Some Questions

[bigjonesb]

I've talked to one furry friend out of Louisiana and got some questions answered from his point of view. but I want to get a more local view of the furry community. So if you don't mind, I have some questions for you guys (and gals, too!). To make it easy to read, I'll bulletpoint them:

(After a few answers, I've edited the questions, in the hope of sounding more open)

-What was the moment you discovered you were a furry, what got you on the path, what made you say "I got to be a part of this"?

-Was there any reason whatsoever that held you back from entering the furry community sooner?

-Did anyone have trouble dealing with you being furry?

-Does being furry make you feel better about yourself, add a little more spring to your step?

-What do you think makes someone a furry? What would your checklist look like?

-Do you believe there's an age limit, or is it part of you for the rest of your life?

-Do you believe it ever too old to enter the furry world? (excluding the obvious, Death)


#- This is aimed more at furries living in smaller cities (roughly 100,000 citizens or less) but feel free to answer if you feel this still applies to you:

-Do you find it more difficult or easier to be furry in smaller general population areas?

-Do you feel the smaller population keeps you less active in the furry community or more active?

-Do you feel that a smaller population allows you to get to know the local furries more personally?

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and to those that answer, thank you again for your time to compose a response.

There are some other questions further down the page

[Wildfire]

I might have gotten the wrong impression, but it kinda feels like you just took a list of questions for gay people and changed the word 'gay' for 'furry'.

[bigjonesb]

  It wasn't my intention for it to come out like that. I was wondering, because, for some people there was/is little to no problem, and for others, there was/is some struggle on the path to being furry. For some, the coming out about being furry was/is a huge hurdle not easily jumped over without landing on your face.

 As you pointed out, it does look like I switched words on the questions, but I'm sure not everyone transitioned to the furry world so easily or smoothly, and was wondering what bumps and hiccups people faced on their way to coming out about being furry

[Neox]

-What was the light-bulb moment when your realized you were furry?

Not really a "light-bulb," more like a gradual effect of discovery.  Started drawing dragons one day long ago.  Decided I wanted to find a place to showcase my artwork.  Found a couple websites that catered to furry art and began learning what it was to be a furry, etc.

-Did you struggle with coming to grips with the fact you're a furry?

Haha nope.  It's just a part of who I am.  If I really didn't like it, or felt ashamed of it, I probably would stop being one.

-If any issues arose, how did you deal with people, such as friends and family members, that arose when you came out as furry?

My friends are my friends because they can put up with my shenanigans and like having me around.  My family don't give a damn as long as I'm a good person and I do well in life.  I never had any real issues from being a furry because I try to make myself out to be a good, reliable guy who knows how to get shit done.  I've had a few people get a bit weirded out when they find out I'm an artist, and question leads to question leads to, "I draw furry art," but I've been a furry for 10 years now, and I've gotten good at explaining exactly what it means to be a furry and keeping it clean and harmless.  Nearly all my co-workers know, after 6 months at my current job, and most of them think it's actually kinda cool.  The ones who don't are the 50-year-olds who think it's just something them youngsters are gettin' up to nowadays.

-Do you feel it was one of your best choices to come out as furry?

Uhh... I guess so?  I've made a ton of awesome friends through being a furry that I wouldn't have if I wasn't.  I probably wouldn't be half the artist I am today without all the help I've gleaned from other fur artists.  I probably wouldn't be quite as much of an eccentric conversation piece for my co-workers to gab about.

-Did coming out as a furry lift any size burden of any kind (eg.: mental, social) off of you?

Lol no.  It was just something that happened to fall into place for no other reason than it felt right and I have fun doing it.

-What do you think makes someone a furry? What would your checklist look like?

Any person who identifies themselves as an animal/fictional creature and puts any real thought into it for the purpose of escapism or spirituality or both.

-Do you believe there's an age limit, or is it part of you for the rest of your life?

I've met a 9 year old furry and I know a couple 50+ year old furries.  I'm 23, and it certainly doesn't seem to have an end in sight at this very moment.  I know that people change over time, but I do feel like this is something that will be a part of me for life.

