What the f*#k is a furry?

Contents

Introduction ⚓

Furries are weird.

Not weird in a bad way. Weird in a “I’ve never seen anyone behave quite like this” way. How many people do you know have an alternate persona of themselves with animal features, or dress up in giant fluffy mascot costumes for fun? How many of your friends pounce on you when they see you, or make cat-like noises, or wag their “tails” when they’re happy?

Not everyone who’s a furry does these things, but chances are you’ll see all of them if you spend enough time in the furry community.

I’ve technically been a part of this community since the early 2000s. I distanced myself as a teenager when the fear of being called weird overshadowed my desire for community. But as I’ve gotten older, I learned to embrace weirdness and jumped back into the community, first on Discord, and more recently on Mastodon 🔗. But despite my 15ish years of experience, two simple questions keep coming up in the back of my mind:

What exactly is a furry, and why do I call myself one?

The trademark signs of a furry ⚓

In my experience, traits that identify someone as a furry are:

• They identify with (or even as) some type of animal, most commonly dogs, cats, foxes, and dragons, but includes all kinds of animals, both real and mythical.
• They enjoy media that includes or centers around sentient animals. Think Disney cartoons, animated shows like Bojack Horseman, and movies like Zootopia.
• They’ve created a fictional character that acts as a sort of avatar (also known as a “fursona”, a portmanteau of “furry” and “persona” created by Ken Sample 🔗).

Notice how I didn’t include “dressing up in animal costumes” in this list. Yes, wearing a “fursuit” would definitely flag someone as a furry, but it’s not necessary to be part of the community. Plus, fursuits are expensive!

Also, let’s get one thing out of the way:

The furry community is not a sex thing ⚓

Furries aren’t all sexual deviants. Yes, many of us are kinky and bring that energy into the community, but it’s no different than other kinds of activities turned sexual. Candles aren’t designed to be used in sex acts, yet wax play 🔗 is definitely a thing.

If you don’t want to be involved in the sexual side of the furry community, then…don’t.

What does “being a furry” even mean? ⚓

Unlike other communities, being a furry isn’t really something that you do actively do. You can tell someone’s an artist because they create art. A musician plays instruments. A writer–well, writes. A furry…does what? Furs?

There’s no single action that permanently brands you as a furry. You don’t become a furry by wearing cat ears once, or drawing a one-off picture of a bipedal fox. This might be a disappointing answer, but you do it by identifying as a furry.

The furry community grew out of people who enjoyed creating and sharing art about anthropomorphic animals. But furries also play video games, dress in costumes, go to conventions, and much more. To make things more confusing, not all furries even jive with idea of sentient animals 🔗. How can you have a single definition for all these different activities and interests?

Instead of trying to create a single giant category for everything that furry could mean, it’s easier to just let people self-identify as members of the community, welcome them in, and filter out bad actors. So in other words, furries are furries because they want to be.

Who is Aires? ⚓

When I was 16, I came up with a character for a little game called Furcadia 🔗. He was a bipedal cat guy in his early twenties who, unsurprisingly, was similar to me: quiet, pensive, and observant, with a dry sense of humor. I don’t remember where I came up with the name Aires, but I know it replaced a name I’d come up with earlier but didn’t really like. People sometimes ask me if it’s Spanish (as in, Buenos Aires), but no, it’s pronounced like “Aries” and was made up on the spot.

Over time, and with some inspiration from my first furry boyfriend, Aires developed into a full on fursona. He evolved from an anthropomorphic cat into an anthropomorphic lion with dark brown fur, a golden mane, and forest green eyes. He grew a little braver, a little more self-confident, and a little more daring but retained his quiet, reflective demeanor. As I think about it, I’ve changed significantly since I was 16, but Aires hasn’t. I suppose that’s the point of a fursona, though.

More than anything, Aires is my anchor to the community. He’s like a flag that I planted, a banner that says “this is me, I’m here!” Without him, I’m kind of just an incorporeal spectator, watching a bunch of other humanoid animals scurry about with no awareness of my existence. In reality it’s not at all like that, but that’s what I see in my mind.

Furry means different things to different people ⚓

This blog isn’t the definitive guide to furries. It’s just my thoughts based on my own experiences and reflections. Ultimately, the definition of ‘furry’ and ‘furry community’ varies depending on who you ask and where they are in their life.

If you’d like to share your own thoughts or experiences, reach out to me on Mastodon !