Maine coon: inherited diseases and health
The inherited conditions below have been documented in this breed in published research. That does not mean your cat has them or will get them – but it helps to know the names when you talk to a breeder or a vet.
Conditions this breed is prone to
Veterinary charities list this breed as more likely than others to get these conditions. Read the signs and what to do:
Arthritis
Cardiomyopathy
Heart diseaseInherited conditions documented in the breed
Conditions documented: 20
A gene variant is known for 16 of the conditions below, so a DNA test may exist. Ask your vet or the breed club.
| Condition | Body system | Inheritance | Gene variant known |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auditory-pigmentary syndrome, PAX3-related[1] | Pigmentation | Autosomal dominant | Yes |
| Cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic[1] | Cardiovascular system | – | – |
| Cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic, MYBPC3-related, autosomal recessive[1] | Cardiovascular system | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic, TNNT2-related[1] | Cardiovascular system | Probably autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Cataract, generic[1] | Vision / eye | – | – |
| classical Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (cEDS), COL5A1-related[1] | Integument (skin) | Autosomal dominant | Yes |
| Cystinuria, type B[1] | Renal / urinary system | – | Yes |
| Factor XI deficiency[1] | Haematopoietic system | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Factor XII deficiency[1] | Haematopoietic system | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Fibrodysplasia ossificans[1] | Muscle | Autosomal dominant | Yes |
| Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy[2] | – | – | – |
| Multidrug resistance 1, ABCB1-related[1] | Homeostasis / metabolism | – | Yes |
| Muscular dystrophy, Becker type[1] | Muscle | X-linked recessive | Yes |
| Muscular dystrophy, congenital merosin-deficient[1] | Muscle | Autosomal | No |
| Muscular dystrophy, Duchenne type[1] | Muscle | X-linked | Yes |
| Polycystic kidney disease[1] | Renal / urinary system | Autosomal dominant + recessive lethal | Yes |
| Polydactyly[1] | Skeleton (incl. short stature & teeth) | Autosomal dominant with incomplete penetrance | Yes |
| Pyruvate kinase deficiency of erythrocyte[1] | Homeostasis / metabolism | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Retinal degeneration II[1] | Vision / eye | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
| Spinal muscular atrophy, LIX1-related[1] | Nervous system | Autosomal recessive | Yes |
What this list means
- “Documented in the breed” means at least one published case or study – it says nothing about how common the condition is.
- Many of these conditions are rare. A responsible breeder can tell you which health tests the parents have had.
- Where the gene variant is known, a DNA test may exist – ask your vet or the breed club.
- If your pet shows signs of illness, contact your vet. This page cannot tell you whether your pet is ill.
About the breed
- Origin
- United States
- Weight
- 4.5–11 kg
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Sources
How this page was made: the list is taken directly from the sources below; nothing on it was written by AI. Names of conditions may be machine-translated. It is information, not a diagnosis. How we write our pages