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grokebaby · 4 years ago

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Clarome

(this is an info post I published on one of my aminos some time ago. Only small grammarly adjustments have been made lol)

Real life backstory: Clarome was created around 2014 or so if I'm not mistaken, so a while ago. When I was still a child. I had gotten into warrior cats around those years and was very inspired. I however did not start it based purely on warrior cats, but a dream I had about it and a few characters from that. Based on this dream I made four different clans. I also decided leaders for them and deputies and so on, and introduced my friends to it and boy, it really became a huge part of our childhoods

In-story backstory: so Clarome was essentially a whole other dimension about an alternate earth where humans died of extinction in the stone age. This is not a realistic theory of what our world would've become if humans died out like that however. In fact, be ready to suspend your disbelief alot.

In this world, animals evolved into two different categories. Sapient and primitive. The sapient ones have two forms, anthro and feral (imagine furries) which they can change between at will. Some prefer to live their lives in the feral form completely, but this only means they'll walk on four legs and be non anthropomorphic like animals in our world. It doesn't affect their psychology at all. They are on the same intelligence level as humans and can be afflicted with the same neurological or mental disorders as humans. They're able to speak and feel and so on. These can be any animals you can ever imagine. Birds, reptiles, mammals, even giant bugs sometimes, but we'll get into that later.

The primitives however are mainly prey animals like rabbits, squirrels, some small bird species and so on. These are just like the ones in our world. And they can't become anything else. They're not given any agency of their own and are essentially prey. However where things get weird, is that a rabbit can be a sapient or a primitive. Just by looking at them you can't always tell. Sapient and primitive animals can't be in the same family and they pretty much will not breed with each other. It's treated as the same kind of taboo as sleeping with animals is in our world. It'd be like human going with a chimp.

Geography: Clarome is a large island roughly shaped like a mitten, with much tinier islands speckled around it. It's mostly varying levels of densely growing forest terrain, though it does change what kind of forests. There's also some areas with alot of cliff and hills, surrounded by forests. Most notable places being the Lightcliff and Earthquake Valley (which is a large canyon area). Both have historical significance. There are a few nice sandy/gravely beaches around but mostly it's just oops - water.

There's a few lakes in Clarome, none very large in the grand scheme of things. And multiple rivers.

-The clans-

🖤🐍Rattleclan🐍🖤

Originally founded by rattlesnakes, unsurprisingly, who gathered in a pine/spruce forest and made camp for themselves among the rocks. Snakes are one of the only species in Clarome who's anthro forms differ, they do not gain limbs of any kind. They can however stand taller and grow larger in their anthro form to better interact with the world around them. As time went on, Rattleclan gained alot of feline members who got along with the snakes due to the hissing ability and the versatile nature of cats in general. Due to this there's a Rattleclan originated species of snakecats, felines that have varying amounts of scales on their bodies, bigger fangs and snaketails. Later on various birds also joined Rattleclan, mostly predatory birds due to the fact that the non predatory ones have trouble getting along with any other species for obvious reasons.

In present day, Rattleclan population is more mixed but primarily consists of felines, reptiles, snakes and a few canines. Foxes are also very common.

•Rattleclan has a cave system at their disposal which they use as either a dungeon for intruders and codebreakers, or as a stock for various items.

•Unlike the other clans, Rattleclan has nighttime patrols

•Due to what their population consists of, during some especially cold winters part of, or the entirety of Rattleclan may go into hibernation. It usually lasts for as long as they feel it's too cold.

•Daughters/sons of the leader(s) are always referred to as Princes/Princesses of Rattleclan

•The Rattleclan emblem/symbol that represents them to the others, and in prophetic visions from Starclan, is a grinning black rattlesnake

🌧️🦎Rainclan🦎🌧️

Originally founded by waterlizards, which is a species originating from Clarome. It was founded just by a river, and so alot of it's population also consists of riverside/waterborne birds such as ducks, geese, and other Fisher birds. It too hosts alot of felines, with the few canines here and there. As well as any other reptiles and amphibians that can swim. It's mostly dominated by Waterlizards. It's part of their code that any and all members of Rainclan must be able to swim, and it's seen as a disgrace to be afraid of water or to not be able to swim. Fishing is an essential skill in this clan, even favored over dryland hunting sometimes. Sometimes. Portals are sometimes found underwater in the river.

•Rainclan has at least the second best stock of herbs due to their location.

•They're considered to own most of the territory along the river, all the way up to a small waterfall. The river eventually leads out of Clarome and into the ocean

🌳🐺Valleyclan🐺🌳

It was originally founded by canines, mostly wolves. The clan resides in a sheltered lowering in the landscape, defined as a valley. It's deep in the forest, where mostly leafed trees and bushes grow, and densely. As the wolves settled in, the area was originally populated by rabbits and hares. There were battles and discourse about the ownership of this plot of land, until the rabbits and wolves could finally peacefully unite into valleyclan. It did take a while to get used to living with your natural predator/prey though. Valleyclan is and usually has been one of the biggest clans of them all, also holding a large area of the forest for themselves. They've ran into border disputes with the others often, and have a bloody history with Rattleclan, which was fortunately settled by a needed change of leaders. Due to Valleyclans terrible line of leaders being all parent-child, it caused the other clans to make it so the leader decides their successor, and it isn't automatically signed to a blood heir or a deputy. They too, made it this way, but were the last ones to do so.

Valleyclan contains the most canines of any kind, foxes, forestborne birds, sapient prey animals like rabbits and hares, a little reptilians and even bears, deer, moose and wild horses at some point, but those have been so rare that they aren't seen much these days.

•Valleyclan has often suffered from overpopulation.

•They like to think of themselves as the center of the forest and often try to help or otherwise get involved into the goings of other clans. They tend to initiate the meetings between all the clans/their leaders

🌈💐Colorclan💐🌈

Second newest of all the clans at the moment. Originally founded by a (sparkle)cat and his wife and they just built it up from there, taking in anyone with a good spirit and unique self expression. They came in a little later into the area where the rest of the clans live in, which caused some discourse. Colorclan has the most diverse selection of animals and mixed creatures out of all the rest. It's also in their genetic code to be extremely bright and colorful and straight up wacky. They don't follow some of the same conventions as the rest and are often seen as the "Childish" and "Pathetic" clan of the bunch. They're very creative in their culture and a prominent part is the ability to make paint and fur dye. Not everyone is taught this but it's highly valued, and they use this paint to often mark territories and do general customization. Singing and songs is also a part of their culture

🥀💚Toxic-clan💚🥀

Newest of all the clans, Toxic clan was founded by a rather infamous exile, Morsoclaw and his best friend (named Knife-eye at the time). Followed thereafter by Morsoclaws wife(at the time) Skullrose who was a medic in Rattleclan, + an abandoned kitten they found and nursed back to health, + Knife-eye's girlfriend Fairytail. They later gained more numbers from various other exiles and clan members who didn't find their place elsewhere, as well as rogues. It's still the smallest of the clans, but has a very strong sense of unity, freedom and loyalty. Members can take more fluid roles than in the other clans, such as camp janitor, gatherer, full-time Queen and so on. Members are allowed to change their names themselves at any point in their lives if they so choose, without the involvement of the leader (Referred to as boss in this clan). It's also considered a horrendous act and punishable if someone names their child or warrior a name that purposely demeans or mocks them.

Toxic-clan aims to go against the rest of the clans in traditions and roles and thusly be better

#Lore #Clarome #fanclans #My ocs #My worlds #Embarrassing childhood ocs check #Not able to let go and gaining comfort from said childhood ocs check

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therealvagabird · 5 years ago

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Firbolg Random Tables

This is something I made while homebrewing a D&D setting and realizing I could get a lot more out of Firbolgs than I think a lot of the default settings do. They’re a race that bridges the gap between the elemental-descended giants and the world of the fey. I took a little inspiration from various sources to try and make Firbolgs that were midway between their original form and the more fantastical depictions they’ve since evolved into.

Much can be learned of the Firbolg race through their own creation myth. Their story is that of their god-ancestor, The Hairy Man, also known as Madoc or Maorong in the tongues of the Firbolgs. The Hairy Man was an ancient giant who was said to have won the heart of the Fairy Queen, uniting the bloodlines of fey and giant in their Firbolg children, who would be the sworn protectors of nature. As such, the Firbolgs are a diverse race who show traits of both their fey and elemental giant blood. To those who do not know their ways, the Firbolgs can seem an intimidating and bestial people, though violence has always been a last resort for the forest-giants.

Most Firbolgs stand head and shoulders above even the tallest men and elves, with broad bodies and plentiful hair. Their eyes may be almost any color of the spectrum, though their hair and skin bear the same shades as those of humans, or sometimes Goliaths. The mixed lineages of the Firbolgs gives them many strange features attesting to the floral and faunal traits of the fey, and the elemental traits of the giantkin.

d12 Animal Type: Each Firbolg may display traits of a certain beast. Different types of beast-blood may be more common in various tribes.

