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submitted by Essjay-C
[link] [11 comments]

submitted by TheKillerJester
[link] [4 comments]

submitted by king_snek
[link] [4 comments]

Trivial Fursuit

Please forgive me

submitted by KalebTheNotSoFurry
[link] [22 comments]

If you can please have it from the era when people thought furries were the worst thing ever.

submitted by errorlypse
[link] [20 comments]

submitted by gamepopper
[link] [4 comments]

submitted by Dukurow
[link] [7 comments]

submitted by DocFurry
[link] [16 comments]

submitted by ty5142
[link] [13 comments]

IT'S HAPPENING! At the time of writing we're only 37 subscribers away from 20k, and we're probably going to hit it some time tomorrow morning.

For this awesome occasion, we're having a party! The theme of this party (And of the art thread) will be Fancy Dress! Does your fursona have an awesome costume? Cosplay? Their own fursuit? Show us!

Also, I'd love to see some collaborative pictures from people partying together. Let's see what you can come up with!

On a more serious note: Just a reminder that the art thread is meant to prompt new drawings and not pictures you have saved from a long time ago. As usual, if you have any suggestions, PM me here or tweet me at @CeresSergal!

Week 9

P.S: There may be some more cool events later in the week, keep an eye out ;)

submitted by CeresSergal
[link] [37 comments]

I am trying to start drawing, but it is really hard to find the motivation to do what I need to do to get started; not to say that I don't enjoy art. When I am actually drawing I enjoy it quite a lot. I just need help to find motivation. I'm sure someone here will have something helpful to say, as you are want to do.

submitted by Sadiebubs
[link] [15 comments]

We at [adjective][species] have a wealth of furry data at our fingertips. Our primary source of information is the Furry Survey, an annual survey that has been running more or less continuously since 2008. The 2015 Furry Survey is currently open at www.furrypoll.com.

Makyo and I both run occasional [adjective][species] panels at conventions, which usually start with a broad demographic overview of furry. (From there we dive into certain topics in depth.) Here on the site we tend to mostly talk about specific topics, but it’s the general demographic data that often generates the most interest at the panels.

With that in mind, I thought I’d present some broad demographic data. I’ve adapted this from my Confuzzled 2015 panel. What follows is a snapshot of furry.

First: a note on the data. The Furry Survey is voluntary, which means that our dataset is self-selecting. It’s not possible to perform a census of the whole of furry, so we only know about furries who fill in the survey.

We can make some general comments about the quality of our data:

• Our dataset is large enough to provide consistency year in, year out. We don’t see big changes in furry demographics over time. Importantly this has been the case regardless of how the Furry Survey has been publicized and shared: from LiveJournal back in the day, through to Twitter, Reddit, and advertising on furry websites.
• Our data matches closely with the data collected online by the scientists at the International Anthropomorphic Research Project (IARP), with the exception that they are unable to collect data from minors (under 18).

It’s probably reasonable to guess that we collect data from ‘more engaged’ furries. Furries who are only peripherally involved with the community are probably less likely to fill in the survey. The same probably goes for older furries, because the responsibilities of age—work, family, whatnot—will naturally dilute the influence of furry for a lot of people.

Age

Furries have an average age of 23, with a peak at about 19, and a long tail of older furries.

Age distribution of furries.

The average age increased by only about a year between 2009 and 2013. This suggests that furry is growing, with new young furs joining the community and offsetting the natural ageing of the group. It also suggests that furries drop out as they get older, or at least become less likely to fill in the survey.

We can be confident that furry is growing by looking at the change in attendance at furry conventions.

Data from Wikifur

This growth rate isn’t large enough in itself to account for the consistency in furry’s age demographics over time. Therefore we think that older furries do tend to drop out of the community at a certain rate, which we can estimate: the half-life of a furry is something like 10 years.

Gender

Furry consistently shows an approximate 80/20 male/female split (read more here). This holds true whether you ask about sex or gender:

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by sex

 

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by gender

It’s well known that men and women often experience the same thing in different ways, and this is true within furry. For example, women are significantly less engaged with furry compared with men, and are also much more likely to be artists:

Proportion of furries who are artists, by gender

We also know that female furries are less likely to attend conventions, even considering that women may be a majority in the Dealer’s Den. This varies from con to con, and Anthrocon appears to be an exception, with a disproportionately high number female attendees (23%) in 2015.

