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TigerTails Radio Season 16 Episode 19. Join the Discord Chat: https://discord.gg/SQ5QuRf Join the Telegram Chat: https://t.me/+yold2C77m0I1MmM0 Visit the website at http://www.tigertailsradio.co.uk. See website for full breakdown of any song credits, which is usually updated shortly after the show. Credits: Opening music: Magic by Hedge Haiden (Double Hedge Studios) Character art: Fitzroy Fox - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/lunara-toons / https://bsky.app/profile/fitzroyfox.bsky.social Background art: Charleston Rat - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/charlestonrat / https://bsky.app/profile/charlestonrat.bsky.social If you like what we do and wish to throw some pennies our way to support us, please consider sending a little tip our way. https://streamlabs.com/tigertailsradio/tip * Please note, tips are made to support TigerTails Radio and are assumed as made with good faith, so are therefore non-refundable. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Recently we stumbled across a new trailer for an upcoming animated film called Iggy the Eagle — from Poland, of all places, but it’s being released in English. The story goes like this: “Every night, a young eagle named Iggy dreams of flying alongside his imaginary brother, Felix. In reality, Iggy lives in a technically advanced society of birds so civilized, they all forgot how to fly. Iggy is being raised by his highly responsible Mom and a slightly rebellious, old-school Dad. When Iggy meets his new aviation-crazy classmate Eve, he finally gets the courage to confront his dreams, discovers the true nature of Felix… and spreads his wings in the real world for the very first time.” The 2D animation on realistic backgrounds style is highly unusual and very interesting in today’s media. We’ll be looking for this one when it comes to North America in 2026.

image c. 2025 Horus Movies

May was really busy for the guild, with the Cóyotl Award winners announced and guild officer elections! We’re settling into the middle of the year with some thoughts of how we should move ahead with changes to guild membership and also how we can get the word out about the guild to writers who might not know about us yet.

We’ve had some great new book releases over the last several months and I’ve been bad about updating the reading list at the bottom of the monthly newsletters. It’s updated now, so definitely take a look and grab copies of the books you’ve missed! I’ve also been bad about updating the open markets list below. Remember you can always check our Furry Writers’ Market page on the website to find new anthology calls and other open markets for your writing!

Our new VP has started a weekly writing ‘prawmt’ on the Discord server, if you’re looking for fun story prompts. If you hop on over to Sofawolf Academy and make an account (if you don’t already have one) you can watch an interview with me, your reluctant guild president.

Happy Pride Month! I hope your wordcounts soar this month and your troubles dwindle.

Here are the current open markets for your short stories:
The Morning After – Deadline June 1, 2025
Plott Hound Deadline June 15, 2025
Neo-Twiny Jam – Deadline July 1, 2025
The Second Hayven Celestia Anthology – Deadline July 15, 2025
Indecent Exposure – Deadline When Full
This Is Halloween – Deadline When Full
Children Of The Night – Deadline When Full

Please also check out the latest book releases from our members:
My Remise, by Koda Copeland, Released March 25, 2025
Tales of Scales, by Michael Miele, Released April 2, 2025.
Wind Singer: An Imbrium Novella, by Frances Pauli, Released April 19, 2025
Meeting Dominique, by Royce Day, Released May 1, 2025.
Dragon’s Soul, by J.F.R. Coates, Releasing June 7, 2025.

There’s something about sitting in the middle of a beautiful landscape, playing Preserve, that makes it even more wondrous. I had the opportunity to write this review while sailing up the Fjords and surrounding Alaska wilderness and I don’t know if there could have been a better setting. I could see an eagle flying around outside the window of my cabin as I made a habitat to place down for its in-game counterpart.  The music playing while we cruised the water matched perfectly, and many times I found myself pausing the game to watch the wildlife around me as I continued to listen to the game's music. 

Lulu is a Rhinoceros is a new 2D animated special we just found out about. It’s based on a popular children’s picture book by Allison Flum and Jason Flum. In a world of anthropomorphic non-humans, Lulu appears to be a young, jovial bulldog. But when she looks in the mirror, she sees a rhinoceros! And so she sets out to convince not only her friends but the whole world that that’s what she is — in the meantime, spreading a message of tolerance and kindness for those who might be different and who don’t fit into the Norm. The musical special just premiered on Apple TV+. It features the voice of Auli’i Cravalho (Moana) as Lulu.

