Grooming your Maine Coon is one of the most important things you need (besides proper species appropriate, moisture rich diet and feline enrichment/entertainment) to consider before you bring your kitten home. Maine Coons have a double coat.  The undercoat is a protective and insulating layer, the top coat is the smooth water repellant layer.  Since our cats spend most of their time indoors, the oil and grease that protects them from getting wet builds up and creates mats and/or possible skin issues when regular grooming is neglected.  All Maine Coons need to be bathed at some point!  How often depends on the individual cat's coat condition, as well as how well the routine daily grooming is kept up.  

Proper and regular grooming will ensure that your cat doesn't get painful mats, is comfortable with grooming and their coat stays in tip top, beautiful condition. 

It's important that you start with regular daily grooming as soon as possible.  Most reputable breeders start this process at a very early age, when the kitten is just a few weeks old,  you just need to keep up the work that's been started by your breeder. All of our kittens are used to regular daily grooming by the time they move to their forever homes and family. It is important that grooming is associated with positive experiences. Kittens usually do not need all the bathing steps, and most of the time degreasing is not necessary until they are older if/when their coat gets oily. 

Make sure that you're VERY CALM whether you're doing the daily grooming and/or bathing your cat! They definitely read your body language! If you're tense, uneasy or upset, they will be too! Not all Maine Coons love grooming, but they need to learn to tolerate it enough, so it can get done.  It is for their own benefit as well as yours. Properly groomed Maine Coon's will also have a lot less "puking up hair balls" incidences.

During bathing (as well as daily combing) you need to keep your hands on your cat gently, but firmly at all times, so he/she does not even think about jumping out or escaping! Once they're successful at "escaping" the more likely they will try afterwards. You may choose a bathtub (can be super hard on your back though), a kitchen sink if it's large enough, or an actual pet bathing station (not my choice as they're crazy expensive). I usually use our kitchen sink or bathtub for bathing my cats.

If you feel that bathing your Maine Coon is too much for you to handle please seek out a professional cat groomer.  Make sure that the cat groomer you choose has experience with how to handle a Maine Coons and their coat, and uses appropriate good quality tools and products.  Unfortunately not all groomers are good.  I've seen some awful grooming jobs done by "professional" groomers more than just once or twice! If you need a cat groomer recommendation in the Edmonton, Alberta area please let me know!

There are many different products and tools available. I've tried many over the years. The ones listed below are the ones I use right now and they work well for us. Please note: There are some other grooming products available for show grooming that you may find useful.  The products I mention below are mostly for regular maintenance baths and grooming.

​

Tools and products you will need: (there are photos of some below):

•  nail clippers (nails always need to be trimmed before bathing! You do not want to be scratched!)

• cotton pads and saline solution for eye and ear cleaning

• Non-slip bath mat (for the bottom of your bathing tub, so your cat doesn't slip. That would cause extra stress.)

•  Happy Hoodie and Groomers cone (we only use the Happy Hoodie here, but having the Groomers      Cone is a good idea with nervous, hard to handle cats who may bite).  If your Maine Coon is hard to handle during bathing or gets extremely stressed please seek a professional cat groomer's help and/or talk to your veterinarian about medication you can use to calm your cat before and during bathing.

• Degreasers: I use the Dolly Chiny Degreaser or Les Pooch F&T degreaser (Both work well).  When it comes to shampoo and conditioner please be aware that some need dilution according to instructions on the product label. Please only use shampoos and conditioners that are meant for pets (not humans).

• 2 Diluting bottles (one for the shampoo and one for the conditioner), hair colour applicator bottles also work well and may be cheaper.

• Shampoos:

  1. Chris Christensen Clean Start Clarifying shampoo. For kittens we also like the Les Pooch Hypoallergenic Shampoo Concentrate (needs to be diluted!);  Another product that I used in the past and liked it is #1 All Systems Clarifying shampoo, but prefer Chris Christensen lately.

  2. Chris Christensen Facial Wash (optional, but nice). I like using it.

  3. IMPORTANT: waterless shampoo and/or powders (including Corn Starch) are useless and will cause an even worse buildup, extra grease and mats in the coat, making it more unmanageable. Do not use any products that are not washed/rinsed out immediately.

•  Conditioner: Chris Christensen After U Bathe Final Rinse

• Hair dryer (any good quality hair dryer will work if you have just one Maine Coon to dry at the time, but please be aware that they can get too hot even on low setting. The quieter your hair dryer is, the better. Dry on low setting so you don't accidentally burn your cat. Make sure that you watch for overheating or drying on too hot setting. I recently invested in "The Flying Pig" pet hair dryer.  It is a high velocity pet dryer that does not get over heated. I'm super exited about trying it. 

• Towels (I usually have 3-4 towels ready to be used)

• Combs:  We use combs for 99% of the grooming.  I find brushes almost useless for proper grooming to be honest. If you really want to have one, because your cat loves it, the Show Tech Side Slicker is good (but please be aware that combs are a must have for grooming your Maine Coon).

  1. Butter Comb or a good quality GreyHound Comb (stainless steel comb) with one side (one end) medium course the other side fine. I have several different ones that I collected over the years.

  2. Chris Christensen Carding comb or Eye Envy Carding Comb (both of these comb are used for deshedding the undercoat. They work really well.

• Pet hair clipper:  if your cat has a mat, sometimes it needs to be very carefully clipped out if it's really bad.  If you do not have experience with using a clipper please have someone who knows and has experience with how to properly do it, so you don't accidentally hurt your cat or cut the skin. If you're going to get one, make sure you get a good one that is meant to be used on pets (NOT humans). IMPORTANT: DO NOT try to cut out mats if the cat is struggling to get away or aggressive!