Species

We have a terrific species visualization here on [a][s]. You can explore species popularity by sex, gender, and sexual orientation.

Click for interactive species data visualization

Sexual Deviance

Collectively, furries are evenly spread across the Kinsey spectrum, from heterosexuality to homosexuality.

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by sexual orientation – closer to red is more homosexual, blue heterosexual

It’s a remarkably even distribution. As you can see, furry is significantly more heterosexual than homosexual, a fact sometimes obscured by our 80/20 male/female split.

Furry Survey data shows that new furries are much more likely to be heterosexual, with an obvious trend towards homosexuality over time.

Years in the fandom vs. sexual orientation

Furries tend to re-evaluate their sexual preference in the first five years or so of joining the community. Read more about this phenomenon here.

Unusual sexual interests appear to be common in furry. The most striking of these is zoophilia—about one in six furries self-identify as a zoophile—but other sexual interests are also unusually visible.

It’s hard to say whether we are, collectively, engaging in a lot unusual sexual behaviour, or if we’re simply more open about it. I talked about this at my Confuzzled panel and got the same, excellent question from several people – how can we say if data on furry sexuality is unusual if we don’t have this data for the general population? (Alternate phrasing: how prevalent is zoophilia in the Women’s Institute?)

It’s well known that people will to deny sexual deviance when asked – consider that UK government statistical analysis estimates the proportion of homosexuals to be 6%, whereas just 1.5% identified as such on the latest UK census. Tolerance and openness about sex is one of the hallmarks of furry. It doesn’t mean that we are unusually sexually driven.

For example: sex appears to be more important to furry than it actually is. We ask furries about how important sex is to them personally (blue line), and how important sex is to others in the fandom (green line). As you can see, the collective furry guess is way out – sex isn’t as important to (other) furries as it seems.

(Note on the scary red line: this is the furry guess of the importance of sex as perceived by the public. It’s not what the public really thinks.)

Religion

Furries are largely areligious. Most of us are atheist or agnostic, and many more identify with something non-mainstream such as Pagan or as some bespoke “other”.

Furry by religion

About a quarter of furries identify as Christian, the most popular religion by far. For comparison, 71% of Americans, 67% of Canadians, and 60% of Brits identify as Christian.

We asked for more detail when furs responded “other”. Something broadly atheistic was the most common response by far. If you’re interested, you can explore the data (it’s kinda fun) here.

Psychological Wellbeing

The IARP have looked at furries and psychological wellbeing in some detail. This work includes a specific study that was performed at Anthrocon in 2013.

The key conclusion, which is supported by years of research and confirmed by the Anthrocon study is simple enough: “[furry] is not associated with any significant decrements in well-being (psychological, physical, or relationship), self-esteem, or sense of identity.”

(I thought it would be better to quote from the scientists, rather than drawing on Furry Survey data. Their conclusion is a rare one in the world of sociology and psychology, simple and pithy.)

The Furry Survey was founded by Klisoura, also one of the founders of [adjective][species]. The intent of [a][s] was, in part, to host the Furry Survey and be a home for presentation and analysis of the results.

A few things have changed around here since 2011 but that primary goal remains as strong as ever. We still host the Furry Survey, and we regularly publish analysis of data from there and elsewhere. We’re getting better too: the Furry Survey was revamped for 2015, and a peek at early results confirms that we will have a lot of interesting information on furry and furries in the future.

Those of you who attended my panel at Confuzzled will recall that I presented some preliminary results from the 2015 survey. As I said then, we will look at that data in detail here on [adjective][species], but only once the survey is closed at the end of this year. In the meantime, anyone who has yet to complete the Furry Survey can do so at www.furrypoll.com.

You can explore all the results from the Furry Survey, from 2009 to 2012, with our alpha Furry Survey Explorer. Be aware it may take a few minutes to load due to the wealth of data.

We at [adjective][species] have a wealth of furry data at our fingertips. Our primary source of information is the Furry Survey, an annual survey that has been running more or less continuously since 2008. The 2015 Furry Survey is currently open at www.furrypoll.com.

Makyo and I both run occasional [adjective][species] panels at conventions, which usually start with a broad demographic overview of furry. (From there we dive into certain topics in depth.) Here on the site we tend to mostly talk about specific topics, but it’s the general demographic data that often generates the most interest at the panels.

