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Furry fandom is a fandom devoted to anthropomorphic animal characters. Since the 1980s, the term furries has come to refer to such characters.

Fictional work celebrated by furry fandom typically attributes high-level intelligence, human facial expressions and anatomy, speech, bipedalism, clothing, or other attributes to otherwise animal characters. Work in any medium that includes such characters may be considered part of the furry genre, although they are most often seen in comics, cartoons, animated films, allegorical novels, and video games.

Members of the furry subculture are often known as furry fans, furries, or simply furs. They commonly interact online and at furry conventions.

History

According to fandom historian Fred Patten, the concept of furry originated at a science fiction convention in 1980, when a drawing of a character from Steve Gallacci’s Albedo Anthropomorphics initiated a discussion of anthropomorphic characters in science fiction novels, which in turn initiated a discussion group that met at science fiction and comics conventions. Patten defined "Furry fandom" as "the organized appreciation and dissemination of art and prose regarding 'Furries', or fictional mammalian anthropomorphic characters."

The specific term "Furry fandom" was being used in fanzines as early as 1983, and had become the standard name for the genre by the mid-1990s. However, fans consider the origins of furry fandom to be much earlier, with fictional works such as Kimba, The White Lion released in 1965, Richard Adams' novel Watership Down, published in 1972 (and its 1978 film adaptation), as well as Disney's Robin Hood as oft-cited examples. To distinguish these personae from seriously depicted animal characters, such as Lassie or Old Yeller, cartoon animals are referred to as funny animals, a term that came into use in the 1910s.

During the 1980s, furry fans began to publish fanzines, developing a diverse social group that eventually began to schedule social gatherings. By 1987, there was sufficient interest to stage the first furry convention. Throughout the next decade, the Internet became accessible to the general population and became the most popular means for furry fans to socialize. The newsgroup alt.fan.furry was created in November 1990, and virtual environments such as MUCKs also became popular places on the Internet for fans to meet and communicate. One of the oldest and largest MUCKs in existence is FurryMUCK.

Inspiration

Allegorical novels (including works of both science fiction and fantasy) and cartoons featuring anthropomorphic animals are often cited as the earliest inspiration for the fandom. A survey conducted in 2007 suggested that, when compared to a non-furry control group, a higher proportion of those self-identifying as furries liked cartoons "a great deal" as children and recalled watching them significantly more often, as well being more likely to enjoy works of science fiction than those outside of the community.

Furry fans are eager for more material than is available from mainstream publishers, and this demand is met by other fans who produce a wide range of materials in both amateur and professional capacities. Most furries also believe that visual art, conventions, literature, and online communities are strongly important to the fandom.

Art and literature

Furry artists, writers, and publishers produce a prolific amount of drawings, paintings, stories, comic books, fanzines, puppets, and small press books, as well as sculpture, textile art, fiction, music, and photography. While most of this fan-created art is distributed through nonprofessional media, such as personal websites, some is published in anthologies, by Amateur Press Associations, or in APAzines. Furry artwork is also available through websites devoted entirely to furry art produced by multiple artists, while other sites contain furry artwork under the term "anthro". A few works of furry art have also been released in mainstream culture, and furry artwork has appeared on commercial apparel.

There are several webcomics featuring animal characters created by or for furry fans; as such, they may be referred to as "furry comics". One such comic, T.H.E. Fox, was first published on CompuServe in 1986, predating the World Wide Web by several years, while another, "Kevin and Kell" by Bill Holbrook, has been awarded both a Web Cartoonist's Choice Award and an Ursa Major Award.

Crafts

Fans with craft skills create their own plush toys, sometimes referred to as plushies, and also build elaborate costumes called fursuits, which are worn for fun or to participate in parades, convention masquerades, dances, or fund-raising charity events (as entertainers). Fursuits range from designs featuring simple construction and resembling sports mascots to those with more sophisticated features that include moving jaw mechanisms, animatronic parts, prosthetic makeup, and other features. Fursuits range in price from $500, for mascot-like designs, to an upwards of $8,000 for models incorporating animatronics. While about 80% of furries do not own a full fursuit, often citing their expensive cost as the decisive factor, a majority of them hold positive feelings towards fursuiters and conventions they participate in. Some fans may also wear "partial" suits consisting simply of ears and a tail.

