What Makes a Furry?

Long-time furry here. Let me try to break it down a bit.

"Furry" at its core is simply an interest in anthropomorphic animals. That covers a wide spectrum of people ranging from those that only have an interest in the art to therians who identify integrally as nonhuman. Whether you are a furry or not is just a matter of self-identification and whether you choose to engage with the fandom. I know incredible artists with whole-ass fursonas that don't call themselves furries and that's totally fine.

The puppygirl idea is something worth exploration though. Being into that doesn't necessarily mean you are a furry. There's an entire subculture of pup play that exists and while there is a fair bit of overlap between that and furry, it is a separate, distinct thing. Just food for thought!

Hi, I just came out as gay, and as a furry last week! After spending over a decade in the closet...

So, here's a short history of my experience of the Furry fandom.

When I was a young lad (teen), I noticed I felt attraction toward guys, but not girls. Boobs don't really do it for me. I grew up in a conservative christian household, so even those thoughts were considered evil. So, repressing those thoughts along the merry way, I found furry communities online. For the first time, Queerness was not punished. Queerness was not shamed, it was celebrated with art, writing, and "art". The online Furry community was a safe haven where I could imagine a world where I didn't have to repress all those things anymore, and be more of myself.

Now that I'm out (to my close friends), I'm noticing that Queer acceptance is a major cornerstone of furries. Next important thing to me, is the appreciation or enjoyment of the ideas, art, or media. Third is just a dash of Chemical X (weirdness), or more accurately, the courage to be yourself, enjoy yourself, and be cringe.

Yes, there are kinks, but I've heard the quote: "There is pornographic art and room parties, you're out of your mind to deny that stuff exists, but that isn't unique to furries. Think of Anime, Star Trek, etc. These fandoms and cultures don't have sexy or kinky things because of the content, they have those things in it because they are created by (and for) human beings." The furry fandom likely gets more shit for it because of A) the open queerness and B) actually it's probably just the open queerness.

Oddly, I've become slightly less attached to the Fandom, while enjoying it more, if that makes any sense.

There's tons of YouTubers that do documentaries on the stuff. There's like a 1.5h film festival submission that won awards on YT, describing the history of modern-day Furries.

Historically, pictures and stories of animal-people are as old as civilization itself. Even the Epic of Gilgamesh had a Furry character in it, off the top of my head.

Humans have identified the self in animals for as long as archaeological history records. The very earliest surviving figurative sculptures and illustrations of human beings feature animal features. It seems to emerge naturally from human perception, the inclination to identify with particular animals and to produce images of animal like humans, and human like animals. How this has been culturally contextualized has varied tremendously throughout history. The furry subculture is simply a modern manifestation of this impulse to produce and identify with such images and representations.

I'd speculate it's strong current within the LGBT communities is a side effect of contemporary western culture's lack of an established cultural context in which to exercise this artistic and conceptual impulse, naturally leading those who feel it strongly to be or to sympathize with people who are not well-represented within dominant culture in other ways.

To become a practicing furry an individual must obtain a bachelor's degree in anthropomorphic studies, followed by a Furry Degree (F.D.) from an accredited fur school. Afterward, they must undergo a 3-year residency program in digital art production.

Following residency, furries must obtain board certification from a recognized fur board, such as the American Board of Anthropomorphism, by passing written and oral exams. They also need to obtain state licensure to sell commissions.

Additionally, some furries pursue fellowships in suspecialities like feathers or scalies, and continually binge watch furry television programs on Netflix to maintain their certification.

A Buddhist monk once told me all that is required to "be a Buddhist" is just to decide one day to be Buddhist. There's no ritual or prayer or demonstration; there's no exam to make sure you're "Buddhist enough".

It's the same way with furry and lgbtq+. If you think you are, you are. Welcome.

I think, like being queer, there is no clear answer, and looking for one is kind of missing the point?