image c. 2025 Apple TV+

Kung-Fu Kangaroos! Rattles eats up this toy commercial with fight-scenes. Merch, Sweet Tees and stuff: https://culturally-fd-merchandise.creator-spring.com/ Support Culturally F'd: https://www.patreon.com/culturallyfd Listen in on TEMPO TALKS with Tempe O'Kun https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIPk-itLl1jPyIK2c7mK-LpbvfDNqfcSW Check out Tempe O'Kun's books "Sixes Wild" and "Windfall" here: http://furplanet.com/shop/?affillink=YOUTU2907 Here's a playlist of his other Culturally F'd videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIPk-itLl1jPS7tnT4hdJwBI-CeLF8Kb_

Firstly, let me just say that Frog Legs is silly, short, and fun. It doesn’t take itself seriously, is meant to be completed in one play session, and is less than $3. As such, this review won’t be too long-winded and instead will focus on my overall experience with the little serving of goodness that is Frog Legs. Frog Legs focuses on a set of frogs that start off inside of the classic “Frogger” game, trying to convince a cautious fellow frog that making it across the busy street ain’t so scary. Unfortunately, that peer pressure leads to an event and adventure that will change them all…in more than a few ways. Featuring gameplay that hops from arcade to horror to boomer shooter, Frog Legs will be sure to surprise and elicit some laughs for its 30-40 minute runtime.

A need for better info about geography and accessibility

Good day (or night) everyone, I am Zeldstarro, a semi-furred dragon that really likes geography and travel. I have made a map of furry conventions which can be found here, and a map of other large furry events which can be found here. You can also follow my project on Bluesky, Fur Con Watch.

I made these maps not just to help other furries find conventions, but also because I had a special interest in transit accessibility. I believe that a good public transit system is an incredibly beneficial thing for any city it’s in, and for the world as a whole. So, I wanted to find one place to compare the locations of furry convention venues with their current transit accessibility (and walkability).

The most easily accessible source I found was a map on Wikifur. Disappointingly, this map was (and is) unreliable. It sometimes lists out-of-date venues and other inaccurate information, and includes events that aren’t conventions and don’t fit my purpose. This led to starting my own solution.

Zeldstarro’s map-making process

The first step was to start a map on Google MyMaps, then move to the better Open Street Map–based Umap. I showed it to a non-furry friend, and recorded hours of video lecturing about how some conventions were more centrally located and accessible than others. I wrote about it on Flayrah, which received quite a negative reception in the comments (as posts on Flayrah seem to receive, apparently). This process helped modify my interest to hotel-based conventions.

The wikifur map includes hotel and formal camping conventions, as well as night dances and camps that I wouldn’t count. It’s important to make this distinction, as I think Wikifur’s definition was too broad and would include furmeets that are far less formal, smaller and more manageable. I also wanted to differentiate hotel experiences that are mostly indoor, air-conditioned, and pre-booked for larger scale — from camping that is outdoors, farther from development, and possibly easier to book for smaller groups. This doesn’t make one kind better than another, just different. I also find the hotel kind to be fascinating and worthy of study. They are not easy to set up, and especially during the 2000s and earlier it wouldn’t have been easy to convince hotel chains (which are likely fiscally conservative) to host a nerdy, often queer fandom. (In my opinion, the “nerd boom” of the 2010s has made it easier based on the success of comic and anime conventions.)

My map comes from a personal mindset of researching and observing patterns (thanks to my autism), to which accuracy helps as much as possible. Once I shared this map and its usefulness, it got pretty darn popular. My original Google Drive map has over 90,000 views and my Umap version has more traction on Bluesky than I was expecting. I have differentiated it from Wikifur’s map by adding a separate, broader map of other large furry events (which includes camping) and included the years of founding when possible, as well as adding past conventions that don’t exist anymore alongside their Wikifur pages. I wanted to introduce furry history and trivia about where conventions used to be, as well as where they are now.

The goal of providing these tools, and how you can help as fandom collaboration

As plain maps, these are useful for people that care less about geography than I do, to find out about conventions or furry dances in the United States and Europe. They could also find out about country-specific phenomenon, such as Kemoket and Furrymosa, which are furry-focused doujinshi fares in Japan and Taiwan respectively (there used to be one in Korea as well). As someone interested in traveling and exploring the world, experiencing the fandom from other countries’ perspectives sounds amazing, and going to a doujinshi fare or a convention in Latin America or a camp in Estonia could be an enlightening experience. (Mexico’s Confuror, by the way, is amazing, though I sadly haven’t attended since 2022 due to cost.) This shared value in loving conventions is something I intend to embrace as the map continues updating, as it has evolved far beyond judging transit accessibility.

