The furry fandom is a subculture defined by an interest in anthropomorphic animal characters.[1][2][3] Members of the fandom, known as furries, create their own characters in the form of fursonas[4] and fursuits,[5] engaging with fellow furries on the internet and at furry conventions.[6] Some examples of anthropomorphic attributes include exhibiting human intelligence and facial expressions, speaking, walking on two legs, and wearing clothes. Terms for the fandom originated in the 1980s,[7] though portrayal of anthropomorphic animals had existed previously[8] in culture and literature.[9]
While some furries engage in the subculture primarily through sexual activities, many portrayals of furries' sexuality are characterized as exaggerated and associated with a negative perception.[10] Stigma against furries has led to individuals hiding their furry identity from friends, family, or coworkers.[11] The furry fandom is largely male-dominated, but a significant portion of the fandom identifies as transgender or otherwise outside the gender binary.[12]
Socalization between members of the furry fandom grew through the development of the Internet,[13] and the first furry conventions started through the efforts of artists and anthropomorphic animal fans at science fiction conventions in the 1980s, at which time furry characters were known mainly as funny animals.[8] Furry conventions have since grown to host thousands of attendees, and in some cases provide significant positive economic impact[14] and charity proceeds.[15]
History
The first works uniquely associated with the furry fandom were created in 1976, when cartoonists Ken Fletcher and Reed Waller created the amateur press associationVootie, which was dedicated to animal-focused art.[16] Many of its featured works contained adult themes, such as "Omaha" the Cat Dancer, which contained explicit sex.[17][18]Vootie was at first distributed only through local conventions and Ken's contacts, but grew a small following over the next several years. The publication ran for 37 issues from 1976 to 1983 and was succeeded by the amateur press association Rowrbrazzle, which was active from 1984 onwards.[19]
According to fandom historian and editor of Rowrbrazzle[20]Fred Patten, the concept of furry originated at a science fiction convention in 1980,[8] when a character drawing from Steve Gallacci's Albedo Anthropomorphics started a discussion of anthropomorphic characters in science fiction novels. This led to the formation of a discussion group that met at science fiction conventions and comics conventions.[21]
The specific term furry fandom was being used in fanzines as early as 1983,[22] and had become the standard name for the genre by the mid-1990s when it was defined as "the organized appreciation and dissemination of art and prose regarding 'Furries', or fictional mammalian anthropomorphic characters".[7] Prior to this point, these anthropomorphic animals were generally referred to as funny animals, a term used in comics since at least the 1870s.[23] Internet newsgroup discussion in the 1990s created some separation between fans of funny animal characters and furry characters, meant to avoid the baggage that was associated with the term "furry".[24] Some 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's novel Watership Down, published in 1972 (and its 1978 film adaptation), and Disney's Robin Hood being oft-cited examples.[8]
Mark Merlino and Rod O'Riley are credited with starting the first room parties for furry socialization that evolved into the later concept of furry conventions. Mark had held screenings of cartoons featuring anthropomorphic animals since 1977, and in 1985 at Westercon, Mark and Rod held a themed room party where Looney Tunes episodes and Animalympics were shown. The event was a success, and the two continued to hold similar parties at different conventions. At the following year's Westercon, the event was branded as a "furry party", and such events soon took off at different science fiction and fantasy conventions.[25] By 1989, there was sufficient interest to stage the first furry convention, Confurence 0,[26] which was held at the Holiday Inn Bristol Plaza in Costa Mesa, California.[27] Once the Internet became accessible to the general population in the 1990s, it became the most popular means for furry fans to socialize.[13] The newsgroupalt.fan.furry was created in November 1990, and virtual environments such as MUCKs also became popular places on the internet for fans to communicate.[28] As of 2023, the most popular furry website has become FurAffinity, an art sharing website and forum. The messaging program Telegram is the preeminent way furries communicate with each other, and social media sites like Twitter, Discord, and Reddit remain popular sites in the furry fandom.[29]
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.[8] A survey conducted in 2007 suggested that when compared with a non-furry control group, a higher proportion of those identifying as furries liked cartoons "a great deal" as children and recalled watching them significantly more often, as well as being more likely to enjoy works of science fiction than those outside of the community.[30]