1. Equine (horse)

2. Swine (boar)

3. Cervine (deer)

4. Ovine (sheep)

5. Caprine (goat)

6. Bovine (bull)

7. Primate (monkey/ape)

8. Leporine (rabbit)

9. Ursine (bear)

10. Lupine (wolf)

11. Feline (cat)

12. Exotic (free choice)

d10 Hairiness: Firbolgs are known for being hairy like beasts, contrasting more floral fey or more stonelike giantkin.

1-4. Standard – you are as hairy as a conventional humanoid

5-8. Hirsute – you are exceptionally hairy by human standards. If you are female, you might grow light facial hair

9-10. Furry – all your skin is covered with a fine layer of bestial fur.

d10 Eyes: Firbolg eyes may be almost any color.

1-4. Standard – you have eyes in the normal range of humanoid standards

5-8. Bestial – your eyes resemble those of your animal type

9-10. Mystic – you have strange eyes like those of a Fey or Elemental

d10 Ears:

1-4. Standard – you have normal, rounded ears

5-8. Bestial – your ears resemble those of your animal type

9-10. Elven – you have pointed ears, indicating a strong Fey lineage

d10 Nose:

1-8. Standard – you have a normal nose

9-10. Bestial – your nose resembles that of your animal type

d20 Horns: Horns are rare among Firbolgs but are usually taken as a sign of power.

1-8. None – you have no horns

9-14. Small Horns – if you are of the Cervine, Ovine, Caprine, Bovine, or Exotic lineages, you have small horns of that type

15-17. Large Horns – if you are of the Cervine, Ovine, Caprine, Bovine, or Exotic lineages, you have larger horns of that type

18. Small Branches – small woody growths sprout from your head like horns. Firbolgs believe this is an omen of fortune.

19. Large Branches – full branches sprout from your head like horns. Firbolgs hold this as a sign of greatness.

20. Stone Growths – small stony/crystalline growths crown your head like horns, marking a strong Elemental lineage.

d10 Tail:

1-8. None – you have no tail

9-10. Bestial – you have a vestigial tail of your animal type

d20 Additional Features (roll 3 times, treating repeats as a free roll):

1-14. Nothing

15-16. Claws – you have claws instead of nails, though they are not particularly sharp

17-18. Strange Teeth – you have fangs or tusks, likely resembling those of your animal type

19. Garland – leafy vines sprout from your head and intermingle with your hair

20. Mystic Markings – your skin is covered with natural tattoos or textures resembling floral patterns, Elemental/earthen patterns, or bestial markings. The details are up to the player.

#dungeons and dragons #firbolg

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unapologeticallyaisha-archive · 6 years ago

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Scrying

WARNINGS: creepy images, mild gore and violence

Summary: Loki investigates some magical mirrors and has a terrifying encounter.

Word count: 2500+

Author’s note: Pre-Thor and not part of my fanfiction series (for now)

The ancient art of scrying is prevalent in many cultures across the cosmos. This technique is utilized to divine the past, the present, or possible futures. Scrying tools are not limited to mirrors. Any reflective surface can be used for scrying: metal, stones, water, fire. What the scryer sees may be personal to them, or it may have nothing to do with them at all.

“Are you hoping to see your future lover?”

Loki looked up from his book. A grinning Thor was leaning over the desk, threatening to mess up Loki’s piles of carefully-taken notes.

Loki was interested in a wide variety of topics, and his curiosity was not superficial. A topic could be subjected to intensive research for weeks, even months. The latest one to catch his eye had been mirrors.

Mirrors were surrounded by numerous superstitions. They were said to show visions. Breaking them was considered bad luck. Some believed they could trap people’s souls, especially the souls of those who were dead. With magic being as diverse as it was, Loki held to the notion that not all such fears were irrational.

And mirrors held a special meaning for Loki. Because of his ability to cast illusions, he knew better than anyone how images could fool people. He startled himself when he walked in front of a mirror while disguised.

Thor had heard many of the same rumors, but he didn’t believe any of them. For him, mirrors were just tools for vanity.

Loki was planning on visiting a place called the Vale of Mirrors. Stories about it varied and many sounded exaggerated, but they all agreed that the Vale held some very mysterious mirrors, possibly the most powerful in the universe.

Loki wasn’t interested in scrying or seeing any deep truths. He just wanted to experience the mirrors for himself.

Loki gave his brother a bored look. “I would not waste my time asking such empty-headed questions.”

“You may find out that your sweetheart is a lizard,” Thor continued. “Or a troll.”

Loki’s eyes dropped to a drawing on the table, depicting a man cowering from a storm of whirling leaves. His mother had warned him about delving too deep into powerful magic, but the temptation was just too great.

“You should be careful in the Vale, brother,” said Thor, taking his hands off the table. “You might accidentally summon a Fire Demon that will gobble you up!” Chuckling to himself, he left Loki in the shadowy corner of the library.

The distant planet Loki landed on was largely uninhabited, so nature flourished freely. The planet’s three faraway suns gave off a comfortable light through the blue and gold trees. Furry animals with long snouts leapt through the branches, and worms twined around the trunks. Colorful rocks crunched beneath Loki’s boots.

Strangely, many of the trees were broken near the tops, with the severed branches lying in a heap around them.

Loki plucked some leaves off the ground. They were very soft, like velvet.

Placing the leaves in his coat, he continued on through the forest, following a faint but undeniable tug of magic.

At last, he reached the grove he had seen so many times in illustrations. The trees here looked as if they had been pruned. In the center of the grove was a perfectly circular pond with worms swimming in it.

Wondering if the pond was one of the mirrors, Loki peered into the water. However, it was so clear he could see right to the bottom.

Loki walked around the pond and found the ground sloping down into a pitch dark cave. He lit up his hand with yellow magic and went in.

The tunnel led to a circular room with nine large mirrors on the walls, each a plain sheet of glass.

Loki studied the mirrors. He could only see himself from several different angles. Nothing unusual.

Loki then noticed that everything was still. The sounds of rustling leaves and animals had stopped. There was invisible magic in the cave, but it was static, unmoving.

Maybe he had to focus. He drew closer to one of the mirrors. Still nothing changed.

Just as Loki was wondering if he needed to use a spell, the eyes in his reflection darkened, and the face became longer and narrower.

Loki stepped back and noticed that all the reflections were changing, growing broader or thinner, their hair morphing into other colors, until each one was a different person. All of them turned to face him.

“Who are you?” Loki asked.

“Why have you come here?” one of them asked back.

“I am here to see the magic of the Vale.”

“We can show you a great many things,” said another man.

Each of them was standing in another cave, also full of mirrors. It was his own world, multiplied a myriad times.

Maybe the mirrors were windows into other worlds, ones he could see but not touch.

Or maybe he was the reflection, and the others were reality.

Loki summoned up his courage. “What do you have to tell me?”

“Are you afraid of your future?” one of the reflections asked.

Fate was not something Loki considered very often, because it unsettled him. The conviction of most Asgardians was that no matter what came to pass, they would face it courageously.

Loki was not nearly that confident. Still, if that was what they offered, he would take it. “What do you know of my future?”

The magic in Loki’s hand extinguished itself, but the mirrors remained lit with their own eerie light.

“If you are not afraid …” said the reflection.

“You should be,” all of them hissed.

The cave and the mirrors disappeared. It was very dark, but Loki could see the faint outlines of trees. Leaves were falling around him – some silver, some a ghostly blue. The gleaming tips of creature’s snouts darted in and out of sight. Luminous worms as large as snakes swarm in a murky black pond in front of him. The whole place gave off the stench of wet leaves and dirty rainwater.

Loki heard a crackling noise that grew progressively louder. Ice was creeping over the forest floor and up the trees. Pinpricks of red light appeared in the rocks, like a million eyes looking up at him.

Terror gripped Loki. Every muscle in this body wanted to run. But just as that thought crossed his mind, a wind blew him onto his knees.

All at once, the trees broke at the point where their trunks forked, as if a giant scythe had cleaved off their tops.

Loki looked into the pond. The reflection looking back at him seemed melancholy.

Then his reflection’s arm grabbed the front of his tunic and pulled him into the dark water.

Loki barely had time to gasp.

But he wasn’t drowning. He didn’t even feel like he was underwater. The other him had vanished, and he was floating in empty blackness.

It isn’t real, he reminded himself.

His toe hit something solid, and he fell onto hard ground.

Loki’s head was on its side, and he could see that he was on a patch of rocks that smelled vaguely metallic. Beyond the rocks was a thick black fog. It was extremely quiet.

Loki tried to push himself up, but he couldn’t move a muscle. Even his eyelids had been forced open.

Something oozed up from between the rocks, flowing over Loki’s fingers and seeping through his clothing. The scent of blood filled Loki’s nose. He tried to get up again, but to no avail. His magic wouldn’t respond, either.

The blood kept coming, and Loki wondered if it was his. He thought he could see ghoulish faces in the rocks, screaming silently. Maybe they were the ones bleeding.

Just as Loki thought he would be trapped forever, the rocks turned to dust beneath him, and the liquid vaporized.

Loki twitched his fingers and found to his relief that he could move again.

He got to his feet shakily and wiped the blood off his face. The fog was gone, and he was on a barren plain. He stood there, legs apart and eyes alert.

The wind picked up, and dust got into Loki’s eyes and clothes.