I could go on about the geographic and cultural implications we could potentially learn with this map to the point of writing another post. Of course, that’s difficult to achieve by myself, and something I don’t want to achieve alone. I want others to notice inaccuracies and point out conventions I’m missing, or an out-of-date venue, instead of having to update it themselves through a hard-to-learn system like what Wikifur currently uses. I want furries in the future to learn about past conventions and help keep the map good, accurate, and helpful.

As for how you can help, simply DM me on my Bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/furconwatch.bsky.social) or email me at zeldstarro@gmail.com. It’s also possible to join me as an editor on Umap. I ESPECIALLY need help identifying conventions from non-English-or-Spanish-speaking countries, like Brazil or ESPECIALLY China (navigating the Chinese internet is difficult for someone who doesn’t know Mandarin). I could also use help with adding former furry conventions and former venues.

Overall, I am very happy that this map has been appreciated by so many people, and it should only get better over time.

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. Want to get involved? Try these subreddits: r/furrydiscuss for news or r/waginheaven for the best of the community. Or send guest writing here. (Content Policy.)

Indie games are often the sources of some of the most innovative ideas out there. A lot of these games also wear their inspiration on their sleeves. It’s impressive when a game can both bring its own unique ideas to the table while also paying homage to the titles that inspired it. Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is one such game. A lovingly crafted and self-proclaimed “Yoyovania” that pays homage to titles like The Legend of Zelda and Castlevania while still maintaining its own unique identity. No small feat, but Pipistrello accomplishes it.

TigerTails Radio Season 16 Episode 18. Join the Discord Chat: https://discord.gg/SQ5QuRf Join the Telegram Chat: https://t.me/+yold2C77m0I1MmM0 Visit the website at http://www.tigertailsradio.co.uk. See website for full breakdown of any song credits, which is usually updated shortly after the show. Credits: Opening music: Magic by Hedge Haiden (Double Hedge Studios) Character art: Fitzroy Fox - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/lunara-toons / https://bsky.app/profile/fitzroyfox.bsky.social Background art: Charleston Rat - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/charlestonrat / https://bsky.app/profile/charlestonrat.bsky.social If you like what we do and wish to throw some pennies our way to support us, please consider sending a little tip our way. https://streamlabs.com/tigertailsradio/tip * Please note, tips are made to support TigerTails Radio and are assumed as made with good faith, so are therefore non-refundable. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Wild Assault didn’t just provide well-designed anthro characters, it committed time to developing animations that added to the uniqueness of each species. A third-person shooter, Wild Assault has you engaged in battle as one of 10 valiants, using their unique powers to capture territory or objective markers and deplete your opponent’s points. Early access starts with 2 game modes, Conquest and Raid, and two maps, the Mojave Desert and the Rocky Mountains. Mojave’s only playable in Conquest, while the Ricky Mountains are in both Conquest and Raid. Raid matches use one of two halves of the mountain map, with one side attacking, the other defending. Defenders win once the attackers lose all their points or time’s up. Attackers win when they capture all points. Both maps are littered with lots of cover. Ironically, this makes it easier for people to sneak around and kill you without noticing. I favored Raid more, for faster matches and a clearer idea of the battle lines, though the half-sized maps feel small with 40 players fighting for objectives. They recently added a Deathmatch for a limited time, with two teams of 8 participating in a classical battle to wear out their opponent’s points.

Voting has concluded in what we think may be the first actual vote needed for officer elections. 51 members voted.

The contested officer position was Markets Manager, with Scribbles Cheetah (incumbent) receiving 62.7% of the vote and Chase Anderson receiving 37.3% of the vote. It was actually a much closer race than it sounds, with the percentage going back and forth repeatedly and at one point standing (for a long time) right at 50/50. Congratulations to Scribbles for continuing as the FWG Markets Manager for 2025-26!

The other half of the ballot regarded expanding the guild’s membership requirements to include written work in other formats/media (i.e. not just novels, short stories, and poetry). Members overwhelmingly voted in favor of this, with 92.2% of the votes. We also received 33 thoughtful responses about the change, both positive and negative. In the coming weeks, guild officers will take all comments into account and discuss how best to implement the change to benefit guild members and potential members. I hope to post our conclusions sometime in June so that members can make comments and suggestions before the change is adopted formally.

Thanks to everyone who voted and commented!

