How Open Are You Being A Furry (New Fur Help)

[Trevorbluesquirrel]

I have furry shirts, jerseys, and hats I wear, furry calendars hanging on my wall..................................................................

I really only meet anybody in reality after meeting them online, and I ensure all my profiles have furry avatars, my furry links, or the word FURRY in plain site, so nobody will message and meet me without already being aware of what I'm into!

Unless somebody else brought it up 1st, their be no reason 2 talk furry stuff!

 

[Judge Spear]

I'm not open about it at all. No point.

It benefits no one in that moment to tell them about it or inform them this is a thing that exists.
And I do my absolute best to keep what I draw under wraps in the meatspace.

My stuff is cringey so there's nothing to gain from it and I dont look cool or subversive being nonchalant about drawing fox girls. Particularly since it makes me little money.
It would unnecessarily weird people out, and make me look like a dumbass. It's better I just shut up or lie. I dont really care.

 

[Foxridley]

Not all that open. My immediate family and a few close friends know as far as people I know IRL.

 

[lolox]

I'm selectively open about it. As in, when I hang out with other furries, of course they know. When I hang out with non furries, there's no reason to tell.

Whether or not you should tell I think depends a lot on you, actually. What exactly is the furry fandom to you? Is it just innocent and harmless interest in anthropomorphic animals and stories including them? Then there's really nothing to be afraid of, is there? Or is the interest more rooted in the adult side of things? If it's the latter, I'd argue you should be careful how open you are about it, the same way you'd be careful about mentioning any fetish you're into. I have hard time seeing anyone mentioning in the workplace that they're super into sub-dom for example, as that would be inappropriate. The same rules apply to yiff.

The furry fandom is ultimately a hobby (or at least that's how I perceive it). There's no reason to tell anyone about it the same way there's no reason to tell anyone you're a fan of the Doom franchise or whatever.

If you have some kind of urge to "come out" as a furry to non-furries, let me give you a piece of advice - think it through. Why exactly do you feel this need? What is it you want out of it? What do you think will be the consequences of it? And will those consequences benefit your life?

When I was young and dumb I did reveal my furry affinity to some and it made no difference whatsoever in my life. It only caused uncomfortable situation for everyone involved.

You don't need other people's validation. There's no point in seeking it.

Fill your life with things you enjoy. Hang out with like-minded people when you can. And don't reveal more information about yourself than what makes sense and is appropriate.

 

[Smityyyy]

Everyone that’s a close friend of mine knows I am. I don’t hide it, and I don’t care. I mean… it doesn’t come up — but people obviously see artwork hung up in my home and ask questions, to which I just say “yeah, I am.”

I don’t really know why people care so much. I don’t invite people into my life who would be weird about it. I don’t have the time nor patience in life for shitty people.

 

[Kinguyakki]

Not open about it at all in my real life. It's not something my co-workers or neighbors need to know about me, because I don't have the patience to try to explain it to them.

 

[DrinkingVesper]

Anyone close enough to know to ask probably already knows.

 

[Pomorek]

Grand total of 5 people know about it IRL and 2 of them live on another continent altogether. So there's this. I've had much more innocent things than this basically NSFW fandom used as ammunition against me, so it's better to keep plausible deniability overall.

Sometimes I dream about putting up some subtle hint, such as a bumper sticker... but I don't have a car, go figure.

 

[Deleted member 159133]

Am not open at all, am keeping it as a secret same as i did with depression that grew worse which i was hiding from my parents and classmates for a long time..
Even if they didnt know what that is and i had to explain it to them, am pessimistic so i would think they would go google it and somehow end up on with porn or one of those bullshit videos about the furry fandom and like a bumerang come back with bullying and hate speech..

 

[Keket]

I personally don't bring it up. This is not due to any sort of shame, but rather realizing I have nothing to gain by doing so. Being a furry is a hobby for me. Art, creativity, animals - all things that are right up my ally. If someone is not interested in this sort of thing, I can tell you right now... The conversation will be pointless. What will they add? Will they just make things stressful with their ignorance on the matter? Will either of you walk away from that conversation and feel as though some sort of value was gained? Most likely not.

I also wonder how often in your life is there really a natural opening to bring up conversation about furries. I wouldn't have some awkward "coming out" discussion about any other hobby. If I knew someone was not into what I was into then I do not need to talk about it with them, and I will talk about it with someone where there's a bit of back fourth and base understanding for what I am referring to.

TLDR - Don't feel pressure to tell anyone if you don't feel like it. It's really not necessary, and there's not a whole lot to gain by doing so.

 

[Bambi]

Hey everyone!

I am a person who is sorta new to this whole furry thing. I have known for a while that this is something I have taken an interest in and would like to explore more, but I never felt like I had the self confidence or personal image to embrace it or explore further. Now older, and more confident in myself I have no shame in trying to be me and engage in all of this, but I still feel like I just cannot display this anywhere in my life other than as an alias on the internet. Although my family are kinda folk, they are not the most open/understanding of people, I work in a very conservative and professional work environment and I am not exactly social enough to have a large friend group.