Furry fans also pursue puppetry, recording videos and performing live shows such as Rapid T. Rabbit and Friends and the Funday PawPet Show, and create furry accessories, such as ears or tails.

Role playing

Anthropomorphic animal characters created by furry fans, known as fursonas, are used for roleplaying in MUDs, on internet forums, or on electronic mailing lists. Since they are associated with strength, elegance and a sophisticated social behavior, many furries, (for example, over 60% of those surveyed in 2007), identify themselves with carnivorans. The longest-running online furry roleplaying environment is FurryMUCK. Another popular online furry social game is called Furcadia, created by Dragon's Eye Productions. There are also several furry-themed areas and communities in the virtual world Second Life. An online gaming community called Skotos currently offers a furry roleplaying game called Iron Claw Online and Right Brain Games is currently making a furry massively multiplayer online roleplaying game titled Antilia. Iron Realms Entertainment is also currently developing an MMORPG, Earth Eternal, which will feature anthropomorphic animals as playable races. This will not be the first, as other games such as EverQuest II, Vanguard and World of Warcraft have anthropomorphic animals as well.

Conventions

Sufficient interest and membership has enabled the creation of many furry conventions in North America and Europe. The world's largest furry convention is Anthrocon, held annually in Pittsburgh in July, is estimated to contribute approximately $3 million to the town's economy each year. Another convention, Further Confusion, held in San Jose each January, closely follows Anthrocon in scale and attendance. In 2006, 19 furry conventions took place around the world exceeding 9,900 attendees and raising over US$50,000 in charity. The first known furry convention, ConFurence, is no longer held; Califur has replaced it, as both conventions were based in Southern California. The University of California, Davis survey suggested that about 40% of furries attended at least one furry convention.

Furry lifestylers

The phrases furry lifestyle and furry lifestyler first appeared in July 1996 on the newsgroup alt.fan.furry during an ongoing dispute within that online community. This newsgroup was created to accommodate discussion beyond furry art and literature, and to resolve disputes concerning what should or should not be associated with the fandom; its members quickly adopted the term furry lifestylers, and still consider the fandom and the lifestyle to be separate social entities. They have defined and adopted an alternative meaning of word "furry" specific to this group: "a person with an important emotional/spiritual connection with an animal or animals, real, fictional or symbolic."

Subcultures such as the were or therian and otherkin communities share similar beliefs with furry lifestylers. According to Furry Survey, a majority of furries consider themselves to be predominantly human, while about 6% do not consider themselves human at all.

Sexual aspects

Differing approaches to sexuality have been a source of controversy and conflict in furry fandom. Examples of sexual aspects within furry fandom include erotic art and furry-themed cybersex. The term "yiff" is most commonly used to indicate sexual activity or sexual material within the fandom—this applies to sexual activity and interaction within the subculture whether online (in the form of cybersex) or offline.

Majority of furries report a non-judgmental attitude towards certain aspects of sexuality and a high tolerance for variety in sexual orientation and activity. 19-25% of the fandom members report homosexuality, 37-48% bisexuality, and 3-8% other forms of alternative sexual relationships. About 2% state an interest in zoophilia, and less than 1% an interest in plushophilia. About half of the furry fans are estimated to be in a relationship, with 76% of those having a relationship with another furry.

Media coverage

Early portrayal of the furry fandom in articles such as Loaded, Vanity Fair, and the syndicated sex column "Savage Love" focused mainly on the sexual component of certain furries. Fictional portrayals of furry fandom have appeared on television shows such as ER, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Drew Carey Show, Sex2K on MTV, and Entourage. Most furry fans claim that these media portrayals are misconceptions, while the recent coverage focuses on debunking myths and stereotypes that have come to be associated with the furry fandom. A reporter attending Anthrocon 2006 noted that "despite their wild image from Vanity Fair, MTV and CSI, furry conventions aren't about kinky sex between weirdos gussied up in foxy costumes", that conference attendees were "not having sex more than the rest of us", and that the furry convention was about "people talking and drawing animals and comic-book characters in sketchbooks." In October 2007, a Hartford Advocate reporter attended FurFright 2007 undercover because of media restrictions. She learned that the restrictions were intended to prevent misinformation, and reported that the scandalous behavior she had expected was not evident.