While cartoons and other media are common routes that lead to interest in the furry fandom, by far the most common source of exposure to furries is the internet. This is contrasted with sports fans, who are generally more likely to become fans due to the influence of friends or family.[31] Some furries have expressed a feeling that they were always a part of the fandom, but did not know it until they were exposed to others in the community; others discover the fandom through research into media or ancient mythology, through happenstance, introduction by a friend or significant other, online role-playing, or pornography.[32] Individuals remain in the fandom for various reasons, but the most prominent motivation among those surveyed is a sense of belonging in the fan community.[33]
Activities and interests
According to a survey from 2008, most furries believe that visual art, conventions, literature, and online communities are strongly important to the fandom.[34] While the most straightforward interest of furries remains the anthropomorphic characters themselves, artwork, paraphernalia (such as fursuits, leashes, collars, accessories, and other costume pieces), conventions and furry events remain strong interests within the fandom in subsequent surveys.[35]
Crafts
Sculptures and pins on display at Further Confusion, a furry convention
Fans with craft skills create plush toys and also build elaborate costumes called fursuits,[5] which are worn for fun or to participate in parades, convention masquerades, dances, or fund-raising charity events (as entertainers).[36] Fursuits range from designs featuring simple construction resembling some entertainment and sports mascots[30] to those with more sophisticated features such as moving jaw mechanisms, animatronic parts, prosthetic makeup, and other features.[37] Complete fursuits typically range in price from about $1000 for a simple design to upwards of $6,600 for models incorporating digitigrade legs, which require additional padding and sculpting.[38] Some fans may also wear "partial" suits consisting simply of ears and a tail, or a head, paws, and a tail.[30] Surveys from the late 2000s indicated that about 80% of furries do not own a full fursuit,[30][34][39] but later surveys from 2016 to 2020 found that the number of fursuit owners ranged from one-quarter to one-third of those surveyed.[40] A much larger proportion of individuals who attend conventions own a full or partial fursuit—45%, according to a survey done at Anthrocon 2018—which has been attributed to convention attendees' generally higher likelihood of being able to afford to buy a fursuit if they can afford convention travel expenses.[41]
A cartoon anthropomorphic vixen, an example of a furry character
Anthropomorphic animal characters created by furry fans, known as fursonas,[4] are used for role-playing in MUDs,[43] on internet forums, or electronic mailing lists.[44] A variety of species are employed as the basis of these personas, although many furry fans (for example over 60% of those surveyed in 2007) choose to identify themselves with carnivorans.[45][46] The longest-running online furry role-playing environment is FurryMUCK, which was established in 1990.[47] Another popular online furry social game is called Furcadia, a long-running massively multiplayer online role-playing game that has been continously updated from 1996[48] to 2016. Other games that can be used as online chatrooms, such as VRChat, have been used to facilitate furry role-playing.[49]
Kemono fursuits are characterized by their large, colorful eyes and soft, rounded facial features.
Sufficient interest and membership have enabled the creation of many furry conventions worldwide. A furry convention is an event where fans get together to buy and sell artwork, participate in workshops or panels, wear costumes, and socialize.[50]Anthrocon, in 2008, was the largest furry convention at the time, with more than 5,861 attendees.[51] It was estimated to have generated approximately $3 million for Pittsburgh's economy that year.[14] Another convention, Further Confusion, held in San Jose each January, closely follows Anthrocon in scale and attendance. $470,000 was raised by conventions for charity from 2000 to 2009.[15] As of December 2022, Midwest FurFest is the world's largest furry convention.[52][53][54] It had a self-reported 2025 attendance of 16,925.[55] Despite its size, which is attributed to the nearby O'Hare International Airport allowing attendees easy access from around the world, the convention is noted to have little economic impact to the surrounding Rosemont, Illinois area compared to that of Anthrocon in its native Pittsburgh.[56]
The internet contains a multitude of furry websites and online communities, such as art community websites Fur Affinity, Inkbunny, SoFurry, and Weasyl; and WikiFur, a collaborative furry wiki.[58] Furry news websites include Flayrah and Dogpatch Press.[59]
It is often suggested that "furries run the internet", as members of the furry community are overrepresented in the IT industry. One example is David Benaron, a physican and biomedical researcher who participated in the furry community under the alias of a cheetah named Spottacus.[77][78][79] Studies in 2014 and 2016 that surveyed convention-going furries found that much of the fandom is made up of college students and recent graduates working skilled or white-collar jobs. Compared to other fandoms, such as those interested in anime and manga or fantasy sports, furries were more likely to describe their work as involving computers.[80]
Demographics and sociology
Some furry fans create and wear costumes called "fursuits" depicting their characters.
