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Fur-Eh! is Alberta, Canada’s first anthropomorphic convention, held annually in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Originally conceived in 2010 by Thallanor Rasmuson and co-founded by Fallout Coyote, the first Fur-Eh! was held in May 2012. Now one of Canada’s largest anthropomorphic conventions, each year furries from around the world gather at the Edmonton Inn & Conference Center to celebrate the anthropomorphic fandom and culture, raise money for charity, and share their love for everything anthropomorphic. Fur-Eh! also hosts an annual Christmas Party held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. In 2022, Thallanor officially stepped down as the convention chairman and handed the rains over to the new chairman bcbreakaway. In 2024 Chinona took over from bcbreakaway as the con’s current chair. If you’re interested in learning more about our history and how Fur-Eh! came to be, be sure to check out our full length documentary.
People attend anthropomorphic conventions for a variety of reasons. For a lot of furries, it’s an opportunity to spend time in person with online friends in the fandom that they only get to see once a year at conventions. Over the course of the convention, Fur-Eh! hosts a wide variety of panels for attendees to check out. You can meet others with shared interests, be entertained by the immense talent in the fandom, or learn/expand on a skill in things like animation, costume building, writing, drawing, and many other topics. Fur-Eh! also hosts an Art Show, Artists Alley, and Marketplace allowing the many talented artists in the fandom to showcase and sell their work.
The furry fandom contains people of all ages and all walks of life. What exactly being a furry means and what the fandom means to someone is as varied as there are people in the fandom itself. Generally speaking a furry is anyone who enjoys anthropomorphized animal characters (think Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, Brian Griffon). Some only enjoy the artwork produced by the community, while many others will create their own character called a Fursona, whom they will identify themselves as in the community. Some will even create costumes of their character, costing thousands of dollars, called a fursuit; however, owning a fursuit is not a requirement to be part of the fandom. In-fact less than half of the fandom actually own a fursuit, some due to the high cost associated with owning one, others are just simply not interested in that aspect of the fandom. One common theme among those in the fandom however, is feeling connected and welcome in an immense community of tens of thousands worldwide, where you’re free to be yourself without fear of judgment.
If you’re interested in learning more about the history of the fandom and how anthropomorphic conventions got started, we recommend watching the documentary The Fandom. They also produced a mini-series about what the fandom is and what it means to people, which can be viewed here. Another fantastic resource on the furry fandom is the fine folks over at Furscience. Furscience is the public face of the International Anthropomorphic Research Project (IARP), studying furries and their fandom and disseminating their evidence-based research to furries, the general public, scholars, and the media to increase understanding and decrease stigma.
Date/Location: May 4-6, 2012, at the Hilton Garden Inn
Theme: None
Attendance: 200
Guest of Honour: Silent Ravyn
Date/Location: May 3-5, 2013, at the Hilton Garden Inn
Theme: The Great Canadian Road Trip
Attendance: 273
Guest of Honour: Strawberry Neko
Date/Location: May 2-4, 2014, at the Sawridge Inn and Conference Centre
Theme: Pirates of the North Saskatchewan River
Attendance: 351
Guest of Honour: Shinigamigirl
Date/Location: May 8-10, 2015, at the Ramada Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Weird Wild West! Steampunk meets the wild frontier!
Attendance: 472
Guest of Honour: Strype
Date/Location: May 6-8, 2016, at the Ramada Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Who Killed the Con Chair? A Furry Murder Mystery
Attendance: 625
Guest of Honour: Redcoat Cat
Charity: $3,214 raised for Underdogs Rescue Society
Date/Location: June 15-18, 2017, at the Ramada Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Harry Otter and the Furbidden Amulet
Attendance: 734
Guest of Honour: Davecko
Charity: $3,946.95 raised for Underdogs Rescue Society
Date/Location: June 14-17, 2018, at the Edmonton Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Paws Vegas
Attendance: 743
Guest of Honour: Demicoeur
Charity: $7,801 raised for Underdogs Rescue Society
Date/Location: June 13-16, 2019, at the Edmonton Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Unifursal Studios
Attendance: 867
Guest of Honour: Eerie Eden
Charity: $11,600 raised for Underdogs Rescue Society
Unfortunately, Fur-Eh! was unable to host an in-person convention in 2020 or 2021 due to the ongoing global health crises. That didn’t stop Fur-Eh! from helping bring the community together, hosting an online event “Fur-Eh! TV” consisting of prerecorded and live panels, and fundraising events for the Underdogs Rescue Society.
Date/Location: July 14-18, 2022, at the Edmonton Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Mardi Paws
Attendance: 1,222
Guest of Honour: NicNak
Charity: $13,172.55 raised for Greater Edmonton Animal Rescue Society
Date/Location: July 6-9, 2023, at the Edmonton Inn and Conference Center
Theme: Broadway Tails
Attendance: 1,594
Guest of Honour: Apoxon, Tarrin Rudders & Temperence
Charity: $16,746.23 raised for Greater Edmonton Animal Rescue Society
Date/Location: July 11-14, 2024, at the Edmonton Wyndham Hotel & Conference Center
Theme: World Anthro Games
Attendance: 1,964
Guest of Honour: Anyare & Beetlecat
Charity: $19,000 raised for Greater Edmonton Animal Rescue Society