AKA my English teacher let me do whatever the frick I wanted. He's cool like that.
This only took me like 10 hours and 19 pages x.x
Special thanks to for the image and for doing an interview with me.
If for whatever reason you wanna use this for your own paper, be my guest. But just so ya know, I'm 15. So...not exactly a very reliable source XD

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Part I
What I Already Know
I am a furry. I have had a fursona, or animal that represents me, for over five months. I know that fursuits, as cute and awesome as they are, cost about two grand from most mainstream makers such as Don’t Hug Cacti, Sunny Valley Creations, or Phoenix Wolf Studios. I know that most furries are gay males, but there are a lot of the artists are female. I know that furries are insanely diverse, and represent this in fursonas. I know that furries are often represented by the red fox because it is such a popular fursona. I know that furries throw the best parties the nerd world has to offer. I know that they are very creative and generous. They treat each other like family, and never judge. They are usually very happy and introverted. They also love the Internet. They also introspect more than is normal. I also know that they are amazing artists.

Why I Chose This Topic
I am a furry, and I want to know more about how people see furries and what conventions are like. I also want to show that furries are generally good people, a community of artists and people who just generally want to have a good time and be a kid. I’m also just interested in this topic because I like drawing anthropomorphic animals.
What I Want to Know
1. How many furries are there worldwide?
2. Is being in the fandom good or bad for you?
3. How much do furries donate to charity in an average year?

Part II
What I Learned
What is a Furry?
Furry is a very hard concept to grasp. As it doesn’t centre around any television show, movie, or book this genre of nerd is almost impossible to define. Some call it a hobby, some a lifestyle, and some even a religion. “A furry is either spiritually connected to animals like a Shaman or is an artist or people who have an affinity to animals” (Agog). However, the vast majority call it a family. While even the fandom can’t agree on a definition, they all agree that a furry must have a love of anthropomorphic animals, or animals with human characteristics.

The concept of giving human traits to animals has been around for millennia. This is known as anthropomorphism, or “the attribution of human form or other human characteristics to any non-human object” (Merriam-Webster). This has existed since humans first created religion, with the Egyptians and several Native American and African indigenous religions.

Almost every furry has a fursona, or an animal representation of themselves. In fact, over 95% of furries have one (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”). A fursona is who you are in the community. They are like you, only an animal. They are also often better than you as well. You make them who you strive to be. This means that a majority of fursonas are happy, playful, confident, and social (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”). These animals are highly symbolic of the person they represent. Over 50% of these characters has nothing or very little to do with outside influences, and instead came from entirely within the person (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”). Everything from the species to the markings is carefully thought over and has deep meaning to the furry it portrays. This means that the person with the lion fursona may think himself to be a strong protector, who loves to hang around with other people; while the person with the rabbit fursona may be shy, feminine, and very observant of her surroundings. However, the most popular species are canines. Wolves, foxes, and dogs are the biggest hits. When analyzed statistically, no differences are found in the personalities of furries with different fursonas. Many furries believe that their fursona contains valuable information (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”). Colours play in as well. Furries often look up the meanings of colours. For example, yellow belongs on a happy character, and blues and purples for powerful ones. These fursonas become a furry’s most valued possession over time, because they are such a personal creation. It also takes huge amounts of time to make one. Fursonas are crafted over weeks, months, and sometimes even years. (Fun of the Fur)

Furries are very artistic. They buy and sell art everyday, sometimes with the value of the art exceeding $1000. They buy digital art, prints, pen and paper sketches and, yes, fursuits. While about 80% of the fandom does not own a fursuit, furries are still famed for the image of the fluffy, walking, talking animals (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”) Although, in order to preserve the magic many suiters do not speak. They want to preserve the illusion that they are an animal and not a person dressed up as one. These people are skilled entertainers and mprove actors. They are always ready with for a hug, high-five, and picture. While people have different reasons for suiting, most find it to be a rather freeing experience. Reaper BlueEyes said that he gets to be who he really is with no one judging him. He said it just feels ‘right’.

This leads to why furries choose to be furries. For most, it’s for a sense of belonging (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”). “The feeling of family. Lots of people claim that we are a fandom, but to be perfectly honest we’re not. Being a furry is like being a part of a VERY large family. One that is always there for you when you are at your best or at your worst” (BlueEyes). The main driving forces are art, community, and acceptance. This is so alluring that once furries are in the fandom, studies show that they are there for good (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”).



