Born out of the sci-fi and fantasy fan scene, the Furry fandom subculture is a thriving genre in the fetish world.

We are not talking about ‘stuffed animals’ here, those that fetishize stuffed animals like teddy bears. Nor are we referring to Furries who enjoy a non-sexual devotion to cartoon animals from animated comics and television shows. Instead, we are looking at Furverts, the label given to people who sexualize their cartoon characters.

The Furvert scene emerged in the 1980s and generally Furvert’s activity is concerned with creating or collecting illustrations of imaginary furry characters and / or role-playing games on online sites such as multi-user dungeons (MUDs) and other interactive sites for fanatics.

The crucial characteristic of the furry fandom is the anthropomorphic nature of the characters. That is, fictional animals with human features such as walking on two feet, talking, and dressing. If we imagine an eroticized version of Little Red Riding Hood, where the wolf walks and talks in a human way, and then goes from vicarious to role play and sexual activity, we are very close to understanding the enjoyment of the Furvert.

Some Furries despise adult material and activity, claiming it gives the Furry fandom a bad rap. This is understandable given that much of the origin of the enjoyment of a Furverts is in material aimed at children.

However, that is misinterpreting the subculture. While many furry fans are adults who enjoy topics deemed inappropriate for children, Furvert’s activity is not about pedophile behavior. For outsiders, the combination of childish imagery and sexuality can be unsettling, but Furverts have no interest in sex with children. It is about “adult” childhood dreams and fantasies.

In addition to engaging in cybersex, for serious Furverts there are furry summer camps and conventions, where people interact with other Furverts in roles, sometimes in homemade costumes known as fursuits. Interestingly, a very high percentage of the Furvert scene is made up of gay men. Some consider this to be the case because one of the original organizers of the convention was a gay man who promoted it to the wider gay community. But, there has long been an affinity between some gay men and Disney movies and animated characters. And it should also be noted that creative dressing and acting are more acceptable among men in the gay community than in the straight community.

Increasingly, Furverts are beginning to explore BDSM scenarios and BDSM fantasies, particularly pony play, where the anthropomorphic nature of the furry fandom is contradicted to the extent that humans adopt animal traits. However, the use of slavery and other sadomasochistic behaviors in this more extreme fetish does not reflect the Furvert subculture in general. For an average Furvert, the sexualized cartoon character is sufficient and, despite the media focusing on the more extreme aspects of furry sexuality, the sheer amount of material reflecting this shows that not all Furverts are engaging in furry cybersex or running up the hills at your favorite Disney. disguise, regardless of the highly entertaining mental image it conjures up.