to tone with the bodv colour.

The patterning should extend throughout the coat including the limbs, tail and face; blaze desirable. Base colour should be sound to the roots.

SMOKE COLOURS

Any solid or tortoiseshell colour accepted. The undercoat should be silvery white with deep tips shading to the basic colour. The cat appears darkest on the back, head and feet. In a smoke cat the silvery white undercoat, which is next to the skin, should not be clearly visible when the cat is in repose. However, this can be seen when fur is parted or when the cat is moving.

This is a genetically silver non-tabby variety of Maine Coon. The appearance of clear tabby markings in the coat is undesirable. However, it is accepted that Red Series Smoke colours may exhibit some faint markings which should not be unduly penalised in an otherwise good example of the breed. It should also be noted that kittens of all Smoke colours may well show ghost tabby markings on the body for which they should not be too heavily penalised. The presence of tabby markings in adults is undesirable.

Allowances to be made for diffusion of tabby markings in cats showing long or full flowing coats. Recognised coat patterns are Classic and Mackerel pattern.

There is a tendency for tabbies to show white around the immediate area of the lips and lower jaw area. It is a serious fault if this extends to the throat in non-silver tabbies or tabbies registered without white. Silver-white colour on the throat and muzzle of silver tabbies/silver tortie tabbies is not a fault and the base colour may be diluted by the gene producing silver.

Classic Pattern:

All markings to be clearly defined and dense. On the forehead there should be a letter 'M' giving the impression of a frown. There should be an unbroken stripe running back from the outer comer of the eye and narrow lines on the cheeks. On the neck and upper chest there should be unbroken necklaces, the more the better. The edges of the ears to be the same colour as the markings with a central patch of ground colour resembling a thumb print. A series of lines run from above the 'M' marking, over the top of the head and extend to the shoulder markings. The shoulder markings form the outline of a butterfly, when viewed from above. On the back there should be an unbroken line running down the spine from the butterfly to the tail, and there should be a stripe on either side of this running parallel to it. These stripes should be separated from each other by stripes of ground colour. On each flank there should be an 'oyster" shaped patch which should have complete rings, as numerous as possible. The tip of the tail should be the same colour as the markings. The legs should be barred evenly with bracelets from the body markings to the toes which should be spotted. The back of the leg from the sole to the hock should be solid colour. The abdominal area should be spotted.

All markings to be clearly defined and dense. On the forehead, there should be a letter 'M' giving the impression of a frown. There should be an unbroken stripe running from the outer comer of the eye and narrow lines on the cheeks. On the neck and upper chest there should be unbroken necklaces, the more the better. The edges of the ears to be the same colour as the markings with a central patch of colour resembling a thumb print. A series of lines run from above the 'M' marking, over the top of the head and extend to the shoulder markings. There should be one narrow, unbroken central spine line on either side of which is a broken spine line from which the narrow lines which form the Mackerel pattern run vertically down the body. These lines should be unbroken and as narrow and numerous as possible. The tip of the tail should be the same colour as the markings.

Colour and markings as above on a silver agouti ground. Nose leather, paw pads and eye rims as above. (See Non-Silver Tabby Series for full description).

SHADED COLOURS:

Both Standard (non-silver) and Silver Shaded colours are accepted in any solid or tortoiseshell colour. Shaded cats are genetically agouti. In the shaded cat the coloured fur should give the overall appearance of a mantle on the back. The body should be as free from tabby markings as possible in adults. Kittens may well exhibit ghost tabby markings on the body for which allowance should be made.

In Standard Shaded, the undercoat should be as pale as possible with the shaft of each hair pale at the root and darkening to the base colour at the tip.

In Silver Shaded, the undercoat should as pale a silver as possible with shallow tips shading to the basic colour; the dark points being most clearly defined on the back, head and feet and the lighter points on the flanks and ear tufts. Any tarnishing of the coat is undesirable.

Nose leather, paw pads and eye rims in keeping with the basic colour.

BICOLOUR AND PARTICOLOUR

Any solid, tabby, tortoiseshell, shaded or smoke colour and white. The base colour should predominate. The minimum white permitted is some white to all four paws, underbelly and chest, with some colour allowed to these areas. The cat must not have more than one third white.