Furry Psychology and Statistics
Furries fascinate many physiologists, including the Canadian native Doctor Courtney Plante. He is a part of IARP, or the International Anthropomorphic Research Project, a group of people who research the furry fandom. They define ‘furry’ as some one who self identifies as a fan of anthropomorphism, specifically of animals. (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”)

They have determined that furries are only rarely just furry. They tend to belong to other fandoms as well. Commonly, furries are also brony and anime fans. 21% of furries also identify as brony, or a fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic that is outside of the target audience. 44% are anime fans. (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”)

Furries are a young fandom. According to the IARP, most furries are under the age of 25. This information may not be completely accurate, as they were not able to survey those under 18 for legal reasons. However, it is known that only 10% of the fandom is grey-muzzle, or furries over forty. The reasons for the fandom being so young are unknown, though being studied by the IARP this year. It is known that once furries enter the fandom, they tend to stay for decades. As Dr. Plante said, “I’ll get into the fandom…and then I’ll stay here forever”. Furries say that on average they were brought into the fandom at the age of seventeen. 71% of furries say the fandom is getting better, compared to the 4.2% that say it’s getting worse. Most furries say the worst parts of being a furry are the media representation, the drama, and the bigotry and hate from non-furries.

Contrary to what the media says, almost all furries are human. Only 17% of furries are therian. Even these therians do not believe they are physically animals, but rather have the spirits of animals. When asked if they were 100% human, 7% of average Americans said no, as did 35% of furries. When asked if they would become non-human if given the chance, 10% of average Americans and 39% of furries said yes.

Furries have more magical and supernatural beliefs than the average American. They also have much better imaginations, and have vivid imagery. They are also hypersensitive, meaning that they can hear, see, taste, and smell better than the average person. Furries often make themselves hallucinate. While this may sound dangerous, these are just coping mechanisms, where the person imagines a better world and a better self. These are also used in self-expression, specifically using their vivid imaginations to create beautiful images on canvas. Furries also do this as a form of recreation. Furries are also incredibly good at introspection. They have a extraordinary sense of who they are, who they want to be, and where they are going. It is much higher than the average American.

Furries are bullied as children more often than average people. 62% of furries were bullied vs. 40% of average people. They were bullied both physically and verbally. Even when accounting for them being mostly gay, furries got bullied more than average people. Despite this, furries have broken the norm with how this has affected their adult lives. Most people who were bullied as children have low self-esteem and are unhappy with their lives. However, on a scale of 1-7, 5.2 furries say they are happy with their lives and 4.7 have good self-esteem. Most furries say that the fandom provided help when they were in trouble, and provided support on bad days more than a physiological consular. This means that if a physiatrist tells a furry that they need to stop being furry, very bad things can happen. For some, the furries are the only thing keeping them from committing self harm or even suicide. Furry can be the only good thing in a person’s life, to the point that it saves them. “If it wasn’t for this family then to be honest, I most likely wouldn’t be typing any of this for you right now. If it wasn’t for the constant nagging from Raven, the kind, witty remarks from Alkali and Xander the Blue, or the constant reminders of how much life is worth living from Uncle Kage and 2 the Ranting Gryphon, then I most likely would be in jail or worse. I was an jerk when I was younger, always getting in fights or being dragged home by the police. They kept me out of trouble and help me straighten out my life”(BlueEyes). This fandom is clearly a good and powerful thing. On a scale of 1-7, furries are a 3.5 when asked if they feel like society would disapprove if they found out they were furry. On the 1-7 scale, 3.5 furries won’t tell people they are furry. This can cause anxiety and premature heart attacks.

