At Timberkatz Cattery, our most important job is to raise our Maine Coon kittens to be strong, healthy, well adjusted Maine Coons that will give years of enjoyment to their new families. Both Neli and I strongly believe to produce a good Maine Coon adult, the kitten must be raised using certain methods to put the kitten on the path to becoming a great pet.

A few weeks before the kittens are even born, we start feeding the expectant mother special dietary supplements. This prepares the mother for the weeks of nursing ahead and to assure she's healthy to raise her kitten litter. We monitor the mother's weight both before, during and after her pregnancy to make sure that she's not having any health issues.

Once the kittens arrive, we hand raise them from day one and bottle feed them several times a day during the first few weeks of life. By bottle feeding in addition to mother's milk, we insure our kittens are getting the nourishment that they require. In addition, we are introducing the kittens to the sound of our voices and our touch which is some of the first steps in the socialization process. During this time we also monitor all of the kitten's weights from day one and track their progress.

As our Maine Coon kittens get older, we teach discipline to the little ones. Just think of these kittens as a toddler not knowing all the dangers of the world or what behaviors are acceptable vs. not acceptable. By teaching a kitten not to swing on the curtains or not to bite your fingers at this age can prevent undesired behavior when the kitten grows into an adult Maine Coon. We use a few simple methods to accomplish this, we say "NO" or "OWWWW" very loudly to discourage certain behaviors such as finger biting. Another verbal sound we use is a "HISS" sound which imitates the hissing sound of an adult Maine Coon. As a last resort, it's a squirt from a squirt bottle which usually causes the kitten to run away and stop what their doing. The key is to stop the unwanted behavior and be consistent about it.

We teach our kittens how to use a scratching post and assist the kitten with their litter box etiquette (when needed). By imprinting these techniques on the kittens at this age, it assists in preventing all kinds of problems down the line. If the kittens have an accident, we place it in the litter box with the kitten so they know for the next time. If the kitten begins to scratch where they are not supposed to, we bring them over to the scratching post to show them where to scratch. We NEVER hit or abuse ANY of our kittens because we know accidents WILL HAPPEN and it is our responsibility to teach proper behaviors.

Once the kittens are big enough our favorite time approaches, PLAY TIME! We get to socialize, spending hours both playing with and watching our Maine Coon kittens play. We keep many different types of cat toys available and introduce them at different times to give the Maine Coon kitten both variety and spark curiosity. By playing with these kittens and making it an enjoyable experience helps with their socialization with people too.

When our kittens are ready to leave our home at 12 weeks of age, they are healthy, well adjusted and are ready for their new homes. We want these "TIMBERKITTENS" to thrive and become adult Maine Coons giving their new families many years of happiness. We are here for ALL of clients to answer questions about their Maine Coon for the life of their cat. After all, we did helped bring them into the world, we were their first set of "human parents" and we do care what happens to them.

Purrs and Paws,


Neli and David Tremblay
Timberkatz Cattery