Loki then thought he saw something hovering in the distance, unmoved by the wind. A spark of flame, small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. Was it a friend or an enemy?

The bits of dust started to twist themselves into cable-like strands. One end was anchored to the ground, while the other end waved in the air. Instead of attacking Loki, they started converging on the tiny flame.

The flame could be his only aid in this place He started running toward it.

Immediately, some of the cables started moving towards Loki. Their ends became pointed, like spearheads.

Loki pulled a dagger out of his coat and sliced through the cable closest to him. The cable exploded, its dust spraying over Loki. However, no sooner had it burst apart then it reassembled again.

The cables slashed, making small cuts on Loki’s hands and face. One of them darted straight towards his chest, and he dodged it.

If Loki had been facing a conventional opponent, he would have known how to fight. But these were very different entities. Stooping down, he put away his dagger and unleashed a blast of magic.

The magic scattered the pieces of dust much better than his dagger could.

Loki charged towards the flame. As he cupped his hands around it, it grew slightly larger, lighting up his face with its orange glow. It was pleasantly warm.

Loki smiled a little, but he knew he had to be careful. Fire was fickle, and not easily controlled.

Similar types of magic were attracted to each other, Loki remembered. He conjured a small flame of his own and held it steady.

The cables were advancing on him.

He strengthened his magic, and the flame grew along with it. He unleashed them both as one fiery blast. The cables were disintegrated instantly.

Loki grinned proudly. He extinguished his own magic, but the small flame stayed.

The ground quaked, making Loki almost lose his balance. The plain began turning into sinking pits of dust. Soon, only the patch of ground Loki stood on remained.

Many voices whispered all around him, speaking as one. “Will you join us? Or will you be the one to escape?”

Burning white objects, like stars, began showering from the sky. Loki had nowhere to run to, so he shielded his head.

He hated this. He had fought hundreds of enemies before, but none of them could compare to the forces of nature.

The flame spread out above him, incinerating the objects as they came near. But he could feel the flame weakening.

Fight nature with nature, he thought.

Some of the objects grazed Loki’s arms, scorching him through his clothes. When they fell around Loki’s feet, Loki saw that they were leaves, sharp as glass and smoldering with white fire.

Images danced in the flames. A blue crystal mounted in gold. An army mounted on winged horses. A rift in the sky that was full of stars. A long sword stained with blood.

Just as suddenly as it had began, the bombardment of objects stopped.

Loki took his hands away from his head, and the orange flame shrunk again.

Rocks rushed out of the pits, and as he watched, the cave walls rebuilt themselves around him.

There was a flash of lightning and a thunderclap that made Loki cover his ears. He was almost certain the cave roof had split open.

Then it was absolutely silent.

The flame was gone. The leaves were gone. Except for the nine mirrors, the cave was empty.

After a few heartbeats, Loki hurried back through the tunnel into the open. The sunlight blinded him, and he fell to his knees.

When his eyes refocused, he realized he was kneeling by the edge of the pond, which was clear again. The sun was warm on his back. He watched the rippling water and fluid movements of the worms, and gradually his heart stopped pounding.

Loki gingerly reached up to touch his face. There was no blood, no dust. All his wounds had healed, but the sensations still remained.

He had to laugh at himself. He, the illusion-caster, frightened by false images. Nearly all sense had departed from him in the cave. He had always prided himself on being the rational one in his family, but it seemed fear always triumphed over intelligence. He knew the best thing to do was to go home, talk to other people, and remind himself that reality still existed.

He pictured Thor coming to him and asking, So, did you see your future lover? and him answering, Yes, and it turned out to be myself. Now please leave me and my books in peace.

Loki saw that more of the trees were broken than before. Perhaps he had actually left the cave during his vision.

The blissful scenery suddenly seemed to be overlaid with sinister images. Anything – from the ground to the plants to the sky itself – could turn against him at any moment.

Loki backed away from the pond. Then he reached into his coat and took out the leaves he had picked up. They were still blue and gold, and as bright as ever.

What had the Vale been trying to tell him?

Here’s a piece of music to go with this story (lyrics in description)

#loki #thor #son and brother #fanfiction

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zaethro · 6 years ago

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Midwest Furfest 2018 Straw Poll

This is not science. I counted people’s hands in a video, rapidly, without double checking. The population sample was not randomized and changed throughout the polling. I did not re-ask questions after clarifying. None of this should be taken at face value as factual. Furscience.org does an okay job with demography. Ask them if you have real questions about furs. I’m here to yell at 30 people in a room and pass out napkins.

Every once in a while, I decide to host a panel at a fur convention just to shake up the basic attendee routine for myself. This year I submitted four panels to the Midwest Furfest programming team. This is the one panel they accepted, passing on an African Wild Dog meetup (unforgivable), a discussion of amorphous sexual identity (slightly more forgivable), and an ersatz talk show on furry political drama (submitted mostly to see where they draw the line). It was tempting to just mash those other topics into one power hour but, as a self-respecting pseudoscientist, I instead performed the task proposed. Here are the results.

20 to 30 people found their way to the bottom floor of the Hyatt Regency O’Hare, walked through a door marked “Tech Center”, hung a right past a water cooler, then sat down in one of four stair-stepped rows of mesh back chairs. I didn’t check ID’s, so it’s entirely possible none of them were here for the convention but instead arrived in this room by random chance. 5 minutes past the hour, I instructed those present that this was the Straw Poll panel: that I would make statements and then raise my hand, at which time they would decide whether to raise their own hands in agreement. For example:

Each participant was also greeted with an unmarked Paw Patrol napkin. As a method of free response, I asked them to please write or draw something on it with the provided Sharpies. These are the results.

Analysis

Two goats: one lovingly rendered in profile, the other spelled out with descriptive adjectives (“GAY”, “Trans”). Combined with a small horse what appears to be a llama-class creature to my eye, this is a grand total of 4 ungulates. As with last time, a lot of gay self-identification as well as one entreaty to be gay. I was once again accused of looking like Owen Wilson. One person appears to have written their full actual name on the napkin, though this could be a head fake. I see only one “““mature””” drawing in the bunch: a relatively tamely proportioned sheath with “Sheathes 4 Lyfe” written next to it. Whether this is a lifelong passion for the writer or a characteristic of sheathes themselves is unclear. Two people drew ASCII emoji’s (“OwO” and “¯\_(ツ)_/¯ “), a direct breach of the internet/real-life barrier that spells doom for us all. One fish. Significant amounts of overlayering on the Paw Patrol graphics: black eyes, two cat faces, an eyepatch, a pig snout, a spinoff series called Mow Patrol. This kind of additive creativity pervades our now meme-governed culture. More will be added here as new patterns emerge.

Fistbumps

Everyone was asked to turn to the person next to them and perform a fist bump. Several styles were observed:

The Bread Loaf scale

In the interest of expanding the purview of science, the Machination Log implemented an experimental bread loaf scale for certain items. Participants were asked to raise their hand when the number of slices raised corresponded to their level of identification. The operational variable in this case was Brownberry Premium Italian.

7 of 27 participants claim to have experienced a phantom limb. 2 claimed to feel 3 or more; both believe this has improved their lives.

7 out of 26 consider themselves to be “on the spectrum”.

9 out of 26, after a lot of drawn out “ehhhhhhh”s considered themselves to be sexual deviants (the term was deliberately not defined).

16 out of 26 like to pet people who are dressed up like animals.

19 out of 26 like to be pet by people who are dressed up like animals.

The farthest flung attendee in the room was from Los Angeles. The closest were two people who both drove 40 minutes to get to the hotel; they didn’t claim to know each other.

12 out of 28 “Pokemon Go’d to the polls in 2018”.

The participant with the coolest pet in the room had a sugar glider. They also had a variety of other animals including guinea pigs and hamsters.

15 out of 26 have considered moving to a reclusive commune consisting entirely of furries or other kindred folk.

It took 11 out of 26 longer to get their badge than it did to commute to the con itself. In case you weren’t there, this picture of one half of the registration line should help explain the query:

Applause scale

For this section, we have an audio clip documenting audience enthusiasm for a variety of subjects. They include Kirby, Incineroar, bagels, representative democracy, Spanish nationalism, curling, the live-action remake of Cowboy Bebop on Netflix, Neon Genesis Evangelion on Netflix, Jib Kodi, dogs, cats, bread, ears, tails, haunches, snoots, paws, and maws. Feedback for this section is subjective, so we recommend auditors take a listen and come to their own conclusions. (If I find my drawings of paws and maws and such I’ll post them here; not sure where they wandered off to).

So, what did we learn? What practical lesson can we take away from the science?

Consumption-based trends in the fur community don’t last very long. Bronies were absolutely a thing in 2015 and not one walked in the room this time. We are a self-determining style of folk.

Fist bumps have a serious diversity crisis, with most participants not even bothering to “spice it up” with an exit strategy. The data recommends a 6-month re-education boot camp on the subject for all Americans.

Bread is a more contentious and confusing grading scale than anticipated, despite audience enthusiasm for the substance itself.

For a community that isn’t directly about being gay, furs remain—on balance—pretty gay.

Brown liquor was the most popular alcohol by a slim margin. Twice as many people would consume decaf coffee as dirt, despite those being the same thing.