The International Anthropomorphic Research Project (IARP), a team of social scientists, has been collecting data on the furry fandom. Their 2016 publication collects several peer-reviewed and self-published studies into a single volume, titled Furscience.[81][82] Among their findings were that the average adult furry is between 23 and 27 years of age, with more than 75% of furries being 25 years of age or younger, and 88% of adult furries being under the age of 30. Minors were not included in the study for professional ethics reasons. IARP estimated that 20% were under the age of 18.[83] Over two-thirds (67.1%) of furries identified themselves as male on the surveys, while 23.3% identified as female. 2% of furries identified themselves as transgender, and 10% of furries identified themselves as genderqueer/non-binary.[84] Early surveys found that the furry fandom was male-dominated, with 2007–08 surveys reporting around 80% male respondents,[39][34][85] though later studies that allowed for choices broader than a male/female binary found lower percentages of male respondents. More than 25% of respondents to surveys from 2021 to 2022 identified as transgender or did not identify with the labels of male or female.[12] The prevalence of men in the furry fandom has been reported since even before the 2000s.[86]
Between 83% and 90% of furries self-identify as White, with small minorities of furries self-identifying as Asian (2–4%), Black (2–3%), and Hispanic (3%).[87] Over a fifth (21%) of furries consider themselves to be bronies, 44% consider themselves to be anime fans, and 11% consider themselves sports fans.[88] Furries, as a group, are more politically liberal and less religious than the average American or other comparable fan groups such as anime fans,[89] while still containing groups such as neo-Nazis and alt-right activists.[90] Almost a quarter of furries (23.5%) self-identified as Christian, 16.8% as atheist, 16.8% as agnostic, 11.0% as Pagan/Wiccan, 2.4% as Buddhist, 1.2% as Jewish, 1.1% as Deist, 0.9% as Satanist, and 26.2% as "other" (including "participants who had their own belief systems, were undecided, refused to answer, or had uncommon belief systems").[91] Approximately 70% of adult furries have either completed or are currently completing post-secondary education.[92] Further results from the IARP were published in a 2023 book, also titled Furscience.[93]
A Pittsburgh-based researcher reported that up to 15% of furries may be autistic, compared with about 2% in the general United States population as estimated by the Center for Disease Control. The 15% figure includes people who may have never received a diagnosis but self-identify as autistic.[94] Studies that asked whether furries had been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder have found responses varying from 3% up to 13.2% of the surveyed sample having been diagnosed. Through surveying a broader range of mood disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and anxiety, furries were not found to be particularly susceptible to diagnosable mental health problems compared to the general population.[95]
One of the most universal behaviors in the furry fandom is the creation of a fursona—an anthropomorphic animal representation or avatar. More than 95% of furries have a fursona. Nearly half of furries report that they have only ever had one fursona to represent themselves; relatively few furries have had more than three or four fursonas. The most popular fursona species include wolves, foxes, dogs, large felines, and dragons. There is generally no association between personality traits and different fursona species.[96] Furries report different degrees of personality traits when thinking of themselves in their everyday identity compared with their fan identity.[97] Some furries identify as partly non-human: 35% say they do not feel 100% human (compared with 7% of non-furries), and 39% say they would be 0% human if they could (compared with 10% of non-furries).[98]
Inclusion and belongingness are central themes in the furry fandom: compared with members of other fandoms such as anime or fantasy sports, furries are significantly more likely to identify with other members of their fan community. On average, half of a furry's friends are also furries themselves.[100] Furries rate themselves higher (compared with a comparison community sample of non-furries) on the degree of global awareness (knowledge of the world and felt connections to others in the world), global citizenship identification (psychological connection with global citizens), and environmental sustainability.[89] Many furries find overlap in their interests with other hobbies, such as anime and manga, video games, and music, though most gravitate towards "furry media" when possible. Furries may turn to external media to distract from their own lives and potentially benefit more from their involvement with the furry fandom through their engagement with art.[99]
Furry lifestyle
The phrases "furry lifestyle" and "furry lifestyler" first appeared in July 1996 on the newsgroup alt.fan.furry during an ongoing dispute within the online community. The Usenet 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 considered the fandom and the lifestyle to be separate social entities. They defined and adopted an alternative meaning of the word "furry" specific to this group: "a person with an important emotional/spiritual connection with an animal or animals, real, fictional, or symbolic."[101] The description of a furry lifestyle has since developed and has been contrasted with being furry as a hobby; some furries who treat their interest in the fandom as a hobby use this distinction to denote that they do not take it as seriously as do others (who may wear a tail and collar every day and at work), but hobbyists are not typically seen as "lesser furries" when compared to lifestylers.[102]
In their 2007 survey, Gerbasi and colleagues examined what it meant to be a furry, and proposed a taxonomy in which to categorize different "types" of furries. The largest group—38% of those surveyed—described their interest in furry fandom predominantly as a "route to socializing with others who share common interests such as anthropomorphic art and costumes."[103] They also identified furries who saw themselves as "other than human", or who desired to become more like the furry species which they identified with.[13][30] They suggested that this identification as "less than human" could be considered parallel to gender identity disorder (reclassified in 2013 as gender dysphoria[104]), termed "species identity disorder", though several issues with the study's design and conclusions have been since identified[105] and the term is now more closely associated with therians or otherkin.[106][107]
A majority of the furry fandom falls within the group of LGBTQ people.