-Do you believe it ever too old to enter the furry world? (excluding the obvious, Death)

Nope.  Anyone who feels like their place is in the furry community is probably correct, regardless of their age.


#- This is aimed more at furries living in smaller cities (roughly 100,000 citizens or less) but feel free to answer if you feel this still applies to you:

-Do you find it more difficult or easier to be furry in smaller general population areas?

A bit tougher.  I know most of fur-fandom is on the internet, but I do like to actually physically hang-out with my furry friends far more than just chatting with them online.  It kinda sucks when you live in a town where furs are few and far between.

-Do you feel the smaller population keeps you less active in the furry community or more active?

Hmm... tough call.  I feel that it makes me more active in the ONLINE portion if there's nobody around to chill with; but I'm far more active in the OFFLINE hangouts and get-togethers when there are other furries around to hang-out with.

-Do you feel that a smaller population allows you to get to know the local furries more personally

Lol what local furries? =P  I only just found out this last month that we even HAD other furs in my city, and that was even because I was in Vancouver hanging out with the larger group.  I don't know them that well yet, but I'm sure I will.

While I enjoyed answering these questions, I do have to agree with Wildfire.  I seriously read this as if someone took a questionnaire for gays and swapped it out for furries.  But whatever, either way, I hope my answers were at least somewhat informative. =)

[zenia]

-What was the light-bulb moment when your realized you were furry?
I didn't "realize" I was a furry. Furry is a hobby and I chose to be into the fandom a couple of years ago.

-Did you struggle with coming to grips with the fact you're a furry?
... No. It is a fun thing and I chose to be in the fandom.

-If any issues arose, how did you deal with people, such as friends and family members, that arose when you came out as furry?
You can't "come out" as a furry. It is a hobby. Do you "come out" as a model airplane builder? Singer? football player?

-Do you feel it was one of your best choices to come out as furry?
For making friends, yes.

-Did coming out as a furry lift any size burden of any kind (eg.: mental, social) off of you?
I didn't "come out" and even if it was a case of that, no.

-What do you think makes someone a furry? What would your checklist look like?
You have to like anthropomorphic animals and have your own character.

-Do you believe there's an age limit, or is it part of you for the rest of your life?
There is no age limit, and you can grow out of the fandom whenever you want... if you want to.

-Do you believe it ever too old to enter the furry world? (excluding the obvious, Death)
No.

#- This is aimed more at furries living in smaller cities (roughly 100,000 citizens or less) but feel free to answer if you feel this still applies to you:

-Do you find it more difficult or easier to be furry in smaller general population areas?
It doesn't matter where you are to have hobbies.

-Do you feel the smaller population keeps you less active in the furry community or more active?
Less opportunity to be active... but I am not a very active person anyway.

-Do you feel that a smaller population allows you to get to know the local furries more personally?
When I eventually meet more of them, I guess so.

[bigjonesb]

I apologize if I have offended anyone with any of the questions. I'm trying to get a general consensus about the furry community, and trying to get a more personal view at the same time. I realize now some of the original questions do seem off, but I'm trying to gather information for personal reasons. When I used the words "come out" in the original questions, I didn't mean for it to sound like a big deal, it was more of just letting people know what you do.

 I have edited the questions, in hopes of sounding less offensive.  I'm not trying to make enemies, but simply gather information, and I again apologize if I have offended anyone with these or the original questions. Hopefully we can work together in getting the most useful information.

The only reason I asked the age question is I notice a lot of you are in your 20's, and could falsely give the impression to someone older that this is a younger person thing and they're too old to be a part of it. but I can clearly see from a couple responses, there is no such thing as "can't teach an old dog new tricks" here

[Tef]

Alright, let me ease into my writer's chair as I formulate a set of responses.

I have orange'd certain key points for your convenience.

