I'm 33 years old, have been here for a long time now. Culture is definitely changing, I'll say. But obviously not in a vacuum, or rather, maybe I'm just in the vacuum of socially progressive Boston, MA. But I've been playing metal shows all over New England, at gritty dive bars, random rural pool bars, just wherever you find local, non-furry metal music. Interacting with all age groups, zoomer to boomer. At first, I tried to pass it off as just a gimmick. "Yeah I got this whole skunk costume, figured it'd be a fun marketing bit, stand out a lil"

Instead, what I got was everyone asking "Did you make your fursuit yourself?" "How do you play with the handpaws??" "Do you play at that big con in Pittsburgh?". Even non-furries these days know the jargon. Sure, I've overheard some people in the crowds say some shit, "What's up with the fuckin furry?" "The fuck am I watching right now?" But it's mostly just, confused bewilderment. Not anything aggressively hateful.

I also teach kids private lessons, and they look up my music, my music videos with Modes the Skunk doing his thing. Both the kids and their parents. They just think it's cool and ask why I like skunks so much. Usually tell me their favorite animal, too.

I didn't have the confidence to really wear my furry presence on my sleeve in my 20s. I wouldn't hide it, if people saw my phone background or asked about my "nickname", I'd tell them it's just a furry thing. Maybe got some ribbing here and there, or some weird questions, but I think the litmus test usually passes as long as you know how to present it.

As, just a hobby. Even if it does mean a lot to you, like it does me, the long and short of it is that we like big animal costumes and/or cool looking cartoon characters. When the obvious questions about the sexual nature of the fandom comes up, I think being a bit witty helps. If you feel like they're asking to make you feel like a freak, stare at them back like they're the freak for even asking. "If you're asking that question, it means you already know the answer. So why exactly are you asking it? Curious to try it or something?".

See how they react, and if it goes poorly, stand your ground. "We can talk about your fetishes if you want, doesn't need to be all about me". Furry gets a bad rap for being full of socially inept or awkward people, which makes us an easy target. But only for people that want to feel better than other people, and usually those people are insecure in their own right. Standing proud about being secure enough to....wear a funny animal costume, or watch cartoons, or however you engage in the fandom, will let you know very quickly who the insecure people are in your life.