20 Maine Coon Cats Eat Their Owner’s Body

Maine Coon owners everywhere who have heard the newest cat-related story from Russia are probably wanting to know why 20 Maine Coon Cats ate their owner?!

So make sure you keep reading, to discover the actual TRUTH behind this bizarre story.

20 Maine Coon cats in Russia did eat their owner, but it was only after she had died and their food had run out. These cats were faced with the choice of either eating their owner or dying of starvation, so they decided to choose survival.

Understandably this news can be quite frightening for cat owners everywhere, especially Maine Coon owners!

But, the good news is that you do not need to worry about your loveable cat suddenly turning on you when you do not give them their fourth treat of the day.

There is far more to this story than the headline suggests, so keep tuned as we are going to dive deeper into this story. We will go over what happened, why it happened, and whether or not you need to be worried about it happening to you.

Why 20 Maine Coon Cats Ate Their Owner

Maine Coon cats are one of the largest domesticated cat breeds in the world; however, despite their size, they are known to be one of the sweetest breeds of cat that you could ever own.

They are known to be gentle and loving towards their owners, which is partly why they are growing in popularity year on year.

While these cats do have origins as wild hunters, the domesticated Maine Coon cat that many owners have grown to love is as far from the wild as you can get.

Considering this cat breed is well known for its affectionate and gentle personality, it is not surprising that this story shocked the world.

I mean, it’s not every day you hear that 20 Maine Coon cats ate their deceased owner!

Summary Of The Facts

To help readers get up to speed with the latest news I have summarised the facts relating to these infamous 20 Maine Coon cats:

What Happened?

In the Russian city of Bataysk, a 79-year-old woman collapsed and died in her home.

The woman, whose identity has not been revealed by police, was a cat breeder and kept 20 Maine Coon cats in her home.

After two weeks of not hearing from the lady, an employee of the cat breeder contacted the police because she was concerned that she was not able to contact her boss.

The police went to investigate the scene and found the woman dead inside her home, partially eaten by her twenty very large and hungry cats.

Reasons Maine Coons Ate Russian Woman

Maine Coon cats are the largest domesticated cat breed in the world.

Despite their rather large size though, Maine Coons are NOT KNOWN for being aggressive or dangerous. They are quite the opposite of this!

If you are experiencing issues with an aggressive Maine Coon cat, read this helpful guide.

Cat lovers around the world nicknamed these large affectionate-natured cats ‘gentle giants’.

When animal experts have been asked about the situation and why the cats may have begun to eat their owner, the answer was simple: “HUNGER”.

The fact of the matter is that these cats were alone in the house for two weeks. They would have eaten through the food they had very quickly, probably within the first day.

At that point, they did not have any other option. They either ate their owner and survived, or died through starvation.

Whilst this may sound callous, it is important to keep in mind that most animals (including human beings) will instinctively do anything to survive. This basic instinct is hard-wired into all living beings.

Thus, even extremely loving cats are still animals that will do what they need to do to survive.

Where Are The Cats Now?

After the body was rescued, the cats were taken to an animal rescue to be rehabilitated.

They have started to rehome the healthiest of the Maine Coon cats, while others need a bit more time and care before they can be rehomed.

The new owners were able to adopt the Maine Coons for just $29 a cat. This is a remarkable price, considering Maine Coons are usually sold at far higher rates (check the latest pricing).

At this time, it has not been made clear whether or not the new owners are aware of what happened with the previous owner (source 1).

Will Cats Eat You If You Die In Your Home?

If you have cats, whether they are Maine Coons or another breed, this story may have left you wondering whether or not your cats will start to eat you if you die in your home.

The answer to this query varies since the woman who died in Russia is not a unique or rare story.

In fact, for years, there have been stories circling about people who have died in their homes and were then eaten by their cats, so it is entirely possible that if you were to die in your home, your cats could start to eat you!

However, there are a couple of factors to consider…

First, how much food do your cats have?

Researchers have found that cats are picky eaters, and if they find a food source they like, they are unlikely to switch unless they have to.

That means if there is enough food in your home, your cats will likely eat all that food first before looking for another food source.

Second, it depends on how long you are dead before you are discovered.

This Russian woman was dead in her home for two weeks. In other stories, however, the deceased went undiscovered for an even longer period.

While cats are known to eat human corpses as a food source, it is unlikely that your cats will begin to do so right away (source 2).

Let’s consider some other stories where cats turned to eating their dead owners:

Madrid Woman Eaten By Cats

In 2021, people reported that they had not seen their neighbor, a Colombian woman who lived alone in Madrid, in over a month.

They had started to smell a horrible odor, so the police went to investigate.

The police found a gruesome scene.

The woman’s cats had eaten her from the waist up.

They believe the woman had been dead for three months. Five of her cats had died from starvation; two were left alive but were in very bad condition and were immediately sent to a local animal protection center for rehabilitation (source 1).

56-Year-Old Woman Eaten By Cats In Southampton

Going a little farther back, in 2013, people in Southampton, UK, contacted the police when they realized mail was building up for a 56-year-old woman. They had also not seen her for quite some time.

When the police entered the home, they found many dogs and cats, many of whom were already dead, and a body that they described as ‘gnawed and eaten.’

They believe that the animals had been there without food for up to three months (source 1).

How Long Will A Cat Wait To Eat You?

When looking at cases where people died in their homes and then were left undiscovered for a period of time, research has found that after the food ran out, dogs would go several days until eating their owner’s body, as a last resort.

On the other hand, research has found that cats wait less time, only about a day or two, before starting to eat their owner after the food runs out!

How Long Will It Take For A Cat To Eat A Human?

How long will it take for a cat to actually eat an entire human, depends on a variety of different factors such as:

• Age
• Size
• Activity Level
• Health Conditions
• Breed

However, we can use general rules and estimates for how much a cat eats in a day to estimate how long it would take for a cat to eat a human.

However, we will have to go with the assumption that a cat will attempt to eat the entire body, which does not seem to be the case.

Nevertheless, for a small cat that weighs about 5 pounds, it would take between 7 and 8 years. For a large cat, about 20 pounds, it would take about three years (source 5).

Conclusion

To recap, a woman in Russia died some time ago, alone in her apartment.

It was several weeks before she was discovered by police, and during that time, her 20 Maine Coon cats did begin to use her as a food source in order to survive.

The cats have since been taken in by a rescue center and are being rehabilitated and then rehomed.

While this is not an entirely unique occurrence, it also is not common.

You, therefore, do not need to worry about your cats eating you while you are alive, and the only reason you would need to worry about them eating you after you die is if your body went undiscovered and their typical food source ran out.

While this is an unfortunate and gruesome story, it should not need to create widespread panic amongst cat owners.

Related Questions

Will My Cat Eat Me In My Sleep?

Hearing these stories might make you pause before going to sleep with your cat in the room. However, the good news is that you do not have to worry. It is exceedingly unlikely that your domesticated cat would try to eat you while you are still alive.

There are no cases of domesticated cats eating their owners alive.

Do Cats Eat Eyeballs When You Die?

If your cat ends up eating your body when you die, there is always a chance that he could end up eating your eyeballs.

Unfortunately, it does depend on whether or not your cat prefers your eyeballs over other places on your body.