​

Preparation for bathing:

•  Carefully trim the nails (our cats get their nails checked daily and trimmed every 10-14 days).

•  Clean eyes and ears (we also check teeth and gums on a regular basis, during daily grooming)

•  Comb out the coat of your Maine Coon, so it's tangle and mat free.  Use the course or medium course side(end) of your butter comb first.  When it glides through the hair, you can switch to the fine side of your butter comb, and do the same.  Make sure you don't miss the underarms and behind the legs areas.  Mats tend to form easier in those areas.  If the mats can't be safely combed out, this is when you need to VERY CAREFULLY trim them out with the pet clipper.  PLEASE be very careful and get help if you do not have experience with this! Finally use the carding comb for the undercoat. Sometimes I switch this step, and use the carding comb after the bath because the products used during bathing loosen the undercoat that's mixed with the dirt and oils, and it is easier to comb out.

• NOTE:  If your cat hates combing, the most likely the reason is that it hurts, due to mats!  Mats are very painful!  What I recommend for a situation like this is the following:  - find a professional cat groomer, get a full groom (bathing and combing) every 4-6 weeks, depending on your Maine Coon's coat condition. Be very diligent about the schedule! In between professional grooms, take your cat to the same small "grooming" area in your home every single day and comb him/her every single day.  Even if you only get a minute of combing at the beginning! Slowly and gradually condition him/her, by increasing the time. Remember to stay CALM while grooming your cat. Keep up the daily grooming! Reward your cat after each grooming session by giving treats and/or a good teaser wand play session! Useful tip:  pick a small section of the hair and work on that, next time do the same section and maybe a tiny bit more, very gradually increase what you groom. It will be a long process. Don't get discouraged, always stay calm. You're doing this in between 4-6 weeks professional grooms, and are trying to get your cat to like (or at least tolerate) grooming eventually!

•  Pre-bathing steps are necessary if your cat has greasy areas and/or stud tail. Most adult Maine Coons need the pre-bathing step. For this step I I really like using the Dolly Chiny degreaser (please let me know if you want to purchase this product, I do have a supplier who can ship it to you). It works amazing, but it is a bit on the pricy side.  You work it/massage it well into the greasy areas (go against the hair growth too to be able work it into the hair, while the hair is DRY! Let it sit for a few minutes and rinse it out really well before the next step which is shampooing.  Les Pooch F&T degreaser is also a good product (my second choice) and is a bit less expensive (you can use it at a diluted or undiluted strength depending on how greasy your cat is.

•  You are now ready for the actual bath.  Have your shampoo and conditioner ready and pre-diluted in the diluting bottles (or hair colour applicator bottles.  Have your towels ready to be used. I like to use the Happy Hoodie or Ear Buddy at this point, until the end of the bathing.  Put it on your cat's head carefully to cover the ears. It will help with lessening noise as well as ensure that water doesn't get inside the ears.  Secure the non-slip mat in your bathing tub. Make sure the water is warm enough, but not too hot! Check the water temperature often during the bath.  I personally prefer using a pet or regular shower head for bathing my cats.  Some people use a cup instead of a pet shower head, but it takes way too long to rinse the product out of the hair properly in my experience.

• Thoroughly wet your cat's coat and apply shampoo (you may only need diluted shampoo) in all of the areas.  Massage/lather it into the coat well. Rinse, Rinse, Rinse and Rinse some more!!! It is very important that the shampoo is rinsed out fully!  When you think it's fully rinsed and it's squeaky clean, rinse for another couple of minutes!  When the products are not rinsed out properly, your cat's coat will look greasy and dirty in no time again! You may need to shampoo twice if your cat is super dirty or oily!

• When the shampoo is rinsed out well, you're ready for the coat conditioning step. I always use diluted conditioner! Work it into the coat, and rinse out very well at the end of the bath! Here again, rinse, rinse, rinse and rinse some more.  There are some who prefer not using conditioner after shampooing. My preference is to use it, however it is very diluted and light (doesn't weigh the coat down) and rinsed out fully.

• When the body is done, take off the Happy Hoodie and shampoo and condition your cat's head and behind the ears, carefully so water or product does not get into the ear canal. For this step, it is nice to use the Facial Wash.  Rinse well!  You may need a final rinse on the whole body if any product/shampoo got onto those areas.

• When bathing is finished gently get as much water off your cat while still in the tub.  Then wrap him/her in a large (warm) towel and let the water soak into the towel.  I usually use several dry towels for this step (one dry towel after another). Dry the head and the ears really well with the dry towel.

• Have your dryer ready in your grooming area.  Put a dry Happy Hoodie on your cat's head (it will help with the noise).  If your cat is new to the hairdryer, or is nervous about it, wrap her/him in a dry towel "burrito style", face his head away from the dryer, so he/she can't see the dryer (for some cats it helps if they can "bury" their head into the towel away from the noise.  This is where it really helps to have a quiet, high velocity dryer. You may also wish to use the Groomers Cone (I personally don't as my cats are fine without it).

• Dry your cat's coat fully!  Leaving the hair damp or wet will create mats and/or ugly curly hair. You can start combing the hair once it's about 95% dry. Comb it through gently.  Use the coarser side of your butter comb first to detangle followed by the fine side. You can then go over the whole coat again with the carding comb.

• And Voila! You have a beautifully clean and well groomed Maine Coon! Make sure to groom with your combs on a regular schedule, it'll be a lot less work, and the coat will stay nice and clean for a lot longer.

​

  

​

​

​

​

​

​