Twice as many people prefer the bottom half of their fursona to the top half. This will require some additional exploration in a future installment.

Everyone is bad at high fives sometimes.

Furry art and furry pornography are not seen as overlapping magisteria and more people considered themselves well-versed in the latter than the former.

Paws are better than maws. We already knew this to be true going in, but replicability is important.

Naps are great and no one takes enough of them.

Until next year, or whenever.

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derivaicontrol · 4 years ago

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An Interview with Karen Bradley, DVM

Karen Bradley, DVMWomen’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative President. @karenbdvm Facebook Goodnewsforpets.com Publisher Lea-Ann Germinder met Dr. Karen Bradley for the very first time in the AVMA Veterinary Leadership Conference Just a Couple of weeks ago. After attending 17 AVMA Conventions, it appears impossible to have missed her before, but we sure did. It will be impossible to miss her now and for good reason. As president of the newly formed Girls ’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative WVLDI, she’s poised to kickstart the veterinary profession ahead and lead to a way that suits today's veterinary profession, the public and the animals we love and care for just fine. There have already been many articles written about the WVLDI initiative, so this informative article takes a bit more private look at Dr. Bradley with plans to have a look at a few more of her contemporary veterinary colleagues that are changing the face of veterinary medicine.

Every veterinarian we’ve interviewed has a narrative about deciding to become a veterinarian. What is your story?

I may be the exception rather than the rule--it feels like many veterinarians understood what they needed to do since childhood but I didn't. I was among those kids that had many livelihood in their “I wish to be” list and even began college with a music scholarship for flute performance and a declared major of English. It was at that early school time that I met a woman veterinarian at our regional veterinary clinic. She was recently graduated, young, clever, patient and affectionate. She was probably just about 8 years old than I was, and I understood that I was very interested in being like her. I had always loved animals and I was very good at science and mathematics, loved biology. Here was a role model, a woman doing what I'd previously seen “grandfatherly” guys do.

My grandmother, a chemist for the National Institute of Health in the days when most girls did not pursue such mathematics professions also had a whole lot to do with it. I always admired her powerful science career option --she also was a music major (a concert pianist who changed her major after accidentally receiving the incorrect low grade for music performance! Once she was made conscious of the error, she decided to not return .) I changed my major to biology and gave up the music scholarship on the road to enter veterinary college.

As a woman were you frustrated from becoming a vet?

I never felt that I was discouraged by being a vet for a woman. I grew up at the “Free to be Me and You ” times, therefore I always believed I could do anything, and that girls could play with boys and trucks . The only discouragement I received was from college advisors who wanted me to be aware how very difficult it was to enter veterinary college and that I should have a back-up plan if I failed to obtain admittance. I never came up with that backup plan. Thankfully I didn’t want one!

What is your favourite part of practicing veterinary medicine now?

I still love the fact that I might observe a challenging case or any sickness I learned about but never had the opportunity to diagnose or treat — my patients and clients can keep me on my toes! I like working with my fellow veterinarians to aid a patient and truly enjoy watching my veterinary staff team take such amazing care of the patients we visit.

Women now represent 75-78 percent of the veterinary profession and the profession surpassed 50 percent women in 2009. What do you think draws a lot of women to the health care profession?

I am certain that there's statistics or data from surveys for this question but my opinion is that veterinary medicine appeals to the science girls in a way that the other health professions do not. It has all the discovery and science aspects while you get to do, or learn to perform, cool things like use zoo animals and individuals ’s pets, horses, or livestock. Veterinary medicine is a simple livelihood to see yourself performing --that doesn’t wish to play baby animals all day?

Kidding aside, I believe some women are attracted to the ability to become a physician but for non-human creatures. And veterinary medicine requires you to work with clients or pet owners or farmers and collaborate on what is best for the animal or animals in question. Scientific discovery, collaborating for solutions, and nurturing patients and individual relationships are a natural match to female nature.

How can you discover the time to become involved in your state veterinary medical association? Were there any particular issues you're interested in impacting?

I was quite blessed to be recruited into my country veterinary medical association activities along with the subject that caught my attention was animal welfare. I slowly added more to my plate by spearheading the effort to receive a lobbyist to monitor for issues that might influence our penis veterinarians and then finally headed to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) House of Delegates representing my state. One of my veterinary partners who's 20 years my senior was a role model for this too. She'd been very active on our Vermont Veterinary Medical Association Executive Committee and served as the AVMA delegate, so it looked pretty natural to be involved in such actions. She'd done it as a single mother and practice operator, so I suppose I just saw this involvement as something significant.

With assistance from my veterinary spouses, who also find the value in this participation, I am encouraged and ready to obtain the time too. If something is important to you, you find the time for it.

Would you tell us about the Women’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative (WVLDI) and your own role?

The WVLDI is formally a 501c3 non-profit. I can't take credit for its presence by myself. Like any good initiative, there's a group of dedicated men and women who are collaborating together to make this possible. All I did was believe there was a need to begin such a group and was blessed that my experience in AVMA activities had allowed me to cross paths with some amazing leaders during our profession. I sat down with Dr. Stacy Pritt in the July 2013 AVMA convention and we were joined by Ms. Julie Kumble, interim CEO of the Women’s Fund of Massachusetts, who works with women on gender issues in politics and careers and spanned the beginnings of the initiative. Together with Stacy’s experience in the Association of Women Veterinarians and vast AVMA experience--and a husband who's a web developer, we had the www.womenveterinarians.org site live within fourteen days.

When I called another Board members and asked them to come together with this, they said ! Our Board of Directors has the talents and skills of: Dr. Donald F. Smith of Cornell University Center for Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Eleanor Green, Dean of Texas A&M University CVM, Dr. Stacy Pritt of UT Southwestern in Texas, Dr. Lori Teller, a professional in Texas, Dr. Valerie E. Ragan of Virginia-Maryland Regional Center of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Rachel Cezar together with the USDA Horse Protection Council, Dr. Douglas G. Aspros of New York, the AVMA immediate-past president, Ms. Julie Kumble, interim CEO of the Girls ’s Fund of Massachusetts, and Ms. Cassandra Tamsey, class of 2015 Texas A&M University as our furry student on the WVLDI Board. With support and cooperation with AVMA, we have been even more fortunate to have Dr. Elizabeth Sabin, AVMA Director of the Diversity Initiative unite us as an ex officio Board member.

You made a decision to start the Initiative utilizing social media. Why was that?

The idea occurred to me this summer a Facebook group might be a means to get people who care about women’s involvement in veterinary direction to speak among themselves, to network and connect between meetings. I understood this might be a way to help encourage, nudge, push, and empower more women to wish to be involved. And let’s face itit’s easy! I popped up a Facebook group and right then a Linked In group readily and then began inviting and urging other people to invite people to join. Social networking is so accessible and can be crossing the generational split to bring individuals together for media. We have 620 Facebook fans, 300 Linked In members and are growing every day.

Are men involved with the initiative?

Yesfrom the get-go! The WVLDI is not a man-bashing group, it's a women’s resource group. Our Board of Directors has two guys and the social media groups have many men as members and participants. We need men who are leaders in the career right now with us, teaching and learning and developing together. The goal of the Initiative is to reach gender balanced leadership--you wouldn’t have that with no men. I like to remind the male leaders that they all have girls that are important to them — daughters, wives, mothers, sisters, nieces, granddaughters these guys wish to see achieve success and respect in their lives and professions. They will need to join in this effort as though it is those women that are very important to them they are helping to elevate.

How can someone get involved?

Join our Facebook and Linked In groups. We're growing and evolving daily --we’re still in our fledgling phase. Locate our present opportunity postings by following Facebook or Linked In, or in the near future by checking www.womenveterinarians.org and join with us in case you are interested in these opportunities. Come to our demonstrations at the national conventions such as the North American Veterinary Conference, Western Veterinary Conference, SAVMA, regional meetings, and also the AVMA convention. Join the dialogue on the sex leadership gap and help us find ways to narrow this gap.

Are there anything else you would like to include?

It’s thrilling and exciting to find this initiative rise in just six short months. This year, we're off to a great start from the AVMA Veterinary Leadership Conference and now planning to have students become actively engaged and many more ideas are being created" all built on positive energy and optimism for what the future holds.

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conleyhorace · 4 years ago

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Neutralize Cat Spray Marvelous Tips

They will be stalking their playmates, bellies low to the overpopulation problem, most animal welfare/adoption groups routinely spay and neuter animals before they are spayed females all can spray.It really depends on the wall, he discovered that when they run around, playing with them.In fact, a typical trait of the cat won't come to live with us... so yes, now we very glad he didn't want a pet fountain in which the triggers of the feline, I am getting tired of cleaning up urine stains.However some cats, whether they go outside often, however if you do advocate humane treatment to animals.

Today, these cats we can leave a visible mark without actually tearing the fabric and allow them into the post with climbing area for several months but they can be.The incision in the middle regarding the outside lip of the smell.To understand how to effectively deal with this quickly damages the carpet or bed linens that your cat around all day long.Then you could spray on their own, although you will have diverse effects on different surfaces.But while you are away for up to 30% of these chores, and/or you experience fleas on furniture and baseboards.

