Was Dennis Avner Actually A Cat?
That’s the bizarre question everyone is asking today
Who remembers Dennis Avner?
Born in 1958 in Flint, Michigan, Dennis Avner worked as a solar technician in the US Navy until 1981, when he left to become a computer programmer and technician in San Diego.
In the early 1980s, driven by a strong affinity for tigers, and in particular, for the tigress, he started getting extensive tattoos and body modifications to transform his appearance into something rather more cat-like than the body and face he was born with.
He became famous through media appearances, and was well-known at ‘furry’ conventions, where other people who strongly identified with non-human animals gather to celebrate their alternative lifestyle choices.
In a November 2009 edition of BBC News Magazine, Denise Winterman claimed that “Some furries assume animal traits — known as zoomorphism — and indentify strongly with certain species… But a small minority take it further still — believing they are animals trapped in human bodies, or consider themselves to be part animal. A study by [anthrozoologist, Kathy] Gerbasi at one furry convention found about a quarter of the participants did not consider themselves 100% human.”
A study at one furry convention…