It looks like I’ll be staying on as president for the next year, and I’ll do my best. Flash Kitterson has stepped into the vice president role and is doing a fantastic job already! Resolute will also be staying on as public relations officer and is, as always, doing a great job. Remember that the treasurer and Coyotl Awards chair roles are still vacant, so if you’ve been thinking of volunteering, you don’t need to wait for guild elections next April. Just let us know.

In other news–
For the horror fans among us, check out the Kickstarter for a planned horror anthology, The Deer Is Messed Up, which will be paying pro rates. It’s not a furry anthology but Scribbles checked with the editor and they will consider furry/anthro stories. It needs to meet its goal by June 4 for the anthology to happen, so pre-order your copy through Kickstarter and support small publishers!

I’ll be back next week with the monthly newsletter!

MOOBARKFLUFF! Click here to send us a comment or message about the show!

The gang is all here. Join us for this penultimate episode of Season 5! We tell some jokes, hear some news, and Taebyn gives us part two of his original story! If you are listening to this when it drops, we are all at Furlandia having a furrytastic time!  Taebyn doesn’t understand a few things, and we have to explain. So tune in for another confusing episode of BFFT. Moobarkfluff everyfur!

This podcast contains adult language and adult topics. It is rated M for Mature. Listener discretion is advised.

Support the show

Thanks to all our listeners and to our staff: Bearly Normal, Rayne Raccoon, Taebyn, Cheetaro, TickTock, and Ziggy the Meme Weasel.

You can send us a message on Telegram at BFFT Chat, or via email at: bearlyfurcasting@gmail.com

Bearly Furcasting S5E25 - Toast and Ice Cubes

More discoveries from this year’s Festival of Books at USC: A new fantasy novel by Daniel Fliederbaum, Smash the World’s Shell. “When a mysterious ring suddenly appears on reclusive teenager Ellen’s bookshelf, she is granted the power to travel miles away from everything she’s ever known. There she meets Shard, a friendly dragon who offers to help Ellen grow her stunted-since-birth magic. Although it seems too good to be true, Ellen accepts, sure she can conquer her self-hatred by becoming an accomplished magician. Little does she know, her magical voyages have raised the suspicions of those who would destroy her… Young and lonely, Shard is determined to find his first friend in Ellen. But befriending a creature as detested as a human could spell banishment from his tribe — or worse. As the bond between them grows, they will have to face their deepest fears. If they can’t, their friendship is doomed … along with any chance they have of saving both their kinds from annihilation.” It’s available now in paperback. Find out more at Water Dragon Publishing.

image c. 2025 Water Dragon Publishing

Hewwo,

After several long years of being single, I, at the age of 30, have decided to start dating again. It took a long time for me to reach this point, I had spent a couple of years in therapy trying to deal with issues that have resulted in my long term loneliness and sexual dysfunction, and I think I've reached a point where I can not only learn how to be more comfortable and trusting of others but also be more willing to pursue a (mostly male) romantic partner.

However, while I have been pursuing such relationships recently, I have been finding it very very hard to find the one for me. Everyone my age seems to be either married, in a committed relationship, or committed to remaining single for the rest of their life. On top of that, the ones who are single and open tend to be a little bit on the younger side (early 20s). Not only that, but I'm also having a hard time finding someone that actually wants to be in a relationship and isn't just trying to use me for sex.

Pretty much the only single person I've managed to find was someone who is 24 (just young enough to be in a relationship with without it feeling a little creepy), but the more I'm with this guy, the more I'm beginning to find that he doesn't seem interested in me at all (or in me being interested in him) and just simply wants to use me for sex. I have no idea what to do. I finally committed myself to no longer being alone, but I don't want to feel like I have to sell my body to uncaring people just so I wouldn't have to live or sleep alone.

Has my opportunity for a good relationship already passed me by because I simply couldn't get my act together while I was still in my 20s? Sorry if this sounds venty, I just feel like I need guidance on something on something that I'm learning over a decade too late.

Felixian

* * *

Dear Felixian,

Cool name, btw, if I may say so.

Venting is what this column is for! Yeah, the dating scene is tougher the older you get, for sure. And yes, to be frank, many younger men are out for sex or sugar daddies. That's not always true, of course, but it is definitely a common experience. And older men tend to already be in relationships or else they have had one or more bad relationships already and are very careful or flat-out disinterested in finding an LTR.

So, here's what you do: Abandon the dating scene.