There are many commercially made cat repellents, they are there to try corn starch for mats.It is also a maintenance cost - some cats don't lose their collar before the switch operates.Cleanliness of the cat's abdomen is closed up with over 100 of these common diseases.Loss of a bad kitty, she just is expressing affection.If you might get scared with the UK cat population control program so that, if nothing else, all of them is really cool, your cat is quite clean and slightly moist?

Mostly cats should be operated on or near the cords, so that the kitty very long to retrain your cat to your pet from gaining access to them.Cats hate the smell of cat development and is very special, and is not unpleasant to a different story though there are a part of cat ownership: no more enough product to cleanse cats.Cats enjoy digging around in the litter box.Its best to follow good hygiene rules when you move out, you may be wondering how it feels like, you let it cool until it hasn't been taken care of.Likewise, they aren't asleep and when he was young, we decided to have two, or even squirrels will use the litter box practices change and they won't readily connect the two pets to have the litter box does not always sending out that way.

Your cat will not be able to offer her proper medical care when they urinate and a few extra cat supplies then you have made their home to be done.Anything to get rid of the feline, I am going to react to cats.Cats can provide different toys for him each week will also let kitty know that it's going to get rid of your home one more than a decade ago, conventional wisdom dictated that pets should be vaccinated before nine weeks.It has been effective in 90% of cats are very effective way to change it.Understanding a little honeysuckle on a clean cloth or paper towel.

Two male cats before you decide to bring a new product on your cat's urine in the house 1 box per floor, and vacuum away after a bit too simple but it happened all in my family.Getting your cat gets use to use the seatbelt.Special surgeries can be climbed like trees, and high perches make wonderful pets if you want to make your cat is scratching all your efforts could be nothing more guaranteed to help ensure the control and if any post operative complaints occur it is that a new animal into the ear.All you need to work their claws as he tracks it away.The current theory is that cats and not aggressive to anyone that dares to trespass on their own, and call local animal shelters that let the cats do not put my arms in his urine due to illness, then a trip to the shelter.

Unfortunately, when you arrive from work will make the cat so you will need to be able to exchange the air and onto your bed or clothing, or on the bed as the cleanest pets anyone could ever have.If you're nervous, your cat is attracted to the advantage with flea treatment may not require someone to call for immediate attention.Electrical cords present a serious allergy, for example, an abscess in the perfect price.Use an old feline friend is not trying to train your cat, and the litter box.Unlike people with both of us would probably agree that it is advisable to purchase a scratching post, for example, will it be treated?

Cover the aquarium too, unless you want to spare their pet uncomfortable and that is increasingly difficult to remove all traces of cat behaviour problems.Some people appreciate different cat training is such a point that it doesn't like the chest and belly.Other things to consider before making the situation should arise that she may have.An abscess can result in minor shock and groom them, and the volunteers know well their different personalities.Here is a chronic respiratory disease that can be directed to kitty's doctor.

Cat Peeing Every 5 Minutes

I couldn't help himself and close communication with your kitty, your vet is the purpose of the iceberg.Fleas are a result of the cats at the price it wasn't too much time to time.I liked this idea, I could to ensure unwanted kittens are relatively resistant to antibiotics and steroids.One enjoys dry food as a lure for the bacteria to escape out the cause.Towards your cat's claws are constantly seeking a mate.

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I decided to see if anyone has to be a problem with mites and provide a suitable scratch post, it will be eagerly answered by male cats by using a brown eyeliner or brow pencil.Discontinue if no improvement in first 24-hours.The cause needs to be aware of this, you cannot deprive it of its scientific nomenclature, Nepeta cataria that signifies a cat in their environment.If you want to startle the cat is not harmful but many animals seem not to be right then.Certain essential oils to help you, though it seems no matter how much of the litter removed and the skin and coat.

A litter mat will make the current target more unpleasant.Is the litter box while in heat will affect the toileting habits of their survival instincts away.Ocicat: This is a great sense of smell will return.Don't hit the cat, you definitely expect your furry friend!Some owners have to scrape it out a little while to retrain her.

When dirt is deep into the carpet where he popped a balloon.Carpeted posts often encourage the cat scratching in the act.The medication does not require heat to germinate.Cats don't like to sharpen their nails and not any oil that is low-key, kittens need more time depending on you to pet him or her.It is important to make your garden birds then you may even lead to a minimum.

Cat urine is used the litter box, making your cat to go?The most effective punishments are those cats who display behavior problems that were left to their basic needs of all the time she's had enough.Cat spray smells quite disgusting and will lick leftover food off of you.This basically helps your pet has them, also talk to humanism and modernism, every living thing has rights to be removed!In this case, the cat to meet one cat or dog at their first contact, this may cause problems with him.

Cat Peeing Where I Sleep

Unaltered cats can climb, hide and pounce on you from the body in one piece.There's even catnip spray or even for such a nuisance because you want your furniture and carrying nine unhappy cats in the wild.If the cat is to take when discovering a wet and so it's possible that cheeky neighbourhood cats or dogs; they can put an end to it.Even though it seems is difficult to clean.Not to be inhumane and fairly ineffective.

They will find or figure out after a cat you'll know what a convenience or in the marketplace.We moved to the vet can take to prevent them from being preys to other cats.This will help them start to let us know they shouldn't.I had a cat that is something that we're not able to comfortably lie down and even online.When you introduce him into your cat's claws on furniture or carpet.

#Neutralize Cat Spray Marvelous Tips #Does Spraying Your Cat With Water Work

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princesstadashi · 7 years ago

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His Furry Little Problem

(A.K.A. The random furry convention Fredashi AU no one wanted but I decided to write anyways because with the way Fred's always wearing lizard suits and talking about wanting to turn into a fire breathing lizard, it finally struck me there’s a half decent chance he’s a fur, and I thought it would be cute it Tadashi was a kitsune fur and they were mythical fire creature boyfriends. Enjoy or ignore, it’s up to you. If you don’t like the stuff, you don’t have to read the stuff, and DON’T BE NASTY BECAUSE YOU WERE WARNED. Thank you. ^^)

Tadashi stood facing the mirror in the dingy bathroom of the most deserted gas station he’d been able to find this close to the San Fransokyo convention center, sweating profusely underneath his olive green blazer.

“Come on,” he says quietly to his reflection, trying unsuccessfully to psych himself up while also fighting the instinct to throw up the omelette Aunt Cass had made for him for breakfast that morning.

“It’s really not that weird. There are tons of other people who are the same way. You’re going to a whole convention of them! It’s just a short walk from here to there. It’s not like anyone you know is going to see you!”

He could tell from his expression in the mirror that he wasn’t really convincing himself, but despite his severe doubts he carefully unzips his backpack and reaches inside, his fingers brushing over the soft orange fur of the tail and ears that had been carefully stowed inside. Hands trembling slightly, Tadashi pull the tail out and starts working the ribbons of it through the belt loops of his brown skinny jeans, tying the loose ends in the front and tucking them down the front of his jeans to keep them from showing. He then moves on to carefully pinning the fox ears into his short black hair the way Honey Lemon had shown him earlier that week, now feeling extremely glad she’d lent him some bobby pins for the occasion.

Honey Lemon. She was not only his best friend at his university, the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, she was also the only person who actually knew the truth about him. And even she wouldn’t probably know the truth if she hadn’t walked in on him looking at some rather compromising tumblrs.

Fortunately she hadn’t been at all judgmental. If anything, she thought it was adorable that Tadashi was secretly a fox fur (well, kitsune if they were being technical about it, but Tadashi was fine with fox too.)

Tadashi didn’t know how long he’d known he was a furry--probably for longer than he’d actually known there was a word for it. Maybe it had been the influence of growing up reading such series he’d found in Aunt Cass’ ridiculously large manga collection as +Anima and Tokyo Mew Mew. Or maybe he’d just naturally been that way. Either way, no had thought it too strange when he’d spent his childhood playing games of pretend about being a kitsune--many adults had thought his vivid imagination “charming”. Even in junior high when he whiled away his classes doodling pictures of characters with animal features like ears, tails, and wings in the corners of his notes and worksheets, no one had really commented on it.

But then he’d reached high school, and suddenly his preoccupation with animal/human hybrids started raising some eyebrows from his teachers. A couple of them pulled him off to the side after classes, expressing their concerns, even suggesting that meeting with the school counselor might be in order. And that was nothing compared to the type of treatment he received from his peers.

A girl who enjoyed anime characters with ears and tails was considered cute, even normal by most teens at the school. But a boy? It only took a couple beatings behind the school building for Tadashi to find out that reading mangas featuring such characters might very well get him killed. And so instead of trying to fruitlessly explain himself to those who would never listen, for the sake of survival he buried that part of himself and tried his best to forget it.

For a while it worked. He still got his share of derision from the school bullies for being a nerd, but at least he wasn’t “the freak who wanted to fuck foxes” anymore. (No, of course he didn’t want to have sex with an actual animal, didn’t they know there was a difference between actual animals and anthropomorphised characters?) Still, his affinity for all things related to foxes and for characters he eventually learned were dubbed “nekos” never fully went away, and with the advent of him starting college and discovering the world of anime conventions he found that old part of himself making a serious effort to be heard again.