With that in mind, I thought I’d present some broad demographic data. I’ve adapted this from my Confuzzled 2015 panel. What follows is a snapshot of furry.

First: a note on the data. The Furry Survey is voluntary, which means that our dataset is self-selecting. It’s not possible to perform a census of the whole of furry, so we only know about furries who fill in the survey.

We can make some general comments about the quality of our data:

• Our dataset is large enough to provide consistency year in, year out. We don’t see big changes in furry demographics over time. Importantly this has been the case regardless of how the Furry Survey has been publicized and shared: from LiveJournal back in the day, through to Twitter, Reddit, and advertising on furry websites.
• Our data matches closely with the data collected online by the scientists at the International Anthropomorphic Research Project (IARP), with the exception that they are unable to collect data from minors (under 18).

It’s probably reasonable to guess that we collect data from ‘more engaged’ furries. Furries who are only peripherally involved with the community are probably less likely to fill in the survey. The same probably goes for older furries, because the responsibilities of age—work, family, whatnot—will naturally dilute the influence of furry for a lot of people.

Age

Furries have an average age of 23, with a peak at about 19, and a long tail of older furries.

Age distribution of furries.

The average age increased by only about a year between 2009 and 2013. This suggests that furry is growing, with new young furs joining the community and offsetting the natural ageing of the group. It also suggests that furries drop out as they get older, or at least become less likely to fill in the survey.

We can be confident that furry is growing by looking at the change in attendance at furry conventions.

Data from Wikifur

This growth rate isn’t large enough in itself to account for the consistency in furry’s age demographics over time. Therefore we think that older furries do tend to drop out of the community at a certain rate, which we can estimate: the half-life of a furry is something like 10 years.

Gender

Furry consistently shows an approximate 80/20 male/female split (read more here). This holds true whether you ask about sex or gender:

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by sex

 

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by gender

It’s well known that men and women often experience the same thing in different ways, and this is true within furry. For example, women are significantly less engaged with furry compared with men, and are also much more likely to be artists:

Proportion of furries who are artists, by gender

We also know that female furries are less likely to attend conventions, even considering that women may be a majority in the Dealer’s Den. This varies from con to con, and Anthrocon appears to be an exception, with a disproportionately high number female attendees (23%) in 2015.

Species

We have a terrific species visualization here on [a][s]. You can explore species popularity by sex, gender, and sexual orientation.

Click for interactive species data visualization

Sexual Deviance

Collectively, furries are evenly spread across the Kinsey spectrum, from heterosexuality to homosexuality.

Furries, 2009 to 2013 by sexual orientation – closer to red is more homosexual, blue heterosexual

It’s a remarkably even distribution. As you can see, furry is significantly more heterosexual than homosexual, a fact sometimes obscured by our 80/20 male/female split.

Furry Survey data shows that new furries are much more likely to be heterosexual, with an obvious trend towards homosexuality over time.

Years in the fandom vs. sexual orientation

Furries tend to re-evaluate their sexual preference in the first five years or so of joining the community. Read more about this phenomenon here.

Unusual sexual interests appear to be common in furry. The most striking of these is zoophilia—about one in six furries self-identify as a zoophile—but other sexual interests are also unusually visible.

It’s hard to say whether we are, collectively, engaging in a lot unusual sexual behaviour, or if we’re simply more open about it. I talked about this at my Confuzzled panel and got the same, excellent question from several people – how can we say if data on furry sexuality is unusual if we don’t have this data for the general population? (Alternate phrasing: how prevalent is zoophilia in the Women’s Institute?)

It’s well known that people will to deny sexual deviance when asked – consider that UK government statistical analysis estimates the proportion of homosexuals to be 6%, whereas just 1.5% identified as such on the latest UK census. Tolerance and openness about sex is one of the hallmarks of furry. It doesn’t mean that we are unusually sexually driven.

For example: sex appears to be more important to furry than it actually is. We ask furries about how important sex is to them personally (blue line), and how important sex is to others in the fandom (green line). As you can see, the collective furry guess is way out – sex isn’t as important to (other) furries as it seems.

(Note on the scary red line: this is the furry guess of the importance of sex as perceived by the public. It’s not what the public really thinks.)

