# Nobody wants whiskers nowadays



## Altairsky (Nov 9, 2019)

Something that I never managed to understand, is why 90% of artistic depiction of cats, especially anthro felines, lacks whiskers. It's like if whiskers are a taboo or a sin, lol. What's your opinion on this? Why so many artists don't give their feline characters some good whiskers? 
This question is also valid for every other species that has very long whiskers like mice and rats for example.


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## Heppi (Nov 9, 2019)

You know what? You are right! I tried to explicitly search for it, but it is very hard to find even a few images. I wish there would be more, whiskers are they way to go! <3 I always liked similar approaches to whiskers. Like this kind of war painting or pattern for cat-like creatures.


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## Fallowfox (Nov 9, 2019)

I do whiskas.


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## foussiremix (Nov 9, 2019)

My cat sona doesn't have whiskers coz lore.

Normally when I draw a feline, I add whiskers but they kinda like end up destroying the whole image . I dunno why.


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## Z-ro (Nov 9, 2019)

My sona looks better without whiskers, that's my feline visual opinion on anthros


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## Altairsky (Nov 9, 2019)

My husbando haz whiskers and he look hadsum


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## Simo (Nov 9, 2019)

I know an otter who is very pround of his whiskers! : )


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## Altairsky (Nov 9, 2019)

Heppi said:


> You know what? You are right! I tried to explicitly search for it, but it is very hard to find even a few images. I wish there would be more, whiskers are they way to go! <3 I always liked similar approaches to whiskers. Like this kind of war painting or pattern for cat-like creatures.



I agree! I think most artists aren't familiar enough with cat anatomy, or don't know the right technique to draw whiskers. They try drawing them once or twice, they draw them wrong and end up ruining the design, so instead of practicing and learning how to draw a feline correctly, they just go lazy and remove the whiskers completely and never draw them again... which is actually a shame.


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## Nyro46 (Nov 9, 2019)

I love whiskers, I think it adds to the cute factor of a character.
I draw whiskers on like, every character that is a species that have them normally. So even horses, for example.


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## MaelstromEyre (Nov 9, 2019)

I leave it up to the artist.  My character is part wolf, so she'd have some whiskers naturally, but if the artist doesn't add them I won't freak out.


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## Ghostbird (Nov 9, 2019)

As an avian, I am pro whisker


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## Mambi (Nov 9, 2019)

I think the whiskers when done right are absolutely essential! They just often get omitted to focus on the rest of the expression undistracted I guess...


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## Tendo64 (Nov 9, 2019)

I don't draw whiskers because I don't like how they look in my style. I think this goes for most other artists who leave them out as well. It's difficult to get them to look right.


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## Anibusvolts (Nov 9, 2019)

I like whiskers, the ones you mix stuff with xP
But seriously tho, they're pretty darn cute


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## Bink (Nov 9, 2019)

What stumps me is why canines lack them.. everywhere. Cats have longer whiskers, but most canines actually have more!

Most of my art of my sona include whiskers. They add more depth to the character I feel.


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## Existenceinanutshell (Nov 9, 2019)

Riot has whiskers





But it's one of those things where I go like "Well, doesn't matter if someone leaves them out or not."

He's also meant to have paw pads. But those even are forgotten by me and some artists who draw him anyway.

But I think most people just leave them out because they forget or overlook them at times similar to how I do.


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## Kinare (Nov 11, 2019)

I... actually did not realize the lack of whiskers in my sona until reading this thread. x.x' I wonder why, I do like whiskers... and now I'm wondering how good or bad they would translate onto my sona's art. Hrm.


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## Pomorek (Nov 11, 2019)

I'm happy to report that I don't neglect whiskers.


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## Paws the Opinicus (Nov 11, 2019)

I haz two fat whiskers?

They kinda work the same way...


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## Slytherin Umbreon (Nov 12, 2019)

Paws the Gryphon said:


> I haz two fat whiskers?
> 
> They kinda work the same way...


Noodles


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## Peach's (Nov 13, 2019)

A lot of cats have whiskers which match their fur so you don't see it unless its close up.

Bojack Horseman has them however which it interesting because the anthros they have are mostly human in form.


>


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## FluffyShutterbug (Nov 13, 2019)

Altairsky said:


> Something that I never managed to understand, is why 90% of artistic depiction of cats, especially anthro felines, lacks whiskers. It's like if whiskers are a taboo or a sin, lol. What's your opinion on this? Why so many artists don't give their feline characters some good whiskers?
> This question is also valid for every other species that has very long whiskers like mice and rats for example.


My fursona is SUPPOSED to have long, cute whiskers, but nobody ever remembers to draw them in art I buy...


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## Keefur (Nov 13, 2019)

Kitty gotta have his whiskas!


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## hazmat_doormat (Apr 24, 2020)

I’m a rat and I want whiskers! I see them as part of the character, like she’s running through sewers all day so she needs bristly whiskers to navigate.