According to four different surveys, 14–25% of the fandom members report homosexuality, 37–52% bisexuality, 28–39% heterosexuality, and 3–8% other forms of alternative sexual relationships.[39][85][109][110] Approximately half of the respondents reported being in a relationship, of which 76% were in a relationship with another member of the furry fandom.[39] Examples of sexual aspects within the furry fandom include erotic art and furry-themed cybersex.[111][112] The term "yiff" is sometimes used to indicate sexual activity or sexual material within the fandom—this applies to sexual activity and interaction within the subculture whether in the form of cybersex or offline.[58][113]
In one survey with 4,300 furry respondents, 37% answered that sexual attraction is important in their furry activities, 38% were ambivalent, and 24% responded that it has little or nothing to do with their furry activities.[110] In an earlier online survey, 33% of furry respondents answered that they have a "significant sexual interest in furry", another 46% stated they have a "minor sexual interest in furry", and the remaining 21% stated they have a "non-sexual interest in furry". The survey specifically avoided adult-oriented websites to prevent bias.[85]
Another survey at a furry convention in 2013 found that 96.3% of male furry respondents reported viewing furry pornography, compared with 78.3% of females; males estimated that 50.9% of all furry art they view is pornographic, compared with 30.7% of females. The respondents to the survey had a slight preference for pornographic furry artwork over non-pornographic artwork. 17.1% of males reported that when they viewed pornography it was exclusively or near-exclusively furry pornography, and about 5% reported that pornography was the top factor that got them into the fandom.[114]
A survey conducted from 1997 to 1998 reported about 2% of furry respondents stating an interest in zoophilia, and less than 1% an interest in plushophilia (sexually aroused by stuffed animal toys). The older, lower results, which are even lower than estimated in the general population, were due to the methodology of questioning respondents face-to-face, which led to social desirability bias.[109][115] In contrast, one comparative study from 1974 and 1980 showed 7.5% of sampled students at University of Northern Iowa reporting zoophilia,[116] while other studies find only 2.2%[117] to 5.3%[118] expressing fantasies of sex with animals. An anonymous survey in 2008 found 17% of respondents identified as zoophiles and it stated that most furries had a more moderate view of zoophilia. The study had 5,000 participants with 22.6% of them having an extremely negative view of zoophilia, 23% negative view, 36.3% ambivalent, 13.5% positive view, and 4.5% had an extremely positive view of it.[109] Later sources have stated that both bestiality and zoophilia are considered taboo in the furry fandom,[119][120]:6 and there have been discussions in the fandom about distinguishing art of anthropomorphized animals from art of bestiality.[121] A strong stigma remains against zoophiles in the furry fandom, with those who engage in the act being ostracized from furry events such as conventions. Despite this, a connection between the fandom and zoophilia remains,[122] particularly in the perception of those unfamiliar with the fandom.[123][124]
Public perception and media coverage
Early portrayals of furries in magazines such as Wired,[125]Loaded,[126]Vanity Fair,[127] and the syndicated sex column Savage Love focused mainly on the sexual aspect of the furry fandom. Fictional portrayals of the furry fandom have appeared in television shows such as The Simpsons,[128][129]ER,[130]CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,[131]The Drew Carey Show,[132]Sex2K on MTV,[133]Entourage,[134]1000 Ways to Die,[135]Tosh.0,[136][137]Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule,[138] and 30 Rock.[139] Furry fans have claimed that media portrayals from the late 90s and early 2000s are misconceptions.[140][141] By the later 2000s, coverage had started to focus on addressing the myths and stereotypes associated with the furry fandom.[142] 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",[10] and that the furry convention was about "people talking and drawing animals and comic-book characters in sketchbooks."[58] 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 present.[143] A 2009 article from the BBC entitled "Who are the furries?" was the first piece of journalism to be nominated for an Ursa Major Award, the main award given in the field of anthropomorphism.[13][144] The article described furry fans' belief that they will be portrayed as "mainly obsessed with sex", which has led to distrust of the media and social researchers.[13]