Religion

Furries are largely areligious. Most of us are atheist or agnostic, and many more identify with something non-mainstream such as Pagan or as some bespoke “other”.

Furry by religion

About a quarter of furries identify as Christian, the most popular religion by far. For comparison, 71% of Americans, 67% of Canadians, and 60% of Brits identify as Christian.

We asked for more detail when furs responded “other”. Something broadly atheistic was the most common response by far. If you’re interested, you can explore the data (it’s kinda fun) here.

Psychological Wellbeing

The IARP have looked at furries and psychological wellbeing in some detail. This work includes a specific study that was performed at Anthrocon in 2013.

The key conclusion, which is supported by years of research and confirmed by the Anthrocon study is simple enough: “[furry] is not associated with any significant decrements in well-being (psychological, physical, or relationship), self-esteem, or sense of identity.”

(I thought it would be better to quote from the scientists, rather than drawing on Furry Survey data. Their conclusion is a rare one in the world of sociology and psychology, simple and pithy.)

The Furry Survey was founded by Klisoura, also one of the founders of [adjective][species]. The intent of [a][s] was, in part, to host the Furry Survey and be a home for presentation and analysis of the results.

A few things have changed around here since 2011 but that primary goal remains as strong as ever. We still host the Furry Survey, and we regularly publish analysis of data from there and elsewhere. We’re getting better too: the Furry Survey was revamped for 2015, and a peek at early results confirms that we will have a lot of interesting information on furry and furries in the future.

Those of you who attended my panel at Confuzzled will recall that I presented some preliminary results from the 2015 survey. As I said then, we will look at that data in detail here on [adjective][species], but only once the survey is closed at the end of this year. In the meantime, anyone who has yet to complete the Furry Survey can do so at www.furrypoll.com.

You can explore all the results from the Furry Survey, from 2009 to 2012, with our alpha Furry Survey Explorer. Be aware it may take a few minutes to load due to the wealth of data.

submitted by FeatherfacedOwl
[link] [17 comments]

submitted by Grammatick
[link] [7 comments]

submitted by dreamingwanderer
[link] [7 comments]

submitted by PrellFeris
[link] [8 comments]

Here's an article on the website of the Houston Press, an alternative weekly newspaper published in Houston, Texas:

http://www.houstonpress.com/arts/6-modern-subcultures-that-might-shock-the-mainstream-7695992

It lists "6 Modern Subcultures That Might Shock The Mainstream". Specifically:
6: Juggalos
5: Real Vampires
4: Otherkin
3: Fan Fic Communities
2: Furries
1: Bronies


Our world is an interesting place, and for many people there is a drive to form social groups outside of the mainstream. Over the last several decades, many subcultures have formed which initially weren't very noticeable to the average person, but, in an era where the Internet provides a way for people to communicate in ways never before possible, many of those subcultures have grown and become huge. Here are a few of the more notable examples.

6. Juggalos

Juggalos get a lot of exposure these days, and have roots going back to at least the early '90s. They are the extreme fans of the Insane Clown Posse, a hip hop group from Detroit which got its start in 1989. The music of I.C.P. has never been about subtlety, and the group consists of two guys wearing clown makeup who pen songs about drugs, murder, and...magnets, among other subjects. As the years went on, some of their fans began to wear clown makeup too, and eventually created a huge subculture of Juggalos. Many of these clown-faced fans make a lifestyle from their affiliation with their Juggalo family, with its biggest celebration being the yearly "Gathering of the Juggalos," an enormous celebratory, and infamously lawless music festival that I.C.P puts on in Ohio. The (very NSFW) infomercials advertising this event give outsiders a view into Juggalo life, and are well worth a look. The FBI currently considers Juggalos to be an outlaw gang, which doesn't seem particularly fair since it's rare to hear of any significant violence or criminal activity attributed to them. Yes, drug use is celebrated, but the FBI doesn't consider other groups of music fans, such as Deadheads, to be criminal gangs. Juggalos often look scary in their makeup, but they seem mostly harmless. As mentioned, the following video is not safe for work or sensitive viewers.