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## The Matte-Black Cat (Apr 25, 2020)

Unless I'm specifically looking for a more cartoony work of art, I'd like for my fursona to look as much as a real panther (with down ears..and a Few other not so realistic qualities tbh) as possible, whiskers and all.. :3

.. I'd probably want them to be black though.


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## VeeStars (Apr 25, 2020)

It could be because some times they are messy and hard to draw, trust me I've tried.


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## Kit H. Ruppell (Apr 25, 2020)

My fox has whiskers.


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## Punji (Apr 25, 2020)

Something something necromancy

Also I do appreciate me some cute whiskers! If I could I'd put some one my profile picture. All previous attempts have failed.


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## Simo (Apr 25, 2020)

Foxes look nice, especially with some cartoony whiskers!


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## Dinocanid (Apr 25, 2020)

I draw whiskers, even on my canines. It's often overlooked that they have them too


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## BlackDragonAJ89 (Apr 25, 2020)

Stylistically, whiskers don't work for me when I draw them. 

I think part of the reason why we don't see so many whiskers drawn is the fact that there's actually a LOT of whiskers in a given space. Not just around the mouth, but also around the eyes as well.


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## Glossolalia (Apr 26, 2020)

Sometimes I draw whiskers on my cat characters (and other whisker-bearing creatures) but usually I leave them out. I never thought about it much, but if I had to explain it I'd say it's because they can be a bit visually distracting on some characters. On a real life, detailed, fuzzy cat, whiskers blend right into their design and look perfectly natural. But on a simplified, cartoony character, they can look sort of busy compared to the rest of the face. This isn't true for all cartoony characters, just something I noticed in some of my drawings.

I've also noticed that artists are more likely to include whiskers on a "scruffy" looking character, and less likely to include them when the character is supposed to look really sleek or feminine, so there could be some association with  human facial hair that people apply to them, maybe subconsciously.


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## Zehlua (May 6, 2020)

I like whiskers! I sometimes draw Zehlua with whiskers, especially when I want to present him as more masculine (they read like a moustache)

Some day, I might get an LED fursuit and give Zehlua fiber optic whiskers =^-^=


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## farraigeart (May 6, 2020)

whiskers are SUCH a cute character design choice, i'd like to see more as well

as a character designer i think, traditionally speaking, the whiskers are omitted in the design because it reads as being mustache (like zehlua said) and that might not be the goal (like having a younger male character)

of course, i don't think that's always the case (esp with looking at the examples here!) but i think maybe i look a little too into it with my own art LOL (as well as worrying the whiskers take up too much space, or are obscured by a too light or too dark background)


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## Pogo (May 6, 2020)

I has whiskers. 
They are very practicle.


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## Zinogirl (May 6, 2020)

Peach's said:


> A lot of cats have whiskers which match their fur so you don't see it unless its close up.
> 
> Bojack Horseman has them however which it interesting because the anthros they have are mostly human in form.


Princess Caroline even jokes about trimming them a little to look good and that shes willing to stumble around for a few days lol


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## Eli_the_Wolf23 (May 6, 2020)

My sona doesn't have whiskers


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## Fallowfox (May 6, 2020)

Anybody posted hairy nick yet?


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## Eli_the_Wolf23 (May 6, 2020)

Nick owo


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## Mambi (May 6, 2020)

Now _that's_ how you rock some whiskers! <grin>


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## Kinare (May 7, 2020)

My sona and her mate just got hyper realism art done, both have whiskers. I didn't think I'd love whiskers so much, but especially on Raizu (sona's mate) they make him seem even floofier and cuddlier.


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## Deleted member 111470 (May 10, 2020)

Whiskers are cute, I like them.


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## Stray Cat Terry (May 10, 2020)

Altairsky said:


> Something that I never managed to understand, is why 90% of artistic depiction of cats, especially anthro felines, lacks whiskers. It's like if whiskers are a taboo or a sin, lol. What's your opinion on this? Why so many artists don't give their feline characters some good whiskers?
> This question is also valid for every other species that has very long whiskers like mice and rats for example.



Aww that was one of the condition that helped my strategy, and now everyone knows it! Now we'll all thrive instead of few like me who were already using whiskers before this XD

I as well have no clues to lack of whiskers of the species on various arts that originally do, not that I'm complaining. But for me, it's really an icing on the cake! It's like a helicopter with stabilizer tails, or parsley flakes on a spaghetti! You don't die lacking it (maybe helicopter one is an exception), but it's somehow better when you do! Well.. not all the time but still...

Even though I think so, it's really not easy to make whiskers work with most arts. It's possibly because we kept viewing more non-whiskered arts than is, but maybe also that it's not easy to make a great design most of the case.

My feline OCs have whiskers on their chin, not around their nose. It took some effort until I finally decided to go this way. Cuz.. For example, when you RP and somehow got your whiskers touched, you better have it around the nose like real cats do for naturalness. But if you do this, and if you're not creative enough to make it also shine on visual art(like me), you might actually ruin the whole silhouette or something. It's kind of a contradiction. And if you can't decide, then you make it nonexistent on artworks.

