Glossary entry
Gear
Worn items such as tails, ears, masks or collars that some therians use to express their theriotype. Gear is optional and is not what makes someone a therian.
In depth
Gear is the community word for things worn to express a non-human side: a tail clipped to a belt, a headband with ears, a collar, a painted mask. Some is bought and much is handmade, and mask-making in particular has grown into a real craft, with its own patient skills of shaping, painting and fitting.
People wear gear for comfort, for joy, for the relief of seeing outwardly something long felt inwardly, and sometimes simply because it is fun. It is entirely optional. Many therians of long standing have never owned any, and wearing it does not make anyone a therian. It is an expression of the identity, never a test of it.
In practice
- A wolf therian wears a soft tail at home on quiet evenings and finds that it eases a restlessness they have never quite been able to name.
- A person spends a winter making a careful fox mask, wears it once at a small gathering of friends, and keeps it afterward on a shelf where they can see it.
- A therian of twenty years has never worn gear at all and has no wish to. Their identity is no less for it.
Common questions
Do I need gear to be a therian?
No. Gear is one way some people choose to express their identity. It has nothing to do with whether the identity is there.
Is it safe to wear a mask outdoors?
Take care. A mask that narrows vision can be dangerous near roads, water or uneven ground. Wear it where you can see clearly, or take it off to move about.
Related terms
Read further. The guide to gear, masks and quadrobics goes further.