​Don't deliberately go out to bars or websites to meet people to set up a date. All that gets you is rooms full of people whose desperation is so intense you can smell it. And that is very off-putting. I'll tell you a quick story as an example. My late sister was a lesbian working in academia. As part of her work scene, she would sometimes have to go to social gatherings full of professors and administrators and such. At the gatherings, some of her straight, single lady friends would be working the room, seeking connections and relationships. My sister could see that, after a while, the men in the room began to noticeably avoid these women, subtly steering clear or excusing themselves. Meanwhile! My sister, who had absolutely no interest in men (obviously), but who was an intelligent and interesting conversationalist, was drawing crowds of men to her. Why? Because a strong, confident woman who is not clingy and desperate is extremely attractive.

You'll be surprised how much easier it is to find people when you're not looking. But by "not looking" I don't mean sit at home and hide from everyone. Not at all. What you should do is get involved in life. Get out there and do activities you love, especially activities where you will find lots of other people. Then, guess what? You will easily locate people who share your interests. Strike up conversations with them. Go to lunch with a group and simply socialize. Eventually, you should become friends with some of these people, and it is at that point you might approach them for a date (the single ones, of course) because the best relationships start off as friendships and then progress into more than friendships. This is what happened to me with my late husband, Jim, and then with Michael. Jim and I got involved by trying to start a small news podcast business in Michigan, and this developed into love and we moved in together. Michael, interestingly enough, was introduced to me by Jim because Michael taught piano and he became my teacher. After Jim died, Michael moved in with me and we married a couple of years later.

Good relationships develop organically. When you try to force them (often with a hookup kind of date) they tend not to work out too well. Sex is great, but you can't base a relationship just on the physical aspects, as you surely know already.

To answer your question: No, opportunities have not slipped you by. I belong, for instance, to quite a few online groups of older gay men, and there are many who have been widowed or divorced who would very much like a serious relationship again. They are out there. Try the approach I outlined above. It takes longer to follow it through, but the results will be better.

Take Care,
Papabear

TigerTails Radio Season 16 Episode 17. Join the Discord Chat: https://discord.gg/SQ5QuRf Join the Telegram Chat: https://t.me/+yold2C77m0I1MmM0 Visit the website at http://www.tigertailsradio.co.uk. See website for full breakdown of any song credits, which is usually updated shortly after the show. Credits: Opening music: Magic by Hedge Haiden (Double Hedge Studios) Character art: Fitzroy Fox - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/lunara-toons / https://bsky.app/profile/fitzroyfox.bsky.social Background art: Charleston Rat - https://www.furaffinity.net/user/charlestonrat / https://bsky.app/profile/charlestonrat.bsky.social If you like what we do and wish to throw some pennies our way to support us, please consider sending a little tip our way. https://streamlabs.com/tigertailsradio/tip * Please note, tips are made to support TigerTails Radio and are assumed as made with good faith, so are therefore non-refundable. Thank you for your support and understanding.

《海峡时报》报道引发新加坡兽迷社群震荡

Looking for something else, we stumbled upon this: The Green Ember series of fantasy novels (with a light Christian theme), written by S.D. Smith. “Heather and Picket are extraordinary rabbits with ordinary lives until calamitous events overtake them, spilling them into a cauldron of misadventures. They discover that their own story is bound up in the tumult threatening to overwhelm the wider world. Kings fall and kingdoms totter. Tyrants ascend and terrors threaten. Betrayal beckons, and loyalty is a broken road with peril around every bend. Where will Heather and Picket land? How will they make their stand?” Several books have followed in the series, but here is where you get started.

image c. 2025 Story Warren Books

It’s time for FWG members to vote for guild officers! The ballot is live and can be found here:

2025 FWG Elections

You must be a current guild member to vote, so make sure that you provide the correct name and email address so we can match your response against guild membership records. Feel free to email if your contact information has changed and you want to make sure guild records are up-to-date.

In addition to the one contested seat, Markets Manager, the ballot asks for your opinion about broadening the type of works accepted for membership in the guild. There’s also a comment section if you’d like to share your thoughts on this topic.

The ballot will remain open for one week, until May 23, 2025, so don’t put off your decision for too long.

GUEST POST: Eberra Wolf (sounds like “a-BEAR-uh”) is an independent reporter from New York City, and focuses on the northeastern United States. He has been a furry since December 2022. Eberra is using community access to submit news as an on-the-scene correspondent – you can submit news here.

Furries playing outside in the courtyard of the Mount Laurel, N.J., DoubleTree on Saturday. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

Furgeddaboutit had its inaugural convention over the weekend of May 2-4 in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. Created in reaction to Garden State Fur the Weekend, another New Jersey convention, it was held on the same weekend 47 miles southwest, about 50 minutes away by car.