It's difficult to pinpoint to one particular moment with respect to discovering that I'm a furry, but it is about six years ago. That time, I tried to consider myself more of an anthro than a furry, as I felt that there has to be some sort of distinction - anthro being more orientated to animals and furries as being more orientated to human-like. This was six years ago so of course my perspectives and definitions have changed. Nowadays, to me, the definition of being anthro and being furry are quite interchangeable. But, as they always state, your mileage may vary.

What got me onto the path? I have to say it's thanks to Pokémon. I doubt that's a surprising answer to many furries born in the 90s. I was attached to Pokémon furries for quite a while, and that's the time when my interest in being a part of the furry community manifested into non-Pokémon dimensions

There are several reasons that I can ascribe to. I was bullied much during middle school, so that's one reason. Secondly, as I only moved to Vancouver from Hong Kong three years ago (in short, I was born in Hong Kong), I have yet to find a furry community in Hong Kong.

Yeah, it's usually by my parents, claiming they were uncomfortable with me getting into groups that are outside of school. In addition, they were a bit irked out by the folks in fursuits. I didn't come out of the "furry closet" during school because I was already bullied in terms of many other things. High school was fine, but hey, sometimes its better to confine in until you turn over a new leaf in university, which I did.

"Being" may be a tad strong word in this case, but I'll let it pass. To me, my sense of furriness is one amidst many interests of my own, but having said that, I was always interested in canines ever since I was a kid, so yeah, my interest in the furry community did add a bit more of a "spring to my step" ad verbatim.

Having a strong interest and identification in an animal totem of sorts would be a prime indication of "being" furry, though definitions are always subject to a sense of volatility. Thus, I may not be able to provide a checklist as per your request.

To me, responsibility exists before age. If everyone, in theory, are responsible of their interests, furry or sans furry, then there is no need of a chiseled-in-stone age limit. It does not matter if you are ten years old or a hundred years old, you can hop in on the furry wagon at any time you please.

I grew up in a city of 7 million people and counting, though I'd like to visit furry communities in smaller cities some time into the future.

[bigjonesb]

------ For Tef,
As you stated, your parents had/have trouble dealing with the fact you're involved with the furry community. How did you let them know you were part of the furry community?, did you just straight out tell them or did you let them gradually in on it?

*If anyone else wants to chime in on this question, it would be great help. As I know family can be hardest to deal with things like this.

------ For Zenia
-If any issues arose, how did you deal with people, such as friends and family members, that arose when you came out as furry?
You can't "come out" as a furry. It is a hobby. Do you "come out" as a model airplane builder? Singer? football player?

I don't want to sound defensive, I'm not. I just want you to know were I'm coming from. btw, love the nursery sign, got a laugh out of it

Also, I understand what you're saying here, but furry isn't as accepted as the three examples you gave. in the case of the model builder, most people would go "that's nice", think "whatever" and go about on their way, and with singers and football players, most people would assume they're going to try and make it big, or just simply showing they have a talent. The three examples lack any real negative backlash due to the fact they're fairly understood by the general population.

The problem is that furry is not so well understood, and some people go "what the heck is wrong with that person" and the misconception could lead to issues about being furry with other people, I know you shouldn't care what other people think if you truly like something, but some people can't get past that hurdle, due to fear of negative backlash (unnecessary or not), as they lack enough confidence "to set forth into the brave new frontier that lies ahead of them"

[Tef]

Yeah, in a sense. It's the explanation that follows that is worthy of note for your interview. The first thing that someone would state, if they are unfamiliar with furries is "What is a furry?" This was a major stumbling block for me. Despite saying that I'm a furry, I continued to use "an appreciation for animals" in place for furry whenever possible for a few months. I think my parents are okay with me stating that I'm a furry now. I showed 'em what I've gotten from VFur and they're pretty cool with it.

I've got more answers to add onto "What got you on your furry path" if that's okay with you.
The Chinese Zodiac - it's to do with spiritually associating yourself with an animal of sorts. I was already aware that I was born in the year of the goat before I knew I was a furry, despite the fact that my fursona is a sled dog.
Chinese Martial Arts in general, mainly for the fact that I am a fan of kung fu, and certain moves and schools of forms are named after animals. As a casual artist, I find inspiration in drawing "choreographed" furry fight scenes at times.