Furries are influenced by many things to join the fandom. The main influence is the Internet. As most furries use the internet as a main source of communication, it is relatively easy to find them on there. The next most powerful influence is the furry art. Folks see the art on tumblr, twitter, and DeviantArt, and they gradually learn more and more about it until they are a furry themselves. Many furries say that they just had a feeling inside that they couldn’t describe. Other influences include pets, comics, cartoons, Disney, and friends. Furries have many different reasons for being furry. On a scale of 1-7, 3.8 do it for sex, but 5 for belonging, and 6 for fun. Other motivations include art, friends, suits, writing, music, gaming, community, roleplay, cons, online groups, meets, and acceptance. “I’m a second generation Furry, and it’s fun. I like making kids happy and connecting with other furries” (Agog) While furries generally are loving and accepting, statistics show that they hate sports, but score a 4.8 on a 1-7 nerdy scale.
Furries interact with fellow furs off the internet as well. 35% go to local meets, and 25% regularly attend those meets. 50% of furs go to conventions on a regular basis, but 25% have never attended. While at this meets and cons, they usually go with friends. For furries, 50% of their friends are also furry. They also may dress up in their suits. 13% of furries own a full suit, and 18.5% own a partial. Partials are made up of a head, paws, and a tail. They are cheaper and cooler than full suits, which overheat very easily. Almost half of furries own tail. 37% have a collar, and 27% have ears.

Art is a very important part of being furry. On a scale of 1-7, furries are 3.7 on an artist scale, 3.5 on an author scale, and 3.3 on a fan entitlement scale. While most of the fandom is predominately male, artists are a 50/50 split. Males are two times more likely than females to be furries first, and then become an artist. Females are usually artists first and become a furry later. One third of artists are constantly concerned about their reputation, and being pressured into drawing things on their ‘will not draw’ list. They also say that 95% of furs are at least moderately demanding. They say that furries expect free art, quick turn around times, and that they under value artists. Despite this, these gifted and talented individuals continue with their craft. They, and their artist friends, bring life to your wildest dreams.

The furry fandom is mainly composed of males. In fact, 70% of the fandom is male. Interestingly, 2% of furries identify as either trans or non-binary. This is a significantly higher percent than the general population. In most fandoms, the percent of tomboys is multiple times higher than the percent of fembois. Furries have equal numbers of each, which is incredibly rare.
Females tend to interact with more females than males. 81% of females see the fandom as a place for only boys, and 19% feel like they don’t belong in the fandom. 22% feel like they are looked down on, but 67% feel like they get a lot of attention simply by being female.

Furries are 89% white. Less than 5% identify as Asian or Hispanic. A mere 3% identify as black. Other fandoms have similar numbers, so this is not surprising. (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”)

Furries are unreligious, in general. 44.36% are Atheist, 23.19% are Christian, 13.72% are something else, 9.47% are Agnostic, 3.84% are Pagan, and less than 2% are Buddhist, Jewish, or Satanic. Despite more than half the fandom either Atheist or Agnostic, they have a spiritual culture. On a physiological scale of 1-7, furries are 2.51 on a religious scale and 4.09 on a spiritual scale.

It is a common misconception that furries live in their parents’ basement. While there is some merit to this, it is for a good reason. Because furries are so young, they tend to live at home. If a furry is under 24, like most furries are, they probably live with their parents. Over this age, furries are most likely to live by themselves of with friends. While furries do live with their parents, it is not because they are irresponsible. Rather, it is because they are so young. (“2015 Furry Psychology Panel”)
Furries are much less likely to be single than other fandoms. Only 45% of furries are single, which is normal when considering that they are in their early 20’s. 9% of furries are married. Again, this number is so small due to age. 30% of straight furs found their love in the fandom, and 80% of gay furs found theirs. Interestingly, 12% of furries are polyamorous or are in an open relationship. This number is much higher than the general American population. Only 22% of furries are straight. The rest are bi, gay, asexual, or something else. In these data, it is clear that there are more gay men than lesbians. So far, the furry fandom is the only fandom like this.