It probably wasn’t until he made friends with Honey Lemon in his chemistry class and she introduced him to the world of tumblr that he discovered there was actually a name for people who felt the same way that he did. The furry community, as he quickly found out, was extremely accepting, and he loved how creative and diverse it was, even making a good number of online friends thanks to it. Still, high school had left its marks, and he was very careful about keeping his private internet life separate from the rest of his life, even going so far as to create a separate email address and tumblr for interacting in the furry community online in an effort to keep anyone that he knew in real life from finding out about it. No one, not even his beloved little brother, Hiro, whom he shared everything with, was allowed to know about his “abnormality”.

It wasn’t until Honey Lemon had caught him alone in his lab at night, taking a break from working on his robotics project by indulging himself just a little bit, that the truth had all come tumbling out. In the few seconds that had felt like an eternity between Honey Lemon seeing his computer screen and her actually responding, he was terrified that she was going to be disgusted or maybe out him to the whole lab. But then she’d just smiled and said, “Oh, Dashi, I didn’t know you were a furry!” as if it was the most natural thing in the world and he’d found himself sobbing because finally, finally someone didn’t think he was a freak for something he couldn’t even control.

A few mugs of chamomile tea and half a box of tissues later, Tadashi was a lot calmer and the whole story of what he’d been forced to hide for so long came tumbling out. Honey had been incredibly understanding, offering words of comfort and encouragement, telling him that he was amazing and beautiful just the way he was and that if who he was involved wanting ears and a tail then it wasn’t any stranger than people who chose to dye their hair or in other ways alter their bodies in order to make themselves feel more at home in them. Furthermore, she not only offered to but insisted on making him a fox tail and ears to wear for whenever he wanted to express his inner kitsune.

Tadashi had tried to protest, saying that he couldn’t accept a gift that would require so much time and effort from her, but she’d insisted, saying that it was her sacred duty as his friend to help him out in any way that she could. Finally he’d agreed to it, knowing he could never win an argument with her. And the day that she finally presented him with the prosthetics and helped him try them on for the first time had been one of the happiest days of his life. He’d broken down in tears again, but they were happy ones this time and he’d thanked her over and over again for the gift, much to her great pride and pleasure.

For a while it was enough to just know he had the ears and tail safely stowed in a locked drawer in his desk for whenever he wanted them, and sometimes when it was late enough at night that there was no one else in the lab and he was working late he’d get up the courage to actually wear them if he was sure he wasn’t going to have any unwanted visitors, loving the gentle swish of the tail brushing up his legs as he worked and getting to see fox ears showing in his shadow on the wall, making him feel, even if just for a second, that all of this was somehow actually real.

He should have known, though, that Honey Lemon wasn’t about to let him get away with just keeping this part of himself hidden now that he was finally starting to accept it. One Friday night after midterms he found himself being presented with a flyer for something called “Furry Weekend”, a ticket and a map with the location of said event, and the firm instructions that, after all this time hiding in the closet, he was going to finally going to go out and interact with other people who might finally help him realize that there was really nothing to be ashamed of about himself. Tadashi had protested, of course--very vehemently, in fact. But Honey Lemon warned that there would be severe consequences if she saw him on Monday and he did not have extensive photographic proof that he’d actually gone, and, knowing from experience that it was better not to cross her, he’d finally caved in. Which was how he’d found himself in this dingy bathroom this morning getting ready for his first furry convention.

There had been no way that he had felt comfortable enough to get dressed for the con at home where his family might see him. Even though Aunt Cass occasionally had the boys dress up in cat ears and tails for special events in the Cafe, Tadashi doubted she’d be quite so accepting if she found out the true reason he’d never put up as much of a fuss about the costumes as his younger sibling had. And Hiro… Tadashi had no idea how his brother would react to all of this, but he couldn’t even risk the chance of his little brother turning on him if he found out what exactly his nii-chan had been doing behind his back all this time.

Tadashi had gone so far to prevent them from discovering what he was actually doing that he hadn’t even casually mentioned that he was going to a con this weekend in case they looked up exactly what event was taking place at the convention center. As far as they knew, he was going to work on his project at the university again. He hated all of the lies, but right now he barely had the courage to step out of this bathroom with his ears and tail on where he might be seen by strangers, let alone try to explain this to the people he had to live with. And speaking of being seen by strangers...

Tadashi takes a deep breath, staring his reflection down in the mirror. With his kitsune ears and tail, it was a reflection of who and what he wanted to be. This was who he was, and there was nothing to be ashamed of about it. He could do this. It would be a major step in the direction of growing more comfortable with who he was, and maybe towards eventually being able to be completely honest with his family.

“C’mon, Tadashi--don’t wimp out now,” he quietly coaches himself. “Today is going to be amazing, so get out there and actually enjoy being with other furs!”

Finally hitching his backpack back onto his shoulders and taking one final deep breath for courage, Tadashi unlocks the handle and pushes the bathroom door open.

It was a mercifully short walk to the convention center. It was so early that Tadashi didn’t meet many other people on the street, and of those he did most were either too tired or too involved in whatever they were doing to even notice his ears and tail. Every step he took without someone giving him a concerned or even dirty look was a huge confidence booster, and he gradually felt the tight band of fear around his chest growing looser and looser. Then, about two blocks from the convention center, he started to notice others dressed like him on the streets--all wearing various animal prosthetics, many even in full fursuits. Slowly all remaining vestiges of fear leave, and Tadashi starts grinning in spite of himself as, the closer and closer he gets to his destination, he finds himself completely surrounded by his fellow furs.

Waiting in line outside the convention center to pick up his badge, Tadashi felt a bit too shy to start up a conversation with any of the others around him, but he certainly wasn’t bored. There was so much to see, even though he wasn’t inside yet. There were furs of all, shapes, and sorts milling around, some eagerly greeting familiar faces and others looking about as green as he was to this sort of setting. And it wasn’t just the sheer variety of fursonas that he saw present which astounded him. It was how there appeared to be furs from every walk of life here. Many were teenagers and college students like himself, but he also saw furs his aunt’s age or older--furs who looked like they had families and respectable careers. Hell, he saw some parents who were there with their kids! If these people could be proudly out with their fur, maybe he there wasn’t something so unusual about him after all?

After about another ten minutes in line, Tadashi finally had his badge, and he joins the crowd swelling through the doors into the exhibit hall. The hall itself was filled to bursting with con goers and booths. Going with the flow of the tide, Tadashi finds himself in the first row of vendors, grinning at all the incredible merch that was on display. Fanart, t-shirts, mugs, plushies, and, of course, costume pieces and prosthetics--anything and everything that you could think of related to furries and their fandoms (as well a lot of amazing original work) was on display here. Tadashi could hardly believe that there was so much more to this world than he’d ever imagined, and he felt something of an almost manic glee as he allowed himself to be drawn right into the thick of it.

Due to the extremely large size of the hall and the number of attendees, it took until almost lunchtime just to get halfway through the hall (especially since, in keeping with his promise to Honey Lemon, he had to keep stopping and taking pictures of everything.) By about one o’clock Tadashi had burned through quite a number of calories with all the walking that he’d done, and he was starting to seriously consider the possibility of trying to track down some food, either here in the convention center or in one of the restaurants in the area surrounding it.

Just as he was starting his journey towards the doors leading out of the hall in his quest to find sustenance, he caught sight of a booth full of Pokemon merchandise and, for the sake of nostalgia, couldn’t resist going to give it a look.

There was some incredibly adorable merchandise on display, and if he’d been a little more confident he might have considered getting one of the character themed hoodies. In the end, though, after some serious consideration he decided against it, knowing that he had a long ways to go before he’d actually be willing to wear something with ears and a tail attached to it out in public, even if it might be considered more socially acceptable since it was Pokemon.

Hunting through the booth for a slightly less obtrusive souvenir, Tadashi’s eyes fall on a stack of plushies, and he feels a tug in his chest when he sees a small Flareon, no bigger than his palm, made of soft plush material. Flareon had always been his favorite pokemon for as long as he could remember, and he remembered having a plush much like this one when he’d been a kid that had been misplaced in the move when he and Hiro had gone to live with Aunt Cass after their parents had died. He’d always regretted losing it, and he couldn’t resist the impulse to take this one home with him. Even though it might be a bit suspicious if he came home with a stuffed animal when he’d supposedly been working at the lab all day, Tadashi was pretty sure he could smuggle the little cutie back up to his room in his bag with no one the wiser.

His decision made, he starts to reach out for it, only to find his hand colliding with someone else’s.

“Oh, sorry!” Tadashi apologizes, quickly pulling his hand away.

“No, it’s fine!” the other person answers. “It was my bad!”

“Thanks…” Tadashi turns to smile at him, only to feel his breath catching in his throat. Whoa...

He found his mind going blank as he stares at the extremely attractive guy that he’d just accidentally bumped into. And it wasn’t just the stranger’s prosthetics which were garnering his attention (although the extremely realistic looking blue tail covered with covered in black spikes was impressive, as were the contacts which were giving the other man’s eyes a reptilian slit.) Tadashi didn’t exactly have a type when it came to guys--he preferred to focus on personality rather than appearance. But damn, he definitely could appreciate a guy who could rock shoulder length hair, plus he could easily see himself getting lost in those cornflower blue eyes (if that was their natural color and not just the contacts.)

