Maine Coon standard according to FIFe

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Category II MCO Maine Coon Standard
    The Maine Coon is a natural breed of amiable character that traces its origin to the working cat found on the farms of Northeast America.
General Appearance The Maine Coon is large framed with a square outline of the head, large ears, broad chest, solid bone structure, a long, hard muscled, rectangular body and a long flowing tail. Good muscle tone and density give the cat the appearance of power and robustness.
Size Large.
Head Shape Medium in size; square outline. Profile with a gentle concave slope.
Forehead Gently curved.
Cheeks Cheekbones high and prominent.
Face
Nose
Muzzle		 Face and nose of medium length with a square outline of the muzzle. Distinct transition can be felt between muzzle and cheekbones.
Chin Firm, in vertical alignment with nose and upperlip.
Ears Shape large, wide at the base. Moderately pointed. Lynx-tufts are desirable. Tufts of hair in the ears extend beyond outer edges of ears.
Placement Set high on head with a very slight outward tilt. Ears should be placed one ear's width apart. The width extends slightly in older cats. Lower base set just slightly further back than upper base.
Eyes Shape Large and widely set. Slightly oval, but not almond shaped, appear round when wide open. Set slightly slanted towards the outer base of the ear.
Colour Any colour is permitted. There is no relationship between eye- and coat colour. Clear eye colour is desirable.
Neck   Males have a very strong muscled neck.
Body Structure The body should be long, substantial bone structure. Hard muscled, powerful, broad chested. Large framed, all parts of the body in proportion to create a rectangular appearance.
Legs   Substantial, medium length to form a rectangle with the body.
Paws Large, round and well tufted between the toes.
Tail   At least as long as the body from shoulderblade to base of tail. Wide at the base tapering to the tip; with full, flowing hair. The hair on the tail is long and always remains flowing.
Coat Structure All weather coat. Dense. Short on head, shoulders and legs, becoming gradually longer down the back and sides, with long, full shaggy baggy trousers on the hind legs and belly fur. A frill is expected. Texture silky. Coat has distinct body, falling smoothly. The undercoat is soft and fine, covered by the coarse smooth outercoat.
Colour All colour varieties are permitted, including all colour varieties with white; except pointed patterns and chocolate and lilac, cinnamon and fawn. Any amount of white is allowed, i.e. a white blaze, white locket, white chest, white on the belly, white on the paws, etc.
Condition   The Maine Coon should always be in good balance, condition and proportion.
Remarks  
  • Type must always take preference over colour.
  • Very slow maturing of the breed should be taken into account.
  • Mature males may have larger and broader heads than females.
  • Females are proportionally smaller than males. Allowance must be made for this significant difference in size.
  • Length of coat and density of undercoat vary with the seasons.
Faults General
  • Unbalanced proportions.
  • Overall small cat.
Head
  • Round head.
  • Straight or convex profile.
Nose
  • Nose break.
Muzzle
  • Pronounced whisker pads.
  • Round or pointed muzzle.
Chin
  • Undershot chin.
Ears
  • Wide set, flared ears.
Eyes
  • Slanted almond shaped eyes.
Body
  • Fine, light bone structure.
  • Short cobby body.
Legs
  • Long stilty legs.
Tail
  • Short tail.
Coat
  • Lack of belly shag.
  • Coat of overall even length.
  • Lack of any undercoat

 
Scale of Points Points
Total   100
Head General shape, shape of nose, cheeks and muzzle, jaw and teeth, forehead, chin. 25 40
Shape and placement of ears. 10
Shape and placement of eyes. 5
Body Shape, size, bone structure, legs, shape of paws. 25 35
Shape and length of tail. 10
Coat Quality and texture. 10 20
Length. 10
Condition     5

 
Recognized Colour Varieties
Remarks The Maine Coon is judged in one of the following colour variety groups, i.e. in each colour variety group a certificate can be awarded.
Colour EMS Code
Group I
Black/Blue MCO n/a
Group II
Black/Blue with white MCO n/a 01/02/03/09
Group III
Black/Blue agouti MCO n/a 22/23/24/25
Black/Blue golden MCO n/a y 11/12/22/23/24/25
Group IV
Black/Blue agouti with white MCO n/a 01/02/03/09 21/22/23/24/25
Black/Blue golden with white MCO n/a y 01/02/03/09 11/12/21/22/23/24/25
Group V
Red/Cream/Tortie solid/agouti MCO d/e/f/g
MCO d/e/f/g 22/23/24/25
Red/Cream/Tortie golden MCO d/e/f/g y 11/12/22/23/24/25
Group VI
Red/Cream/Tortie solid/agouti with white MCO d/e/f/g 01/02/03/09
MCO d/e/f/g 01/02/03/09 21/22/23/24/25
Red/Cream/Tortie golden with white MCO d/e/f/g y 01/02/03/09 11/12/21/22/23/24/25
Group VII
Black/Blue/Red/Cream smoke/silver MCO n/a/d/e s
MCO n/a/d/e s 11/12/22/23/24/25
Tortie smoke MCO f/g s
Tortie silver MCO f/g s 11/12/22/23/24/25
Group VIII
Black/Blue/Red/Cream smoke/silver with white MCO n/a/d/e s 01/02/03/09
MCO n/a/d/e s 01/02/03/09 11/12/21/22/23/24/25
Tortie smoke with white MCO f/g s 01/02/03/09
Tortie silver with white MCO f/g s 01/02/03/09 11/12/21/22/23/24/25
Group IX
White MCO w
with blue eyes  61
with orange eyes  62
odd eyed  63
with green eyes  64