Conventions
Perhaps one of the largest icons of the furry community is the convention. There are many misconceptions of these social gatherings, often numbering in the thousands. The media often says that furry conventions, or ‘cons’, are all about sex. This is decidedly untrue. The majority of the furry fandom is centered around art, friendship, acceptance, and family. Therefore, their conventions tend to mirror the same image.
Furries host huge rooms especially for artists and crafters to sell their wares. These are often called Dealer’s Dens, and haul in immense profit for the artists. The wares of these artists vary greatly. From custom sketches, prints, and books to one-of-a-kind fursuits and originals worth hundreds, the Dealer’s Den is always packed. Sometimes it is impossible to even get in, the crowds are so huge (Sparx and Wah). This goes to show how important art is to the community.
According to Reaper BlueEyes, who’s been in the fandom for over seven years, these conventions are like large family gatherings. Many furries only see each other once a year, so it is the real highlight of these huge events (BlueEyes). Furries stress how they are more than a fandom, and instead a family. Even folks who had never met in real life and only chat online great each other like they would a brother (Sparx and Wah). The furries are always ready and willing to give a hug, or pose for a picture in their elaborate fursuits.
The furries also hold incredible dances, or raves. These last into the early morning, and often use glow sticks (Furnal Equinox 2014 Con Video). These dances have lasers, lights, and thumping music. Furries are famed for these dances, and the rave is stamped through out furry culture.
The furries can also boast some extremely talented fursuit dancers, who perform dances impossible for the average man off the street…in full costume. These names include Doryuu, Duke, Hogwash, Telephone, Mongoose, and Dash Tiger. Each has their own distinct style. For example, Hogwash is a breakdancer (Hogwash – BLFC 2014 Fursuit Dance Competition) while Doryuu has incredible techno style moves (Doryuu | Together (Fursuit Freestyle). These performers compete against each other to win dance competitions at almost every convention.
Furries gather all across the globe in dozens of conventions, from Confurgence in Australia to Anthrocon in Pittsburgh. “2,000 self-proclaimed “furries”…checked into a conference hotel in Berlin for Eurofurence, Europe’s largest “furry fandom” convention” (Fun of the Fur). As impressive as that number may be, over six thousand attended Anthrocon this past year, making it the largest furry convention in the world.
Not all is fun and games, furries are a huge help to the economies that they hold their conventions in. Anthrocon alone brought a boom of $6.3 million to Pittsburgh. They also gave a failing business $23,000, just so they could continue to get their favorite sandwiches. Some restaurant owners do over three months of business in a single week, thanks to the furries (Furries Return & Save).

Part III
Answers to What I Wanted to Know
1. This is an impossible thing to measure, as not every furry goes to conventions, is willing to fill out a survey, or even uses any one website. Though there are certainty over 10,000 based on the numbers of users on popular sites such as FurAffinity, and attendance at Anthrocon.
2. According to psychologists, being furry is very good for you because of the support it provides.
3. I couldn’t find anything on this that wasn’t from Wikipedia. Though it seems that furries raise up to a quarter of a million dollars every year, averaging at about $150,000.

Works Cited
"Agog about Animal Togs." Denver Post 9 Aug. 2009: B-01. General OneFile /Gale. Web. 31 Mar. 2015.
"Anthropomorphisim." Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Ed. Wendy Doniger. Springfield: Merriam-Webster, 1999. 61. Print.
BlueEyes, Reaper. Instant messenger interview. 21 Apr. 2015.
Doryuu | Together (Fursuit Freestyle). Perf. Doryuu Shepherd. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epOMhjE8fGg>;.
"Fun of the Fur." The Independent 26 Aug. 2014: 28. General OneFile /Gale. Web. 31 Mar. 2015.
Furnal Equinox 2014 Con Video. Prod. Arctic Sky Wolf. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i9QI_LscMc>;.
Furries Return & Save A Restaurant - Anthrocon 2013. Prod. WPXI News. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jjMpIFpy08>;.
Hogwash - BLFC 2014 Fursuit Dance Competition. Perf. Hogwash. Narr. Kijani Lion. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-_ZlFAmrXM>;.
Sparx, Space Bear, and Poonya Wah, prod. "Furry Conventions." Fur Media. YouTube, 4 Feb. 2014. Web. 7 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoF.....JbA>.0o-[=0
"2015 Furry Psychology Panel at Texas Furry Fiesta." Texas Furry Fiesta. Addison, TX. YouTube. N.p., 22 Feb. 2015. Web. 7 Apr. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEWZW-p9bP4>;.
Carnivore, Fluffy, and Kaitlin Hapgood. Headshot - Profile - Commission. 11 May
2015. Illustration. (Please note that the art was created by fluffycarnivore, but the cat character (Odysia Mirth) belongs to me. This was a commission)