By the end of both cons, comparison of the respective results would make an example for the global fandom to remember.

Furgeddaboutit was hosted by Furrydelphia, with staffing assistance from community groups Anthro Outdoor Adventures, Furgen County, The Furst State, and Pinefurs — though the plan is to eventually spin Furgeddaboutit off into an independent organization run by people in New Jersey. “The intention is that once this is over, we’ll be electing an actual board,” said Bangaroo, one of the people who spearheaded the convention. “Most of the people from outside of New Jersey are probably going to step down or step back,” including himself.

Opening ceremonies on Friday morning. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

It was decided that it would be easier and faster to use Furrydelphia’s corporation to put cash upfront and sign contracts. Furrydelphia Inc., based in Philadelphia, PA, took money out of its cash reserves—likely a five digit sum—to put into running Furgeddaboutit, which it plans to recoup in its entirety. Cash left over is to be given to the entity that will host Furgeddaboutit, when it is established. Bangaroo added that “we’re trying to leave as much over for the future event to set something that’s bigger and more sustainable.”

The convention began planning back in December of last year—a lead time of six months, which is a very short amount of time to organize a furry convention. “The time between us realizing that we needed to do [this] and us announcing it was less than two weeks,” said Bangaroo.

A wedding event on Saturday, one among a few weddings who crossed paths with the furry convention. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

Not only was there Garden State that was being held alongside Furgeddaboutit, there was also The Big One, a large, two-day furmeet hosted by Pawsouls nearer to Garden State. Even in the DoubleTree Mount Laurel where Furgeddaboutit took place at, there were several weddings happening alongside the convention, which it had to coordinate with. (Wedding season made it more challenging to find a hotel at an acceptable price on short notice.)

A bridesmaid posted on TikTok a short clip of them walking in the courtyard with furries cheering them on, which was widely-shared. Susan, the mother of one of the grooms this weekend was surprised at our presence but thought the convention was “wonderful.” The vendor hall had been booked by Furgeddaboutit until Saturday afternoon, where it was then used for wedding banquets for the remainder of the weekend.

Officially, Furgeddaboutit took a we-pretend-not-to-see-it stance towards Garden State. The website describes it as a “safe, friendly, furry place to spend May 2nd-4th, 2025,” distinguishing itself from Garden State if you read between the lines. Garden State was not mentioned by name by Furgeddaboutit staff, but it was clear what they were referring to when the con was brought up in conversation.

The con’s primary reason for starting up was to actively attract attendees and vendors from Garden State, and it worked. Garden State’s inaugural convention the year prior had 957 attendees. Their second year had only 348, less than half. By comparison, Furgeddaboutit had surpassed that in pre-registrations and check-ins by Friday morning, and 638 attendees by the end.

Several dozen sources were consulted for this story, including five who went to both conventions.

Experiences at Garden State: “Something’s not quite right here”

Attendees and vendors who went to Garden State on Friday or Saturday described empty halls, sparsely-attended raves, a barren atmosphere, and not much to do. Several jumped ship during the weekend to go to Furgeddaboutit instead, many unaware of the controversy surrounding Garden State until they learned at the convention itself.

“It was dead,” a Garden State attendee who later went to Furgeddabout it said. “There was barely anybody.” Another said that, on Friday, “the main lobby only had a couple of people.” “Opening ceremony probably had between 30 to 50 people,” a third Garden State attendee said.

One attendee told me there were about a half dozen fursuiters participating in the fursuit games (though the attendee still enjoyed it). A sticker panel had no panelists, according to another attendee, who also said that events were being canceled during the convention. The sticker board itself had a deceptively-inflated amount of stickers, including one sticker that had not been made for years by a furry who was in New York during the convention. A third attendee said that the bug photography panel had only 30 minutes worth of material, despite being scheduled for 90 minutes.

Con ops, the control center of the convention, was not set up by Friday evening, according to a pair of attendees who needed assistance from that department. (They were reached out to by Furgeddaboutit and offered a discount on their registration.)

Rose Pup Supreme, who went to Garden State Fur The Weekend in 2024, found out about the event from flyers at Anthro New England. “As I went into Garden State Fur The Weekend, I didn’t really know what I was stepping into. And my experiences at Garden State Fur The Weekend were sort of bad overall” because of the staff, and specific “problematic” attendees, who staff were associating with. “I was just sort of like, Oh something’s not quite right here.”

