Maine Coon Ruff

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The CFA breed standard makes the Maine Coon "ruff" desirable:
COAT: heavy and shaggy; shorter on the shoulders and longer on the stomach and britches. Frontal ruff desirable. Texture silky with coat falling smoothly.
It is interesting that it should be a "frontal ruff" whatever that means! It must mean that the ruff is predominantly at the front. The word "ruff" comes from the human clothes of Western, Central and Northern Europe from the mid-sixteenth century to the mid-seventeenth century. The picture of the Maine Coon on this page illustrates the ruff for this breed.
Picture in the public domain

It is a bit shaggy but Maine Coons should have shaggy coats. The ruff develops gradually. The picture below is of a human ruff. You can see the similarity! Cat breeders also refer to the term "britches" to describe the longer hair around the upper part of the hind leg.
Johannes Verspronck - Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem.

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