Changing an Animal's Natural Form... Is it okay?

Whatever you want ya newb! lol just kidding, Anything's alright. We furries don't mind much. I'm a white tiger with bunny ears instead of cat ears. And it's ok if u want something to resemble strength or power, that's just you! It's alright man. Be yourself, akuna matata, and..... uhh... stuff.

The Butterfly passed by one day/ and saw the Cheetah's home./ "Why those wings for an earthly thing?"/ "I must have wings to roam." ......

Wow! Responses! Thanks! I do have such a tendency to get worked up over the littlest things...

I quote the wonderful 2 Gryphon when I say:

"I'm a freak? You're wearing a shirt make of sheephair, buttons made of horsehooves, shoes made of cow, and my ears and tail are fake!"

Trust me hon--I've seen stranger things than a bat-winged cheetah You'll blend right in

A cheetah with batwings, in my opinion, would not be so common to be cliche nor so rare as to be "Wow, that's totally different." The reaction for most folks in-fandom would be "Hmm, batwings on a cheetah." Completely acceptable.

More to the point, if you feel like you want your character/fursona/avatar/etc to be a bat-winged cheetah, then don't worry about any 'clicheness'. I don't when I'm playing my sekrit vixen alt online, and there's not much more cliche than sekrit vixen alts.

--Chiaroscuro

You have absolutely nothing to worry about. There are hundreds of hybrids in our fandom. We have woxes and cabbits and even a draccoon. "Mixing" of animal traits is commonplace.

The only question is what to call a bat and cheetah hybrid. A...beetah? No, sounds to buggy. A ...chat?

Or make up an entirely new species name, like the keshanti or the gryphon or the yumar.

I think my presence in this discussion would not be totally unwarranted. I'm a Dragon-Squirrel and I get a lot of raised eyebrows when I tell people. Mostly because they just can't picture it. *snickers* But my opinion is that you really shouldn't worry about what people think of your fursona. You should be whatever you want to be because that's what we're all about. Unless your character's design includes any 'suggestive' parts I don't really think there's anyone that could object. Besides I really like the idea of a cheetah with batwings. Really cool! Oh and.. how about.. Cheebah? XD

A lot of it depends on the scenario the character is set in, though it sounds like you're just doing this as an abstract, for now. In some settings, wings denote a particular meaning or race - in the DMFA webcomic for example, they generally - but not always - imply a race with magical capabilities.

First off hey!! ^^ secondly i think it's a crazy idea to wonder whether it's ok with your unique vision. i mean furry fandom for me is being myself and if your a cheetah with bat wings go you! lol me i'm torn between lions and wolves so bad it's starting to invade my dreams. at least a cheetah with bat wings looks cool, i mean a wolf with a mane, lion's tail and retractable claws just looks weird if ya ask me!!

i agree, dont worry about what will or wont be accepted, heck you should watch some videos on youtube of past AC's. there are lots of different made up characters, some i cant even tell what they are. as long as you are comfortable feeling you, should be fine^w^ the only thing that isnt natural about my fursona is that she has blue eyes, im a blue eyed white wolf.^w^ and if u see a tall girl running around with the badge name Nevask, feel free to say hi, even have a chat.

Personally I'd like to see *more* hybrids. x) My fursona is a cat-panda-donkey so uh... at least most people will be able to figure out what YOU are haha.

Even if it is kinda "cliche" to put wings, be it bird, butterfly, or bat, on something, it's your fursona, so if you think it represents you who cares what other people think?

Edit: btw, this was probably before your time but back when Furcadia was THE furry thing to do (as opposed to now it's SL I guess), everyone wanted the special "Digo" items for their character, which were various types of wings x) It was like a status symbol since you had to pay if you wanted them whereas the "game" itself was free.

I thought about making my dragon a fox/dragon hybed, but I'm having difficulty trying to make it look right. And whats the right name to call it anyway? Foxagon? Drox? I know its not 100% original, but I'm not too crazy when it comes to hybrids and I'm just in the "looking" stage.

Anyway, your hardly alone when it comes to the thought of doing hybrids. Theres several furs even outside of AC I know of that like to mix and match different parts to their fursonas. Some do it for RPG purposes, some for symbolism, Some to stretch their creativity, and others because it just looks good. The most important thing however, is being yourself. Don't feel pressured that you have to add 3 different animals in your fursona to be extra charming. Believe me, if you end up doing something your not too happy with for the sake of others, your not going to have such a wonderful time. And theres still many MANY furs out there that have little or no hybrid characteristics in them and it doesn't make them any less cooler. So as long its nothing suggestive or intended to promote hate against any races, do what you feel your happy with most, regardless what others think.

Oops :x

*puts his foot down on this subject. And when a Dragon puts his foot down, you either listen or end up shaken to the ground. Either way, you cannot ignore them.

Hybrids, mixed-morphs, shapechangers, mythics, mundanes, madness and more. All are welcome, except catboys and catgirls. Fuzzy ears and a tail do not a furry make. We count not the neko. All else is acceptable and fully embraced.

I have composed a poem for the occasion...

Rat-bat cat-bat
Dirty old t...

What do you mean I can't continue? A limerick? A dirty limerick? Nonsense...

What does G mean? What?!?! Kid-friendly. What does this have to do with goats?

Nevermind. Fine, no poetry. Well, welcome none the less, little Flederkhat.

As a day-glo pink anthropomorphic, bipedal, talking otter with a hairstyle, I wouldn't have room to judge.

.evol.

Thank all of you for providing these insights!