Start with the carrier and the bedding, weeks out
A Maine Coon is a big, confident cat, but confidence is not the same as indifference to upheaval: this is a breed that bonds hard to its people and its routines. Preparation begins with the two things that will carry his scent of home into the new place. Leave his carrier out in the living area with the door open and a blanket inside, and feed treats in it until walking in and out is unremarkable. A cat of this size who has decided a carrier means the vet will fight it on the one day you cannot be late.
At the same time, protect one set of his bedding from the pre-move laundry frenzy. An unwashed blanket that smells of him, draped over the new home's first bed, tells a Maine Coon more about safety than any amount of fussing. Resist washing his favourite perch cushion too; familiar smell is the fastest route to a cat eating and using the tray normally in a new house.
Moving day: out of the way, without being exiled
The dangerous hours are when doors stand open and furniture is moving. Put the cat in one finished room, a bathroom or the last bedroom to be emptied, with his tray, water, bedding and a scratcher, and tape a clear sign on the door that it must stay shut. Tell every mover and helper in person; signs alone get ignored by someone carrying a wardrobe.
Alternatively, if your Maine Coon knows and likes a particular person, having him spend moving day at their house removes the risk altogether. Either way, he travels in his carrier in your car, not the removal van, with the familiar blanket over the top to cut visual stimulation. For a cat of fourteen-plus pounds, check the carrier is rigid, well-ventilated and rated for his weight; a soft carrier that flexes will alarm a heavy cat and strain your arm.
The first rooms at the new house
Resist the tour. Set up one safe room before he arrives, ideally the bedroom he will sleep in, with tray, water, food, scratcher, hiding place and the unwashed bedding already in position, then let him out of the carrier there and close the door. Many Maine Coons will investigate within the hour; others sit tight until the house goes quiet at night. Both are normal.
Open further rooms one at a time over the following days, keeping feeding times and the shape of his day, the morning play session, the evening groom, as close to the old routine as the chaos allows. Keep him fully indoors for several weeks until the house is mapped and his recall to you is reliable in the new space; a disoriented cat who slips out in week one does not know where home is yet. Watch eating and litter use as your gauges: a Maine Coon eating normally and using the tray by day two is settling, whatever his facial expressions suggest.
Records and the details people forget
Update his microchip registration to the new address and your current phone number as soon as you move, and check the details actually saved, since a chip pointing at the old house fails exactly when it is needed. If he will be looked after at any point in the moving week, hand that person his routine in writing: food, tray arrangements, quirks, vet details. KinsLe's Care Pass exists for exactly this handover, giving a trusted sitter temporary, clear access to your Maine Coon's care routine and key details while you are absorbed in the move, so the cat's day stays steady even when yours is not.