Milwaukee Brewers broadcaster Jim Powell was sharing a hotel with Anthrocon 2007 attendees a day before the convention and reported a negative opinion of the furries. Residents of Pittsburgh have welcomed furries during the event, with local business owners creating special T-shirts and drawing paw prints in chalk outside their shops to attract attendees. Dr. Samuel Conway, CEO of Anthrocon, said that "For the most part, people give us curious stares, but they're good-natured curious stares. We're here to have fun, people have fun having us here, everybody wins".

According to Furry survey, about half of furries perceive public reaction to the fandom as negative; less than a fifth stated that they were responded to more negatively than the reactions of the general public before.

See also

• Funny animal

References

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2. Anthrocon.org. ""What is Furry"". Retrieved 2008-06-19.
3. Thomson, Desson (May 19, 2006). "Critters Offer Consumer Retorts in 'Over the Hedge'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2006-07-19. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
4. Dagna, Justin (2005). Fera Vita: Pax Draconis. Technicraft.
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6. Staeger, Rob (July 26, 2001). "Invasion of the Furries". The Wayne Suburban. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
7. ^ University of California, Davis Department of Psychology (2007-05-05). "Furry Survey Results". Retrieved 2007-05-05.
8. ^ Patten, Fred (February 2, 1999). "Chronology Of Furry Fandom". YARF! The Journal of Applied Anthropomorphics. Retrieved 2006-07-15. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
9. Patten, Fred. "The Yarf! reviews". Anthrozine. Retrieved 2007-09-24. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
10. Sandler, Kevin S. (1998). Reading the Rabbit: Explorations in Warner Bros. Animation. Rutgers University Press.
11. Patten, Fred (2006). Furry! The World's Best Anthropomorphic Fiction. ibooks.
12. Stamper, Chris (1996-03-29). "Furry Muckity-Muck". The Netly News. Retrieved 2007-04-13.
13. ^ Gerbasi, Kathleen (2008). "Furries From A to Z (Anthropomorphism to Zoomorphism)". Society & Animals. 3: pp. 197-222. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Cite error: The named reference "Gerbasi2008" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
14. ^ Alex "Klisoura" Osaki. "Furry Survey". Retrieved 2008-08-08.
15. The Furry Art of TaniDaReal - a personal artist website
16. Toonapalooza! - a personal artist website
17. BLOTCH: Art of screwbald spotcat - a personal artist website
18. "An Overview of Selected Furry Fanzines". The Furry Animal Liberation Front (FALF). Archived from the original on 2008-12-02. Retrieved 2007-08-08. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2008-02-12 suggested (help)
19. Fur Affinity - a furry community website with unmoderated all-ratings art and story archives
20. VCL - an unmoderated all-ratings furry art and story archive
21. ArtSpots - a quality-moderated PG furry art archive and forum
22. deviantART - an art community website
23. The Commodore 64/128 RoundTable. "Interview with Joe Ekaitis". Retrieved 2007-01-12. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dateyr= ignored (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
24. "2001 Winners and Nominees". Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards. 2001-02-19. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
25. "Award Winners 2003". Ursa Major Awards. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
26. Riggs, Adam (2004). Critter Costuming: Making Mascots and Fabricating Fursuits. Ibexa Press.
27. Larson, Alina (January 23, 2003). "Animal Instincts: Fans of Furry Critters Convene to Help Mankind". Tri-Valley Herald. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
28. ^ "Furries Descend On Pittsburgh". KDKA-TV. June 16, 2006. Archived from the original on 2008-02-01. Retrieved 2006-06-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
29. Irwin, Charles; Watterson, Summer (2002-04-24). "A 'furry' tale for a foxy college student". The Olympian. Retrieved 2008-09-03.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
30. Gaudio, Greg (August 23, 2008). "Lions and foxes and cat-dragons walk on two legs in Beach". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 2008-09-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
31. Mitchell, Don (March 23, 1995). "From MUDs To Virtual Worlds". Social Computing Group, Microsoft. Retrieved 2008-09-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
32. Howells, Shelley (October 01, 2002). "Secret lives of strange and furry". The New Zealand Herald. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
33. Werner, Christian. "Och, sind die süüüüß!". Zeit Online Zuender (in German). Zeit Online. Retrieved 2008-09-06.
