Furries and Therians, What are they and what's the difference?

Understanding the Difference: Furries vs. Therians

In recent years, the terms "furry" and "therian" have gained popularity, often leading to confusion among those unfamiliar with these communities. While both groups share a fascination with animals, they diverge significantly in their beliefs, practices, and self-identification. This post aims to clarify the differences between furries and therians, exploring their unique cultures, motivations, and the ways in which they express their identities. Whether you're curious about these communities or seeking to understand your friends better, this guide will provide valuable insights into the vibrant world of furries and therians.

What is a furry?

A furry is someone who finds interest in anthropomorphic animals. Anthropomorphic animals are human-shaped animals that walk on two legs, speak, and overall act like a human. Think Mickey Mouse or the characters from Zootopia. Anthropomorphic animals are not humans with animal features like ears and tails. Furries attend furry conventions and events to meet others with similar interests to them. Furries choose if they are a furry or not. For example, someone may draw anthropomorphic animals, but they are not a furry unless they say they are a furry. The furry fandom is often depicted in a bad light but is actually very welcoming. Furries like to wear mascot-like costumes called fursuits. Fursuits are expensive handmade costumes that can cost upwards of thousands. The more experienced a fursuit maker is, the more they can sell fursuits for. Fursuits are fursonas made into a costume. 

What is a fursona?

Fursonas are anthropomorphic animal characters made by a furry. Fursonas often have lore, like their childhood, the world they live in, and personality. Fursonas can be many species, made-up creatures, real animals, animal hybrids, or something someone else created. When choosing a fursona that may be created into a fursuit, think about real-life physics and what you are going to use it for. An 8-foot-long tail that sticks up into the air is possible but would be hard to make, expensive, and very heavy, and if you are going to be using this fursuit to perform in, then that would be really uncomfortable and hard to move around with. My fursona, Battle, has large horns, so my fursuit head is heavier, and therefore I don’t wear it as long as my other suits because it weighs on my neck. You should also think about how the fursuit represents you and what it means to you. You should probably also think about cost; the more the colors and complexity, the more the cost. Often fursuits with more spots or stripes will cost more because each spot is hand-sewn on, and you are paying for the labor that the maker must do. Many fursona species are an open species, meaning you can add whatever markings and features you want to them. Examples of open species are hybrids of animals, wolves, cats, dragons, dodos, and lizards. Closed species are species not able to be made by the public. If you use a species made by someone, make sure to follow the lore they’ve made, restrictions, and rules. Some species made by people have rare traits (the owner will usually list how many rare features you can have, or if you can even have any, and what the features are). Many of these species creators will sell adopts that have those rare features. If you are unsure about the rules on someone else’s species, ask them. A fursona doesn't just have to be an animal; if you really wanted to, you could make your fursona an anthropomorphic water bottle. Some people have multiple fursonas, and that’s okay. Not all fursonas have to be fursuits, and not every furry has a fursona and fursuit! There is more than one fursona; the one we just went over is the most common type. A true-sona is a fursona that fully represents you; maybe it has your hair color, your name. But it always has your backstory, weaknesses and strengths, your body and shape, your scars. It is not what you want to be; it is who you are. I personally think making a true-sona is a great way to see yourself in a new light and accept yourself. A normal fursona can also have your traits, either being little bits or big pieces, but that doesn't mean it has to be a true-sona.

What is a Therian?

A Therian is a person that, in a non-physical way, identifies as an animal. Usually, this non-physical way is spiritual, but it can sometimes be other things like psychological. There is no way you choose to be a Therian; it’s just the way someone is, and they’ll know because they feel and experience it. Like a feeling in their heart that they belong in a forest, running on all fours. For some people, they are a Therian because of reincarnation, like in their past life they were an animal beside a human, and now they feel like their soul is misplaced, and they don’t feel right as a human. It isn’t about pretending to be a different animal (if you aren’t aware, humans are animals). These therians experience animal-like traits. Sometimes these traits can be phantom limbs, where it feels as if you have wings, paws, or a tail. For others, it can be shifts, where they get a vision of being an animal.

What is a Theriotype?

Therians have theriotypes, and it’s what animal they are. Maybe someone is experiencing shifts of hunting in snow with big fluffy paws at their disposal, has a liking for meat, and prefers to be cold; they might have a snow leopard theriotype. Some people only have one theriotype; others that have more than one are called poly-therians. If you have a theriotype that isn’t an animal that has existed on this planet, like a vampire or unicorn, you are called an Otherkin. An Otherlink is someone who chooses a theriotype for a reason such as coping or fun; maybe they’ll have a wolf link type because they feel they can cope with a traumatic experience by feeling like they can run fast away into the forest like a wolf. Therians connect with their theriotypes by wearing “gear.” Gear can be anything from drawing a paw on your hand, to wearing taxidermy tails, to having a Therian theriotype mask, to wearing cosplay wings to feel like a bird theriotype. Therians also perform a sport to make them feel closer to their theriotype. This sport is called quadrobics and involves running on all fours with gaits such as walk, amble, trot, canter, run, small jump, high jump, long jump, etc. Occasionally, Therians will vocalize and make noises like their theriotype; this can include barking, howling, hissing, honking, etc. You don’t have to wear gear, do quadrobics, or vocalize to be a Therian, and it certainly is not an aesthetic or choice.

As a conclusion and trivia, let’s break down Therians and Furries with this table.

Actions	Therians	Furries
Wears Fursuits		✔
Does Quadrobics	✔
Vocalizes	✔
Anthropomorphic Animals		✔
Wears Gear	✔
Sometimes Bipedal	✔
Theriotypes	✔
Fursonas		✔
Otherkin	✔
Truesonas		✔
Attends Conventions		✔