My beautifull Red Maine coon loves to play fetch. He will bring you an object and wait for you to throw it, then off he runs, gets it brings it back and waits for you to throw it again. Is this normal Main Coon behaviour? I have never heard of it before, and most people I tell dont believe me.

Thanks Andy.

-- Anonymous, May 11, 1999

Answers

Andy:

Yes, this is a known characteristic of the Maine Coon breed! My MC Simba plays fetch with me all the time--his favorite "toy" in the world is simply a piece of paper, rolled up into a ball, a pretty small ball, and he'll chase this and bring it to me to throw over and over again! What a fun and inexpensive toy! I also have another cat, Loco, who loves to play fetch--with giant gumbands! Kitties are great fun and full of surprises. Have fun with him!!!!

-- Anonymous, May 11, 1999

Andy-

Our 17 month old female MC brown tabby LOVES to play fetch. Any wadded up piece of paper (she usually tries to get one out of the trash!) will do for a "mouse" - if my hubby and I are near by - she will take turns (!) with us. She will bring it to me, I throw it and she returns it to him, and so on. Strangest thing I ever saw! She is our first MC and we are so fascinated!

-- Anonymous, May 12, 1999

hey andy -

I guess there are several members of the club. Our boy, Sparky, gives an added twist to the game. He likes to fetch the paper wad - pick it up - drop it in one of my air jordans - then attack it again and finally bring it back to me to start the game all over. What a guy!

-- Anonymous, May 19, 1999

Andy,

Believe it or not all three of our adult male MCs play fetch. Recently a daughter of one of them picked up the game all by herself at barely 4 months old, her father also picked up the game at a very young age. They fetch everything from milk jug rings to paper balls to store bought sparkly balls. The father and daughter will place the fetched item into our hands and act just like a dog waiting for you to throw it again. I also have a male MC that will "shake" for treats. Oh I forgot the thing to do it to place the fetched item either in my purse, backpack, the kleenex box or the ultra favorite place one of our shoes.

-- Anonymous, May 21, 1999

Yes, Andy, it seems to be quite common amongst Maine Coons to play this "retrieve" game. They seem to prefer small rolled up pieces of paper the best! One of my MCs will actually drop the paper into my hand to throw it each time....others drop theirs nearby. One cat will drop his ball into his water dish if he gets bored or we don't throw the ball back quickly enough! I have also had Siamese who retrieve objects but the MCs are definitely better at it and it seems to be a common habit for them.

-- Anonymous, May 23, 1999