34. Peralta, Eyder (May 28, 2006). "In Second Life, the World is Yours". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-08-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
35. "Games". Right Brain Games. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
36. "FAQ". Earth Eternal. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
37. "EverQuest II Home page". Sony. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
38. "Vanguard Home page". Sony. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
39. "World of Warcraft Home page". Blizzard. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
40. Guinness World Records 2008. Guinness. 2007-08-07. p. 123. ISBN 1904994199.
41. Brandolph, Adam (June 28, 2008). "Furry convention a $3 million cash cow for city businesses". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2008-07-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
42. Cooksey, David. "Anthropomorphic Fandom Convention Information Sheet". Retrieved 2006-06-30.
43. Anthrocon: $8407; Further Confusion: $15000; Midwest FurFest: $13049; Morphicon: $556; Mephit FurMeet: $12121; FurFright: $1631 - see WikiFur's timeline of charity donations for other years
44. "alt.lifestyle.furry - Frequently Asked Questions". 2001-05-08. Retrieved 2006-08-26.
45. Bardzell, Jeffery, and Shaowen Bardzell. Sex-Interface-Aesthetics: The Docile Avatars and Embodied Pixels of Second Life BDSM. Indiana University, 2005.
46. Stuttaford, Thomas; Godson, Suzi (2007-12-08). "I like dressing up as a bear during sex". The Times. Retrieved 2007-12-11.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) (further details)
47. ^ Meinzer, Melissa (June 29, 2006). "Animal Passions: The furries come to town — and our correspondent tails along". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved 2007-05-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
48. Padva, Gilad. Dreamboys, Meatmen and Werewolves: Visualizing Erotic Identities in All-Male Comic Strips. Sexualities 8:5 (2005). 587-599
49. ^ David J. Rust (2000-2002, based on data 1997-1998). "The Sociology of Furry Fandom". Retrieved 2006-08-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
50. Loaded magazine, March, 1998
51. Gurley, George (March, 2001). "Pleasures of the fur". Vanity Fair. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
52. "Fear of Commitment". ER. Season 7. Episode 20. 2001-03-05. NBC. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
53. "Fur and Loathing". CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Season 4. Episode 5. 2003-10-30. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
54. "Mama Told Me I Should Come". The Drew Carey Show. Season 8. Episode 6. 2002-10-21. ABC. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help) See The Drew Carey Show on WikiFur for more information.
55. MTV. "Sex2K Fursuit Video". Retrieved 2006-08-26.
56. "The Day Fuckers". Entourage. Season 4. Episode 7. 2007-07-28. HBO. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
57. Baldwin, Denis (August, 2006). "Walk With the Animals: Local furries explain it's not about perversion, furpiles and plush". Ann Arbor Paper. Retrieved 2007-02-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
58. Belser, Ann (June 18, 2006). "All about 'furry fandom' at confab". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2006-06-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
59. "We're at it like rabbits". The Sun. 3 April, 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
60. Togneri, Chris (July 6, 2007). "Furries purr over Pittsburgh reception". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2007-07-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
61. Meinzer, Melissa (February 2, 2006). "Fur Ball In The Works". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved 2007-05-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
62. Abel, Jennifer (2007-11-01). "Hell Hath No Furries". Hartford Advocate. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
63. "The Brewers Meet the Furries". Deadspin. July 6, 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite news}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
64. LaSalle, Mike (July 17, 2007). "Anthrocon 2007 draws thousands to Pittsburgh for furry weekend". Men's News Daily. Retrieved 2007-08-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
65. "Furry Convention Creates Wild Scene In Pittsburgh". WPXI News. June 26 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

Further reading

• Hilton, Craig. "Furry Fandom — An Insider's View from the Outside", parts 1 & 2. South Fur Lands #2 & #3, 1995, 1996.
• Mange: the need for criticism in furrydom by Watts Martin, 1994, 1998 (Archive.org mirror)

External links

2. Part 2

• Template:Dmoz
• WikiFur, the furry encyclopedia - furry fandom's community wiki
• VCL - one of the oldest furry art and story hosts
• Fur Affinity - a furry community website in the style of deviantART

• Furry fandom
• Fandom
• Fictional animals