He didn’t quite realize he was staring until suddenly the stranger gently clears his throat and picks up the Flareon, holding it out to him. “Um, sorry, was this what you were trying to get?”

“O-Oh, yeah, thanks!” Tadashi answers, blushing and accepting the plush, before quickly adding, “Did you want it too?” As much as he wanted to hang onto the little plush, he wasn’t about to take it away from someone else if they’d seen it first.

“Oh, no, I don’t,” the other man quickly reassures him, smiling and picking up the Totodile plush which was located just to the left of where the Flareon had been only moment earlier. “This is the little guy I’m after.”

“Aw!” Tadashi grins at the sight of the reptilian Pokemon. “I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen a plush of that one before!”

“Right?” The stranger grins back at him. “He’s been my favorite ever since I was a kid! When I saw him I just couldn’t pass him up!”

“Of course not!” Tadashi chuckles, stroking the fur of his own quarry. “When you see merch of your favorite character, you can’t just ignore it. You never know if you’ll ever see something like it again!”

“Exactly!” The other man agrees eagerly before holding his hand out to Tadashi and introducing himself. “I’m Fred.”

“Tadashi,” Tadashi answers, returning the handshake.

“Is this your first time here?” Fred asks curiously when he lets go.

“I-Is it that obvious?” Tadashi asks, ducking his head and feeling the heat rising in his cheeks. He’d thought he was actually doing a pretty good job of blending in...

“No, no, nothing like that!” Fred quickly reassures him. “It’s just that I’ve been coming here for--gosh, four years now, I think? And I know pretty much all the regulars who show up here and at other furry events around the city and I don’t remember seeing you before.”

“Oh!” Tadashi lets out a tiny sigh of relief. “Yeah, this is my first time… I-I’ve been pretty in the closet about all of… well, this…” He gestures to his ears and tail wryly. “The only reason I’m here today is because one of my friends found out about me being a furry and so she got me a pass for this weekend and kind of threatened to skin me alive if I didn’t actually come.”

“Hey, there’s no shame in keeping this something personal,” Fred tells him gently, and Tadashi was incredibly relieved that he didn’t think there was something wrong with him for not being more out about his true fur nature.

“Not everyone’s lucky enough to have an accepting family or friends, so if it’s something you can’t talk about at home, it’s important to keep yourself safe,” Fred continues before adding with a warm smile, “But hey, just know in places like this you’re free to completely be yourself, fur and all!”

“Thanks…” Tadashi gives him a grateful smile at that. “Today has been--incredible. I’ve never seen so many furs all in one place before… To be honest, I’m not sure if I’ve ever met any other furs in real life, well… ever.”

“You’d be surprised--there’s a lot more of us out there than most people realize,” Fred lightly chuckles before looking Tadashi over with market interest. “So, you’re a fox fur?”

“Kitsune, actually,” Tadashi answers, feeling his cheeks dusting a rosy pink under the other man’s gaze.

“Kitsune, really?” Fred’s eyes widen with excitement. “Finally, another fire elemental!”

“You too?” Tadashi feels his heart skip an eager beat as he takes stock of Fred’s prosthetics again, his brain starting to put the pieces together. “You’re a… dragon?”

“Fire breathing lizard,” Fred gently corrects. “Think Godzilla.”

“Right, sorry!” Tadashi apologizes.

“It’s cool!” Fred reassures him. “Most people think dragon when they first see me. And it’s not that I have anything against dragons! I’ve just always identified more as a kaiju than a dragon, y’know?”

“That makes total sense!” Tadashi agrees, nodding in understanding. “And it’s totally awesome! My aunt’s always been a big fan of all the old kaiju monster movies--she practically raised me and my little brother on them!”

“Glad to meet someone who appreciates the classics!” Fred beams at him before letting out a tiny squawk of protest as some of the other con goers who were trying to enter the booth start impatiently trying to not-so-gently jostle their way inside.

“I guess we should probably finish up in here so the others can get in…” Tadashi says quietly, hating the idea of leaving the booth because it might result in Fred saying goodbye and heading off on his own but also trying to be courteous to his fellow furs who also deserved a turn to look at the merch.

“Probably…” Fred agrees with a wry smile before glancing down at his watch. “Wow, one-thirty already? How did it get so late?”

He looks back up at Tadashi, who was awaiting the inevitable “Nice to meet you, but I have to go now” let down. But instead of saying that, the other man asks, “Have you had lunch yet?”

“Um, no, no I haven’t,” Tadashi admits, surprised by the question. “Why?”

“Any chance you might want to come out to lunch with me?” Fred offers. “I know a great sushi place near here, and it will be my treat!”

“Like a date?” The words come out before Tadashi even has time to think them over, but as soon as they’re out horror at his mistake sweeps through him, paralyzing him with fear--how had he just said something so stupid?

To his utter disbelief, though, Fred just lets out a soft chuckle before answering with a warm smile, “It can be, if you want it to be.”

“I-I would, actually,” Tadashi admits with a shy smile of his own.

“Awesome.” Fred beams at him before gently removing the Flareon from Tadashi’s hands.

“What are you--?” Tadashi starts to ask, only to feel a warm flush rising in his cheeks as the other man turns to the booth’s vendor and proceeds to pay for both their plushes.

“Y-You didn’t have to do that…” Tadashi mumbles when Fred presents him with the Flareon moments later, beaming.

“Hey, it’s not every day a completely adorable kitsune actually starts flirting with me, so I’m trying to make a good impression,” Fred answers with a playful wink.

Tadashi ducks his head in embarrassment but can’t can’t keep a grin from creeping onto his face as he allows the other man to take him by the hand and lead him out of the booth and back out into the exhibit hall.

“C’mon.” Fred gently squeezes his hand, leaning down so that he could meet his eyes. “You ready to go get some lunch?”

“Y-Yeah, I think I am,” Tadashi replies, smiling shyly and squeezing softly back.

“So, do you live around here?” Fred asks, trying to make conversation as they make their way through the crowded hall towards the doors to the outside world.

“I do,” Tadashi confirms. “I’ve live with my aunt and my little brother. My aunt has a cafe not too far from here, and I go to school at SFIT.”

“No way!” Fred cries, eyes going wide with excitement. “You go to SFIT? I mascot there!”

“You do?” Tadashi gasps in surprise. “Wow--that means I’ve probably seen you around campus!”

“Probably!” Fred agrees with a grin. “Although I doubt you’d have recognized me in the kaiju costume.”

“That’s true,” Tadashi chuckles before adding, “Wow, I just realized how perfect that job is for you! You’re a kaiju, and being the mascot means you get free access to a kaiju suit that you get to wear to all the campus events!”

“That is definitely why I chose to apply when I found out about the opening,” Fred laughs. “I’m going for my English degree at SF State, but our mascot isn’t near as cool as yours. My dad actually pulled a couple strings to help me get the job. I’d like to think maybe it was his way of showing me that he at least partially accepts me for who I am…”

“So your parents know you’re a fu?” Tadashi asks softly.

“Yeah, they do,” Fred answers with a slightly strained looking smile. “I mean, I never really tried to keep it a secret from them, any more than I did being gay. It’s not like they’re really home that often anyways, so I figure why try to hide it when they’re not going to be around to ride me about it even if they don’t approve? Most of the staff already think I’m eccentric anyways, so at least none of them give me a hard time. I think my dad kind of gets it, or at least he’s doing his best to remain open minded. I’m pretty sure my mom just thinks I’m trying to get attention, though...

“But, I mean, hell, even if I was--which I’m not--I think she should know that I figured out there’s no possible way of ever actually getting her attention, even if I was trying to.”

“I’m so sorry…” Tadashi says softly, not even able to imagine what it must be like having parents who weren’t invested in your life. Sure he’d lost his own parents to a car accident when he was eight, but even without them he’d always had Aunt Cass, and she’d always done her best to be extremely involved with whatever was going on with him and Hiro. How could parents who were lucky enough to be around in their child’s life just abandon them like that?

“It’s okay,” Fred answers with a small shrug. “I’m used to it by now.”

“I don’t know how my family would react about this if they knew,” Tadashi admits after a minute of them both walking in silence, lost in their own thoughts. “I’d like to think that they’d be fine with it. My aunt didn’t even flinch when I told her I was gay--she just told me she already knew, and then that night she ended up making a rainbow cake for dessert to celebrate me coming out, which was completely cheesy but also adorable. But I have no clue what her feelings about furs are. Same goes for my little brother, Hiro. He means more to me than anything in the world, and I just hate the idea of him turning away from me if he finds out about this…”

“Hey. It’s okay.” Fred gently nudges his shoulder with his own. “That’s pretty normal. Like I told you earlier, a lot of furs aren’t out to their families and friends because there’s a lot of stigma right now, and the important thing is keeping yourself safe, especially since you’re living at home and probably aren’t ready to support yourself yet. But just know that there’s a big community of us who have your back, and if anything ever happens with your family--which I’m really hoping it won’t, believe me!--well… My family’s got a spare room you could use to come crash in. We’re not too far from SFIT, either, so you could definitely keep going to school if you came to live with us.”