So let me ask! How open are you with being a furry? Is it something you tell everyone around you, something you only bring up with close friends? Does it have any impact of your interests and what you do?

I am genuienly curious, about what you think!

I understand that quote about having conservative parents. Politically, and right now, people make genuinely toxic associations of what's at the core of someone's specific interest. It's hard to not let those feelings dictate your own outlook. What I do is share the identity with other people who are already involved in the fandom.

I think it winds up being smarter when you factor in for your own personal comfort level. Not everyone needs to know that I smoke hookah (people hate smokers in general), not everyone needs to know that I sometimes will rewear a pair of work jeans, but you get the idea. If that being in the mind of someone else bothers you, that probably means you've got a good instinctual sense of whose safe to tell, or what not.

I generally wouldn't limit yourself to setting up the standard that furry is something you need to confess to -- live it honestly, and comfortably by you.

 

[Euroann]

Hey everyone!

I am a person who is sorta new to this whole furry thing. I have known for a while that this is something I have taken an interest in and would like to explore more, but I never felt like I had the self confidence or personal image to embrace it or explore further. Now older, and more confident in myself I have no shame in trying to be me and engage in all of this, but I still feel like I just cannot display this anywhere in my life other than as an alias on the internet. Although my family are kinda folk, they are not the most open/understanding of people, I work in a very conservative and professional work environment and I am not exactly social enough to have a large friend group.

So let me ask! How open are you with being a furry? Is it something you tell everyone around you, something you only bring up with close friends? Does it have any impact of your interests and what you do?

I am genuienly curious, about what you think!

I really want to upgrade my life with interesting. Being just a consumer sucks. There's so much stigma, I don't think I'm going to go around telling anyone but dressing up once and a while and being different is just fun, I'd really like to try it even with a simple outfit like ears, tail gloves etc. Just to be something else more than an adult for once.

 

[greygamora]

Not open to anyone. Wish I could change that but I'm a wuss.

 

[idkthough120]

well, i'm not too open about it. my mom probably only knew it once or something, though.

but as for the rest of the people i've met? i don't let them know.

 

[a sleepy kitty]

I tell people when I get to know them. So far, no one has been weirded out yet. My parents knew since I was 14 and support me.

 

[Troj]

Fairly open! If you're reasonably-well acquainted with me, you typically know about my fandom involvement. I am, however, more discreet in formal or professional settings, mainly because I want everyone to stay focused on my skills/knowledge/expertise and on the tasks at hand.

 

[MaplePurrys]

All of my friends know, and I'm pretty sure most people can tell, my family has no clue though (AS FAR AS IM AWARE LMAO) I've just never felt the need to hide it online lol, my family is a different story though, they watch CSI and firmly believe furries are sexual deviants that prey on animals and children, plus I've just never felt the need to tell them, mostly because I don't want to deal with the arguments and trying to prove them wrong. it's my hobby, not theirs lol.

 

[Connor J. Coyote]

Eh - it really depends on whom I'm dealing with, in all honestly. For some - I don't tell at all.... (as I consider it more of a private thing).... and for some others who know me well - it's a well known interest.

And so, for some situations (like jobs or whatever) - I think it's always better to keep it to oneself, in all honesty.... and that way there - one can avoid any uncomfortable situations with co-workers, later on. As sometimes - some private things are best kept as just that - private.

Hmm.... I thought about it, and.... I should probably add, that the above applies to most situations, unless one is taking a job as a mascot (of course).... then obviously, if one's job involves wearing a fursuit - then I think it's safe to tell all if one wants to.

 

[StolenMadWolf]

I kinda hit a situation like this a short while ago. I realised that I was actually a furry fan a few years ago, and have kinda embraced it to an extent online. Like, I'm not actively rubbing it into people's faces, but I do express this from time to time with some writing and art that I've been trying to do more of as of late. This has all been online though, afterall, I'm going round with the name StolenMadWolf and a wolf avatar, that makes things pretty obvious.

In real life, I don't really say anything about it. Partly in fear of being seen as weird and screwing up my own opportunities in the process. That included family.

Very recently, after a big row, I ended up having a bit of a freak out and came out as furry to some of my family, whilst also explaining what it was. It actually turned out pretty well in the end, one of them actually found the whole thing quite funny and nicknamed me furball for a while. Now they've kinda forgot about it since then. It helped that I was actually showing them furry drawings of mine, and one of them made the connection that one I was drawing alot of was my fursona.

But there were alot of ways that could have gone wrong. My stance on the matter is this. Is it really that important to mention to someone given it's a hobby? If not, then there is no need to worry. If it is, can you know for sure how someone will actually react to it?

I'm not going to be screaming that I'm a furry everywhere I go, it's just a hobby. Now, if someone makes the connection, then depending on the circumstances, sure, I'll talk about it. But I'm not going go crazy with it.

Maybe drop a few subtle hints here and there without saying anything to test the waters, and gauge from that.