Detroit — It may be the only convention where pets not only are petted but also do the petting.
Welcome to Motor City Furry Con.
Two floors of Detroit’s Renaissance Center is overrun this weekend by a unique species of two-legged cats, dogs and wolves. Possibly a weasel or two, as well.
Yes, they love animals, but more than that, they want to be them.
And so they come with a unicorn head, a unicorn body, a unicorn tail and, obviously, a horn.
“I love it. Who doesn’t love unicorns?” said Sarah Williams of Taylor, one of several unicorns in the building. “I’ve been obsessed with them since I was little.”
One might think such a convention would be small, that the passion is shared by a fevered few. Wrong, Charlie Darwin.
Some 2,400 people attended last year at a Marriott hotel in Ann Arbor. Organizers said they expect a similar number this year. The registration line, which snaked all the way around the circular Renaissance Center corridor, showed they weren’t speaking with a forked tongue.
The yearly event, which began with 300 people at a 2008 shindig, has grown so large they had to move to the Ren Center, said one of organizers, Drykath.
Drykath, who is 42 and from Ypsilanti, declined to give his real name, as did several other organizers.
People in costumes and those without mingled in lounges, merchandise shops and two game rooms, one with video and the other non-electric. They attended panels on “Furry Thoosies” (their experiences at theme parks), “Furries After Dark” and “Beyond Cats and Dogs: Caring for Unique Companions.”
The highlight of the confab is Saturday night with the “Fursuit Dance Competition,” where some participants with elaborate routines and $10,000 animal outfits scratch for first place.
Each evening has more dancing, the non-competitive, non-wolf-suit-wearing variety, although costumes aren’t verboten.
“Some people think it’s strange,” said Troy Glickman of Ferndale. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s some of the coolest people I know.”
Some attendees allowed that loved ones don’t always understand their interest in the animal world.
Pandez, who was dressed like Mario, the Nintendo mascot, said he waited a year before telling his parents about his interest. He showed them a picture of himself in a panda suit.
His parents were confused and asked why he enjoyed it. As his nephews and nieces became older and became interested in anime, it made it easier for him to explain his interest, he said.
“They thought it was weird but were okay with it,” he said. “They didn’t examine it too much.”
Pandez, 49, of Ann Arbor, said he doesn’t have time for the haters.
“I like to ignore people I don’t like,” he said.
Pandez also was the speaker at one of the conference’s panels, “Your First Furry Con.”
He told 50 people in one of the Ren Cen conference rooms about the proper way to approach someone in a costume. Their vision and hearing are limited, so don’t be offended if they seem to be ignoring you, he said. Then again, some of the performers are divas.
He gave instructions about the proper way to pet the costumes, always with the grain, not against it. And no scratching, he said. That could remove fur from the costly outfits.
“There are parties like that, but we’re not talking about that,” he said about the scratching.
Another seminar was entitled “Meet the Special Guest.”
One of the guests was Laura Pearson of Ann Arbor, whose nickname is Quack Quack Honk.
Asked by one of the 20 people in the audience how the guests got their names, Pearson said she works as an artist and was looking for a name for her business. She wanted Duck Duck Goose but it already was taken. So she went with Quack Quack Honk.
“I knew it would be something animal-related,” she said.
For more information on the Motor City Furry Con, visit motorcityfurrycon.org.
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This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit hosts furry convention, filled with unicorns, wolves and two-legged cats
Reporting by Francis X. Donnelly, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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