She described to me how she reported a negative interaction with another attendee to the staff, who took down an incident report, but two times when she followed-up after the convention, she did not get a response. It was “[un]deniably uncomfortable that they didn’t respond.” That soured her experience. She wanted to vet new conventions more thoroughly after that.

Others did have empathy for the staff who committed to working there. “I don’t want to knock any individual staff members,” an attendee of both told me. “The ones we interacted with were objectively doing their best.”

Some people noticed that there were a lot of children at Garden State. “This very well might be their weird hobby that they had to beg their parents to let them go to a convention for,” one of them said. “And they arrive and it’s a room of 30 adults” who are not in their age range. “Nothing’s going on” for them, they added. “Nothing’s going on.” Those kids appeared to have moved to Furgeddaboutit, as on Saturday and Sunday, there were many playing around outside.

A dismaying experience came from a new congoer at Garden State, who posted on Bluesky: “first con i go to its fyre fest”, a video of first-time fursuiting at a sparse dance captioned “a whole rave just for me!!” and the unpleasant surprise of looking up con pics afterwards, and discovering a person he played games with was the con owner going incognito because of “very publically caught being a nazi but still wanna profit…”

Attendees and vendors were actively attracted to alternatives, consumer choice favored Furgeddaboutit 

Vendors last year at Garden State said they had a good time then. Those who attended this year’s Garden State purchased booths on recommendation. Many found things were not as they expected.

At Garden State 2025, several vendors planned to or had already set up shop, but bailed and came to Furgeddaboutit. Vendors began packing up as soon as Friday afternoon, either to go home or to Furgeddaboutit. This continued throughout Saturday. Garden State had posted a dealer map of 27 vendors; but two vendors both estimated that they started out with 16, which dwindled to single-digits.

Twisted Tails Escape, a company who goes to furry conventions across the country to set up escape rooms, closed up shop Saturday morning “due to some unforseen [sic] circumstances and what appears to be some kind of stomach bug”.

Twisted Tails Escape heard criticism for going and said more to resolve it: “We were under the impression that GSFTW cut ties with Nazi furs and sympathizers. So we decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. We have not and never will associate ourselves with Nazi Furs. Additionally, due to recent information that has come to light regarding certain group members being seen on the premises at the convention, we made the decision to leave the convention early.”

Yvonne, a vendor, said she lost $475 on two booths at Garden State Fur The Weekend. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

Furgeddaboutit had done a push back in February to invite vendors, much closer to the convention weekend than is typical for organizing vendors, due to Furgeddaboutit being set up on relatively short notice. Invitations continued during the event.

Some vendors who were at Garden State Friday told me that Furgeddaboutit offered them a free booth, effectively encouraging them to cut losses and migrate. “It sounds like they’ve been creative and made more room as people needed to come in,” one vendor said.

Vendors who switched conventions mid-weekend worried that they would not recoup the cost of attending Garden State. One vendor told me that they wouldn’t have broken even on the cost of their booth if they had stayed the whole weekend. Several vendors said they paid $242 for their tables. One said they stayed because of not wanting to lose $242, when Garden State was “being ridiculous when it comes to refunding dealers who have opted to cancel their spot. They will only issue refunds if they get another vendor to take their place.”

Of the vendors who backed out months in advance, only some got refunds, and only one directly from Garden State. Others were refunded by filing disputes with their bank, if Garden State refused. Yvonne, a vendor recovering from cancer treatment, said she paid $475 for a two-table booth, and was not refunded despite pulling out a month prior to the convention.

The vendors who switched mid-convention contrasted their experience with Furgeddaboutit, which they said was more lively. At Garden State, vendors played music to entertain themselves and entice customers. “Night and day,” an attendee of both conventions said. “Genuinely night and day.”

Charity for wildlife

Erin Rounds holds up a turtle while Jim Hansen talks about the animals. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

Furg’s charity was Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, based out of Medford, New Jersey. “In our wildlife hospital, we take in over 7,000 animals a year with the goal of [rehabilitating] and releasing them back into the wild,” said Ashley Krusen, who is the nature center and membership manager at Cedar Run. Cedar Run representatives go to schools, retirement homes, and festivals to do community outreach and education.

Cedar Run was “excited” to be invited to Furgeddaboutit. “Obviously we love animals,” Krusen said. On Saturday morning, director of education Erin Rounds and after-school coordinator Jim Hansen hosted a panel showing off animal parts and live animals. Rounds and Hansen brought two snakes and a turtle for attendees to look at. (The snakes were put in pillowcases so that they weren’t overstimulated during travel.) They also brought animal pelts and turtle shells for attendees to touch.