Like, does it matter whether someone is queer or gender non conforming from birth or from last Tuesday, to anyone who's not a massive piece of shit?

And trying to answer that definitively kills a bunch of nuance and creates lots of biphobia and is just generally awful.

Furs are pretty similar there. Are you this thing? Do you like to do this thing? Have you always wanted to try this thing? These can all have different answers, or the same, and it's fine.

If you want to be a puppygirl or furry, you can just be one. Self identify.

To be trans, you don't have to "always have been" either

"born this way" has always been more of a rhetorical device than anything else. Your identity is valid even if you 'decide' to change into a new one because of a thing you like. That's just as true for gender and orientation as it is for something like being a furry. You do you!

Mostly being a member of @Bureaucrat@hexbear.net

When ur really cool and sexy and right about everything all the time

I have no idea. I like anthro art and monsters and find them cool (not sexually even, just like the same as a nerd that thinks elves are cool or whatever) and still people probably call me a furry even though I'm not into fursuits or whatever. I have no idea what the rules are, I think people just decide you're one based on vibes.

the hair i'd reckon

Probably that sexy rabbit from zootopia. Hey guys is it okay to like her even though she’s a cop?

self-identification as a furry is what makes you a furry

As a non participant who has never gotten it, people are more than welcome to do things I don't get, but I've tried to get my head around it and I don't think there's really any specific criteria. If you call yourself a furry, you're a furry and what that means varies quite widely from person to person. Some kind of association with anthropomorphic aminals seems to be the only criteria and even then I'm not sure how strict that is.

it's totally up to you. i decided at some point that I was happy IDing as one based on my doggirlness, and then later started to appreciate the art and stuff too. i still don't have a sona or whatever just general dog vibe. it's just a very nice, welcoming queer centric scene. there's no hard definition or requirements as others have said.

There's really no clear line, and in my experience, it's largely a matter of self-identification. I've known a fair number of people who enjoyed a lot of media with anthropomorphic animals, to the point that I wouldn't bat an eye if they did claim the label, but who were repulsed by the thought because "I can't be a furry, they're all gross weirdos who [insert bizarre and lurid thing that only a small portion of self-identified furries actually do]."

Don't google Yiff

Not a furry but I think it's more someone's more social alt persona. Either to overcome social axiety or to build an image outside of ones self snd problems. Maybe higher rates in neurodivergent people.

I think there is overlap between the two, but puppygirls and furries are kind of two different things/communities in ways.
Like I would consider myself the first, but not the latter because I don't have a fursona or want a fursuit or really engage in a lot of that stuff.

Do you generally like anthropomorphic animal people? Do you self identify as a furry? If your answer to the second question is no, then you're not a furry! If it's yes, then you are a furry! It's that easy!

There are no hard and fast rules to being a furry, and anyone who labels you as one against your wishes is an asshole. You can go to a furry convention for fun and still not be a furry.

It's completely vibes based.

it can just be a fun thing you just really enjoy or a deeper identity, i think it really depends on who you ask in the furry community tbh. i do consider myself a furry and all i do is draw fursonas sometimes and admire fursuits cause they're really cool and fun!

didn't know we had so many furries

my first partner told me that if u sleep with a furry u are a furry and that automatically makes u a furry, and also apparently everyone i have slept with since.

now i don't think that's actually the case but i find it very funny.

as for what truly makes u a furry i guess it's about identity and relatability. u don't need to be into (necessarily) full on fur suits to qualify. i think being a puppygirl absolutely qualifies - but being a furry is also about calling yourself a furry, identifying as one. furrydom is a diverse queer art culture and social group, and it's something u actively identify with, as opposed to automatically being made one because of who u are.

if u wanna be a furry then basically i would say u are one.

i'm a kitten (i fear that may be obvious) and i'm not like super deep in any furry communities but i definitely feel like the term fits me to some degree. tho i also feel like the kitten thing maybe goes deeper. i just am a kitten. but i'm also a furry.