[bigjonesb]

Actually, I'm not doing an interview for any publication, I just want to get some answer to questions I have, and I thought this would great to get sense of what furry is like here in BC

[Tef]

Ahkay, my bad. xP;

[Kitten]

First I agree with what others have said about the words "furry" and "Gay" being interchangeable in all the questions.

Second this sounds very much like an interview for a paper or a blog....


Thirdly, with what recently happened with a certain online article I'm not going divulge any of my experiences with furry to you.

I wish you luck getting answers to your questions(whether they are the ones you seek or not) I also hope that you get more replies like Tef's, Zenia's and Naetholix's

[bigjonesb]

I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I just don't know how else to ask the questions. the questions are only to satisfy my own curiosity and gain a better understanding of what furry is.

Yeah unfortunately due to lack of mainstream knowledge, I can assume the article was putting the furry community in a bad light, but if it's not too much of a bother, could you link me to that article, I'm curious what it has to say.

[Drake Wingfire]

I find things like these highly interesting so I will divulge!


-What was the moment you discovered you were a furry, what got you on the path, what made you say "I got to be a part of this"?
I would say it all sparked for me August 21st 2001. A sudden interest in Dragons lead me to some online communities and from there all the dots kinda connected in my head that I had a LOT in common with these people. ^.=.^ lol yeah I literally call Aug 21st my Furry/Dragon birthday. XD

-Was there any reason whatsoever that held you back from entering the furry community sooner?
Oh god, no, it was all situational. I had become part of the comunity very shortly after learning about it cause it seemed like my kinda place/people. :D

-Did anyone have trouble dealing with you being furry?
Mmm my parents at some points.. but parents will be parents.

-Does being furry make you feel better about yourself, add a little more spring to your step?
I have told people "If I wasn't who I was.. I would probably be a very dull person to be around IRL. I have standard interests and standard hobbies, but its really the Dragon side of me that really shows all the flare and in a sense helped me develop into who I am today." and I stand by that, the furry community always brings out the colorful individual in all of us.

-What do you think makes someone a furry? What would your checklist look like?
Isnt that the million dollar question hahaha, I think the only root thing most could agree on is a interest in animals and fantasy.

-Do you believe there's an age limit, or is it part of you for the rest of your life?
Oh hell no, given the fandom is mostly teens and 20-somthings, but I have seen many older furs and honestly admire them deep down for withstanding the tests of time. All our lives we are pressed to become part of this watered down bland society where individuality and deeper personal identity are generally frowned upon, so to me, for an older fur to be able to stand up and still enjoy everything the fandom has to offer is actually quite impressive to me, its shows that they are really a strong character. As for myself, my identity is pretty deep seeded in me, I have lasted 11 years so far and have only been getting more active in this community. I can honestly see if being a part of me still even as I age.

-Do you believe it ever too old to enter the furry world? (excluding the obvious, Death)
Never. Its all in how open your mind is ^^

#- This is aimed more at furries living in smaller cities (roughly 100,000 citizens or less) but feel free to answer if you feel this still applies to you:

-Do you find it more difficult or easier to be furry in smaller general population areas?
Less furs = less hangouts = less socializing so I would say that it can be. But even that is very debatable.

-Do you feel the smaller population keeps you less active in the furry community or more active?
For sure, if more meets happened I would go to them, if I knew more furs I would be talking to them and hanging out with them. I love to meet other furs and to get to know them on a more personal basis. ^.=.^

-Do you feel that a smaller population allows you to get to know the local furries more personally?
Most certainly! In larger groups its harder to ever just talk to one person or see them more often. When you only know a small core of like 2-12 furs or so, you really get to actually know who they are past the fur, scales and feathers.

[bigjonesb]

-Do you believe a lack of proper knowledge of what furry really is, is keeping more people from joining up?

-What would you do to clean up the misconception of what furry is to the general public?

-What are some common misconceptions about furry that you like to correct right now?