The wildlife refuge services pretty much all of New Jersey, and its outreach extends further north, out of state. “We’re the busiest wildlife refuge in all of South Jersey, and we can only service within New Jersey for wildlife rehabilitation services,” Krusen said.

The campus, in Medford, has a lake between its two buildings: the nature center and the hospital and rehabilitation center. The wildlife hospital and rehabilitation building can have almost 500 animals at a given time. There are also outdoor enclosures on the property. “We are primarily volunteer-based,” Krusen said. “We have almost 200 volunteers that help us out.”

Animals have stays for as short as two weeks; babies in the spring may be held for three months. Some animals brought to the hospital in the fall have to stay through the winter until conditions are suitable for their continued survival.

When releasing the animals back into native habitats, they’ll put the animal in a safe area near where the animal was found. Cedar Run doesn’t conduct follow-up work on the animals, though occasionally they will partner with the state to band birds.

Some animals are ‘habituated’ or ‘imprinted,’ animals that were raised by people before realizing that they’re wild, not pets. These are kept permanently because they’ll “never be able to live on their own in the wild,” Krusen says.

Lisa Franko (right) in front of a big pile of cash that attendees gave in the last-minute collection during closing ceremonies. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

In all, $8,260 was raised for Cedar Run. Lisa Franko, director of development at the nonprofit, was on stage to represent it during closing ceremonies. She was ecstatic at the more than $1,000 donations that streamed in at the last minute from attendees cleaning out their wallets. Franko told the audience that by contrast, even at large fundraising events, Cedar Run only fundraises one or two thousand dollars.

An attendee plays with the fire billboard in the hotel hallway. Attendees could adjust where the needle pointed, from ‘low’ risk to ‘extreme’. (Eberra Wolf for Dogpatch Press.)

‘Controlled burn’

Furgeddaboutit’s theme was “Controlled burn,” and the convention’s mascot is an orange phoenix named Ashley. Nocturne designed Ashley, along with the logo and the badge. Ashley, like Nocturne, is non-binary. “It was a big move to make sort of a more fem mascot for a convention,” said Percey, another member of the art team. “A lot of the convention mascots always end up very masculine-presenting.”

Percey assisted Nocturne and drew the dealer’s den map. That drawing was quickly outdated as new vendors showed up, though some modifications were made onto the print, which was then auctioned off for charity.

Osiris Adustus created the fire danger risk billboard, which hung out in the event hallway outside the dealer’s den. Nocturne and Percey say it will likely be used again next year.

Keeping with that theme, early Monday morning the fire alarm at the DoubleTree went off around 1:39 AM. Two fire trucks came, and a Furgeddaboutit attendee was hastily packing up their luggage into their car from their first-floor room. According to the front desk, it was a guest who had tripped the smoke alarm. A fitting end to the convention.

– Eberra Wolf

Editor afterword

Dogpatch Press has been covering controversy about Garden State Fur The Weekend for over a year. The first report in 2024 said: “It’s not enough to dig out problems. You also have to fill in the hole.”

Furgeddaboutit is the fruit of such positive effort. These factors make it unprecedented:

• Openly eschewing a pre-established con that draws support and attendance from the same region. Usually, cons aren’t meant to compete, but Garden State was already under investigation for unusual behavior that the community wouldn’t support.
• Foundation by coalition with active but informal local groups. They cooperated to make an alternative to a formal event with first-start advantage, raising challenges for the plan to succeed. There were even multiple alternatives made.
• Very short timing to successfully carry out the plan. Healthy attendance made a base to grow without being defined by other events going forward.

There’s also the way that Garden State struggled for control with deception, false advertising, mass purging of critics, and duress on vendors to unsuccessfully stave off controversy and people’s free choices to leave. When Garden State couldn’t grab goodwill by force, they tried blaming narratives of outsider takeover. Furrydelphia is close and staffed by New Jersey furries — compare to how chronic staff turnover left Garden State reliant on core organizers from Florida. Aggression by the Garden State head of PR led a critic to say: “Thank goodness he doesn’t live here”.

For many furries in New Jersey, Furgeddaboutit stood for what the community wanted and had collective power to organize, especially when they felt misrepresented until they acted. From this spark, the con represented how to adapt and thrive against adversity, and make a beacon to others who feel the same.

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