Milwaukee Brewers broadcaster Jim Powell was sharing a hotel with Anthrocon 2007 attendees a day before the convention and reported a negative opinion of furries.[145] Several downtown Pittsburgh businesses welcome furries during the event, with local business owners creating special T-shirts and drawing paw prints in chalk outside their shops to attract attendees.[146]Samuel Conway, CEO of Anthrocon, said "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".[147] Positive coverage was generated following a furry convention that was held in a Vancouver hotel where several Syrianrefugees were being temporarily housed. Despite some concerns and warnings by staff that there could be a negative culture clash if the two groups interacted, the refugee children were on the whole delighted to meet the convention goers, especially those in fursuits.[148][149]
A 2008 survey found that about half of furries perceived public reaction to the fandom as negative at the time.[34] College students and fantasy sports fans surveyed from 2016 to 2023 corroborate the negative perception of the fandom felt by its members; when asked to rate how they felt towards different fandoms, furries were consistently among the most negatively-judged groups, being placed alongside bronies and juggalos.[150] Many furries have been subject to bullying due to their identity and may be reluctant to disclose their participation in the furry fandom to friends and family due to the stigma it poses. Furries working in public service may fear reprisal if their colleagues were to discover their identity;[11] in one instance, a councilman in New Milford, Connecticut was forced to resign after being outed as furry.[151] Furries have been targeted with violence even at conventions, as was the case in the 2014 Midwest FurFest gas attack.[152]
↑Skinn, Dez. (2004). Comix: the underground revolution. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. pp.71, 106. ISBN1-56025-572-2. OCLC55592337. A furry animal turned erotic dancer...Omaha...is full of nubile animals of all sexual persuasions. Omaha...integrated sex into the storyline rather than just for shock value
12345University of California, Davis Department of Psychology (May 5, 2007). "Furry Survey Results". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2007.
↑Mitchell, Don (March 23, 1995). "From MUDs To Virtual Worlds". Social Computing Group, Microsoft. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
↑Howells, Shelley (October 1, 2002). "Secret lives of strange and furry". The New Zealand Herald.
↑Werner, Christian. "Och, sind die süüüüß!". Zeit Online Zuender (in German). Zeit Online. Archived from the original on September 6, 2008. Retrieved September 6, 2008.
↑The Commodore 64/128 RoundTable (1994). "Interview with Joe Ekaitis". Archived from the original on January 12, 2011. Retrieved January 12, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑Gerbasi, Kathleen; Plante, Courtney; Reysen, Stephen; Roberts, Sharon (2015). "The origins of the international anthropomorphic research project". In Howl, Thurston (ed.). Furries among us: Essays on furries by the most prominent members of the fandom. Nashville, TN: Thurston Howl Publications. pp.102–105. ISBN978-0-9908902-6-3.
123Alex Osaki (June 27, 2008). "State of the Fandom"(PDF). Furry Research Center. Archived(PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
↑Story, MD (1982). "A comparison of university student experience with various sexual outlets in 1974 and 1980". Adolescence. 17 (68): 737–47. PMID7164870.
↑Joyal, C. C.; Cossette, A.; Lapierre, V. (2014). "What Exactly Is an Unusual Sexual Fantasy?". The Journal of Sexual Medicine. 12 (2): 328–340. doi:10.1111/jsm.12734. PMID25359122.
↑Zidenberg, Alexandra M. (August 24, 2021). Toward a Greater Understanding of the Assessment, Psychological Correlates, and Management of Human Perpetrated Sexual Behaviour Toward Animals (Doctor of Philosophy thesis). University of Saskatchewan. hdl:10388/13537.
↑Josh Quittner (March 1994), "Johnny Manhattan Meets the Furry Muckers", Wired, People describe themselves as furry cuddly animals; more times than not, they have furry cuddly animal sex. FurryMuckers like to write long, loving, animal-sexy descriptions of themselves
↑Todd, Dorman (May 13, 2020). "School litter box fever will not die in Iowa". The Gazette. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 6, 2022. The solution, obviously, is to take tens of millions of dollars from public schools and give it to private schools, because parents should be scared to send their kids to public schools.
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