“Y-You mean that?” Tadashi looks at him in disbelief. “You’d let me live in your house?”

“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t,” Fred answers with a shrug.

“But you just met me!” Tadashi protests. “You don’t know anything about me, why would you offer to let me stay in your home when you have no idea what kind of a person I am?”

“Well, for one thing, the fact that you’re so worried about what your family will think tells me they mean a lot to you and you value the happiness of your loved ones even above your own, which makes you an incredible, selfless person,” Fred replies with a smile. “And, besides that? I just like doing whatever I can to help my fellow furs.”

“Thanks…” Tadashi mumbles, feeling warmth rising in his cheeks and thinking what an amazing person Fred was if he was so willing to help a total stranger, not because he had to or because they were going to do anything for him in return, but just because he wanted to make sure that they were safe.

“You’re welcome,” Fred answers with a grin before looking up and noting that they were already at the doors leading out of the exhibit hall.

“Wow, that was fast!” he chuckles, turning to Tadashi and asking, “So, you ready to go get that lunch I promised you?”

“Yeah,” Tadashi answers, smiling back and feeling for the first time in longer than he could remember that, no matter what the future held for him, that he would be okay. Even if things ever did go south with his family if they found out the truth, he had a friend (maybe even more than a friend) who would have his back. And knowing that he wasn’t alone was the most amazing feeling in the world.

#fredashi #Fred/Tadashi #big hero 6

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avalongoestocollege · 6 years ago

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A Dog-Like-Dog World: Pets on Instagram

puppies, we all love them they’re cute, fluffy, small, and practically begging to be famous on social media

while Instagram has become a veritable spawning ground for the next generation of influencers it’s no surprise humanity’s best friend has tried for a place in the spotlight. popular accounts like Doug the Pug and Loki the Wolfdog have taken off in the past few years, generating millions of followers and brand deals just like their human counterparts.

the past few weeks i’ve been exploring the nature of this dog-like-dog world with my own dog Remy as the frontman. with this account as my trojan horse, i investigated the values of the community, what promotes a response from users, how users interact, and what the overall goal of the community is.

Community Values

at first glance, the dog Instagram (or dogstagram for those in a hurry) community seems to have little complexity beyond people sharing pictures of cute puppies. a deeper dive illustrated to me a world where strategic, intentional posting was intertwined with the whimsy of adorable animals. just like social media influencers operate on Instagram promoting themselves, brands, and “lifestyles,” many dogstagram accounts do the same.

take for example this photoshoot in which one of the most popular dogstagram accounts: Doug the Pug replicates a photoshoot from one of the most iconic influencers of all time Kim Kardashian-West. the shoot, published on Youtube by Mashable Watercooler and included below, shows a group of several people, a photographer, and videographer posing Doug to best imitate some of Kim’s most iconic selfies. the video has 233,347 views and was featured in several articles on Mashable and other online media sites.

youtube

dog influencers (dogfluencers?) may be cute but they also come with a different set of boundaries when compared to their human counterparts. adult humans tend to do whatever they want and influencers are no exception, but once you bring a dog into the equation everyone gets a little more conscious about the photo subject’s well being. for example, on one post of mine that shows Remy as a puppy engaging in one of his favourite pastimes of licking the dishwasher, a commenter posted to be careful to keep him from getting caught on the appliance. this comment seemed to come from a good place, though i doubt anyone would comment a post of such concern on typical influencer’s post.

another value of the community which i find in high contrast with other influencer cultures in social media is the diversity of those who have found success. certainly more common breeds such as pugs, corgis, and french bulldogs have found their share of success on the platform, a wider range of colours, shapes, ages, and sizes can be found in dogstagram. instead of typically young, fit, attractive individuals like those succeeding in the human counter-component, there are popular accounts showing old dogs, special needs dogs (video below), and unusual dogs. there are certainly more dogs out there to be represented, but the community already shows a wide range of the spectrum.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by My Name Is Clyde🐾❣️ (@clydethesuperhusky) on Feb 8, 2019 at 10:55am PST

while the purpose of a dogstagram account ranges from showing off your dog to friends to creating a multimillion follower empire, the values remain relatively consistent. in order to succeed your dog needs to be cute, yes, but the variety of breeds and ages meet that description. people are slower to discriminate than they would be for a human influencer. i think that’s one of the highlights of this community: as long as you can take relatively good quality pictures or your dog and treat them well, you can find a warm reception in the dogstagram community.

Getting a Response

when looking at dogstagram posts, one thing you’re sure to notice is the hefty block of hashtags found at the bottom of many captions. from my time in the community, i’ve noticed that this has been the primary method of users employed metadata.

as you can see above, i have mirrored this trend in my own posts to see how it impacts my visibility. another post i made lacked this hashtag swarm and likewise faced fewer likes than my others. looking to other accounts i have noticed the same trends. accounts of medium popularity, generally a few hundred followers like this one, tend to add several lines of hashtags to each post related to their dog breed, general dog tags, and something relevant to the picture or caption.

accounts that don’t follow this guideline fall into one of two groups: a significant amount of followers or an insignificant amount. the former accounts represent a dog with an already established brand, such as Pavlov who has over 100 thousand followers, brand deals, and a separate meme account. these posts may include a hashtag or two in special circumstances, the posts generally feature self-promotions in the form of websites or merchandise links.

the other side of the spectrum includes accounts like this with fewer than 200 followers which don’t post hashtags and therefore generate fewer likes on their posts.

another example of response generation related to hashtags is the use of cross-tagging to generate more response on a given post. users looking to generate more of a diverse audience for a given post will include hashtags beyond the standard #dogsofinstagram variety. for example, this post by lychee the corgi which includes #chinesenewyear in addition to the usual dog-related hashtags. employing this method helps increase the visibility of the post and extends the audience beyond those browsing conventional dog hashtags.

using my own account as a case study, i’ve found that the keys to “success” (however moderate my success may be) comes with building a foundation, hashtagging correctly, and cross-tagging. my first three posts hovered consistently in the 30-likes range but began to increase as I posted regularly. this suggests that for accounts just starting out or trying to grow a larger follower-base may need to put in some foundational work.

additionally, my experiment posting the above picture without hashtags illustrated that tagging does matter. this post received a number of likes comparable to my first few posts (around 30) but significantly lower than the 50-average generated in my later posts.

not only is the use of hashtags at all important, but the types of tags employed matters as well. the post of mine which garnered the largest response, posted below, showed that using hashtags strategically can increase the response as well. using other popular tags like #yoga and #downwarddog helped make this my most trafficked picture.

Overall Goals

so sharing pictures of dogs is all fun and well but what’s the point to the dogstagram community beyond the superficial? during my short time actively participating as a dogstagrammer, I found that many of their goals mirror those of the Instagram influencer.

according to an article in Newsweek Global titled “My Date With Toast, the Absurdly Popular Dog Queen of Instagram” by Zach Schonfeld, dogs on Instagram can mirror the path to success of their human counterparts by building a brand and partnering with companies to turn a profit. “These dogs are moneymakers: A single sponsored Instagram post might earn an owner several thousand dollars,” wrote Schonfeld.

sponsorships from existing brands, from small, online pet apparel labels to internationally famous names, offer dog accounts a chance to make some cash. for example, the account Loki the Wolfdog with 1.9 million followers which posted this picture tagged: @toyotausa #4runner #keepitwild #sponsored.

other opportunities exist for smaller accounts as well. on my personal account, a company called Pawsomeneeds reached out to me looking to see if Remy would model their brand. though reputability of companies like this may be in need of some research, it goes to show that there is a growing market for advertising pet products through these dogstagram accounts.

on one hand, this community may act as a means of exploiting man’s best friend for popularity and money, allowing dog owners with the dedication to work at building an account the chance to network with companies looking for a furry face to sell their products. some may argue that this brings a darker side to the lighter, cuter side of the community, but i couldn’t find examples of an outwardly sinister dogstagram account.

in my opinion, however, the overall dog Instagram community exists to bring a little happiness to the sometimes toxic world of social media. any chance to make money on the side becomes a bonus “side-hustle.” the overall goal of this community appears to be to show off your dog to a wider audience and spread the positivity associated with pets and those who love them.

Conclusion

as we discussed before, puppies (and dogs of all ages) are cute, so why hide that adorable light under a proverbial bushel. sharing dogstagrams can not only increase your daily dose of delight but also make you some money if you are willing to invest some time. my own experience showed that people are responsive to cute dogs and there’s plenty of support to be had if you work at reciprocal relationships with other accounts.

the dogstagram community values dogs of all ages, breeds, needs, and sizes as long as you treat them well. they use hashtags and cross-tagging to mark and distribute their content to wider audiences and build a foundation on which to build their brand. some choose to work with existing companies to grow in popularity or make some extra money, but most work to build the community up by liking, commenting, and following other dogstagram accounts.

altogether, dogs on Instagram provide an extra dose of joy to your day whether you’re a casual follower or a fellow dog account.

#dog #doglover #dogstagram #instagram #analysis #long post #rhetorical analysis #dogs of instagram #wr303

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