5. Real Vampires

Real Vampires are people who believe they must feed on the blood or psychic energy of other humans in order to preserve their mental, emotional, or physical well being. They're another group that's gotten a lot of exposure in the media recently, and their numbers have been steadily growing over the last three decades or so. Like many younger subcultures, these real life vampires network with each other online, using social networking sites and specialty forums to exchange ideas and socialize. They also host and attend vampire-centric events and meet in private to perform vampiric acts out of the public eye. Vampires have a very developed social order and usually follow a strict moral code that holds safety and consent as paramount concerns. The following video contains material that might offend sensitive viewers.

4. Otherkin

Otherkin are a subculture of people that developed almost entirely online, and is made up of folks who identify as either partially or entirely non-human. They explain the mechanisms behind this state of being in a variety of metaphysical ways, and Otherkin are relatively "rules free" in nature. Some claim to be Fairies or Elves, dragons, cartoon characters, or other mythical creatures, and may claim to possess abilities or vulnerabilities attributed to their mythological kindred.

As difficult as it may be for outsiders to understand or accept, many Otherkin take their beliefs quite seriously, and some develop elaborate spiritual belief systems around their identities. Although Otherkin are generally less socially structured, they have certain similarities to Real Vampires, and the subcultures sometimes interact with one another. Since their beliefs are very unconventional, Otherkin are often harassed online by people who think they are delusional. I'm not sure it's advisable to screw with a person who is part dragon, and maybe it's best to just live and let live anyway.

3. Fan Fic Communities

Fan fiction has been around in one form or another for decades, but has become enormous with the widespread adoption of online communities. Fan fiction at its most basic is a kind of tribute. It's when people who are fans of a particular TV show, movie, or group of characters decide to write their own stories, using their favorite characters or the fictional worlds they exist in. It's a creative hobby for many people, and there are probably thousands of individuals who take part in it. Where a hobby becomes a subculture is when it grows in scale and dedication. There are people who group closely together and form tight bonds through their mutual obsession with fan fiction.

Some fan fiction communities also have a sizable number of contributors who focus on interpersonal and romantic or sexual relationships between fictional characters from the fandom so they enjoy. In fact, "50 Shades of Grey" had its origins as a series of terrible, sexually explicit fan fiction stories using characters from Twilight. Let that sink in for a moment. Despite that "live and let live" thing I mentioned earlier, if a person enjoys writing sexually explicit fan fic using underage characters, please knock it off. The Internet is already gross and scary enough.

2. Furries

The Furry Fandom is another subculture that goes back decades, with it being recognized in science fiction and fantasy circles by the early '80s. However, many people will trace its origins further back to anthropomorphic depictions of animals in cartoons decades earlier. Furries are individuals who are interested in fictional anthropomorphic animal characters with human personalities and characteristics.

One thing is for sure - the Furry subculture is huge now, helped along by the Internet by the early '90s and having only gained steam since then. Individual Furries are attracted to the subculture for many different reasons, and their interests are varied. Some Furries are interested only in enjoying media using characters who fit the Furry profile and others like to build elaborate costumes to wear and socialize in with other Furries. A sizable segment of the Furry Fandom subculture also promote a sexual element to their activities, but while that sexual content is often criticized, it's not representative of every Furry. A few people in the subculture also cross over into Otherkin territory, believing that their anthropomorphic alter ego better reflects their true nature than the physical human body they inhabit.

1. Bronies

I remember the first time I heard about Bronies - male fans of "My Little Pony" who tend to range in age from teens to middle aged men. My first impression was "Thank you Internet, for unleashing another horrifying sexual fetish upon our world." Then I met a couple of Bronies in their 20s, and while they were a little odd, neither seemed like really creepy people. A couple of documentaries later, and I've come to understand the Brony subculture a little better. It seems to attract men who like the central theme of friendship and loyalty that the cartoon show "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" spreads. Bronies seem to mostly interact online, but also attend local social gatherings and meet ups, and travel great distances to go to large conventions celebrating the show. Rather than being a creepy group of sexual predators or perverts, Bronies seem to be a community of teens and men who rally around positive messages from My Little Pony. Like most of the groups on this list, they may appear weird or even frightening to outsiders, but are just forming communities around shared interests that are outside of what many people would consider the mainstream.

I'm pretty sure I speak on behalf of all the striped apex predators of this sub, we'd like to see a tiger flair implemented.

The cat flair just don't cut it.

submitted by Marathon_Hawk
[link] [82 comments]