After all, everything is up to personal preference and maybe also profession :3


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## Raever (May 12, 2020)

Personally speaking, when designing my Sona I was so focused on getting as many other details figured out that I just never bothered to add whiskers. On top of that, she's more of a fantasy character than a realistic depiction of an animal, so even if I did add whiskers they likely wouldn't fit her. I think that if I made a more realistic Anthro I'd add whiskers for cute factor, but for fantasy based stuff it looks better without (imo).


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## Vesper2112 (May 12, 2020)

Long time costumer, but I'm super new to this fandom. I have a commission in for a ferret fullsuit, and I absolutely want whiskers on him. With that said, I just got a premade cat partial that didn't have them. To be honest, I didn't really notice it. (shrug) Weird...


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## Frank Gulotta (May 12, 2020)

Whiskers are cute, wtf


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## Ruki-the-Zorua (May 12, 2020)

I dunno. I had made this one species known as Aurians, (small cat/fox hybrids), and almost every one I drew had whiskers on them. It seemed ideal, and it made their design all the more better.


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## Limedragon27 (May 12, 2020)

Huh, never thought about it until now. Every feline should have whiskers.


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## Ruki-the-Zorua (May 12, 2020)

Limedragon27 said:


> Huh, never thought about it until now. Every feline should have whiskers.




I'd say so.


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## BayoDino (May 18, 2020)

Fallowfox said:


> Anybody posted hairy nick yet?


It's kinda a cat.


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## Nerire (May 18, 2020)

I do add whiskers!





I couldn't possibly imagine drawing, for example my girl Zyra, who's a sphynx cat, without them. I don't draw as many as cats have in real life, but whiskers are important imo ><. They're also quite good for enhancing emotion, they actually do quite a lot if you position then correctly, but I might be the only one who sees it like that.
I also usually add sort of 'symbolic' whiskers to wolves or foxes, or any species that in fact does have them, by drawing two or three outside of the lineart
Just to kind of show that they're there

I have been specifically asked to not include them though, I guess some people just really prefer their sons without whiskers for some reason, although I can't imagine why


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## Auxil (May 18, 2020)

I love whiskers and my fursona has whiskers out the wazoo. I know that drawing them can be very inconvenient though - if you make a mistake with them they're impossible to erase without erasing half of the face. Because of this they basically have to be left until the very last step of the drawing or on a separate layer... making them very easy to forget. And they are a 'fine with or without' feature because they don't add much distinctiveness - unless you want a very unconventional design they will be either black or white (depending on species) and that's all, they don't help you stand out. I can understand why they're missing from artistic convention.


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## Punk_M0nitor (May 20, 2020)

I really like whiskers! They add personality. Whenever I draw my OC Lucifer, I give him a few crinkled whiskers to show how unkempt and careless he is. My only problem with drawing whiskers is I often accidentally make them too thick, which is why I’m sometimes afraid to add them (in traditional drawings, anyway)


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## Punk_M0nitor (May 20, 2020)

BlackDragonAJ89 said:


> I think part of the reason why we don't see so many whiskers drawn is the fact that there's actually a LOT of whiskers in a given space. Not just around the mouth, but also around the eyes as well.



A good loophole for this that I’ve found is to only draw the whiskers on one side of the face, if the character is facing the side or 3/4. That way you can add the whiskers around the muzzle, chin, and brow without cluttering the face


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## Ruki-the-Zorua (May 21, 2020)

*Puts on whiskers* Problem solved.


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## Doodle Bunny (May 21, 2020)

Whiskers help define certain species, so I add them.


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## Ruki-the-Zorua (May 21, 2020)

Doodle Bunny said:


> Whiskers help define certain species, so I add them.View attachment 87137
> View attachment 87138
> 
> View attachment 87139




Ingenuity


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## Ceiling_Cat_On_High (May 23, 2020)

I love adding whiskers to drawings of felines and other animals that have them! I can't understand the whisker lack myself. Maybe it's holdover from a lot of animation-based designs that lack whiskers? I'd assume those extra strands could be a pain to animate for some.


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## redhusky (May 23, 2020)

I usually omit them because they make the drawing more busy than it needs to be and I only add them if I need them for effect.


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## Doppelfoxx (May 23, 2020)

So so true. Whiskers are just so hard to draw, and the feeling of scratching lines over a picture is very hard, especially in traditional. It's a good thing if you do draw them


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## Zelendur (May 24, 2020)

My Fursona has Whiskers and even though they are explicitely on her Ref, many artists tend to forget them.. drives me crazy >.>


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## Ziggy Schlacht (May 24, 2020)

Ignoring my avatar, I do omit them as they tend to lead to cleaner faces. Though, if these are supposed to be civilized furs, one might argue they're trimmed as otherwise they get caught in things?


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## Kiaara (May 24, 2020)

Mine is a special case because Kiaara has Antennae and they do about the same thing

But it is 100% because I forget the put them on her


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## Lexiand (May 24, 2020)

I swear I have seen a cat sona who does have whiskers somewere.


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## BlackDragonAJ89 (May 24, 2020)

redhusky said:


> I usually omit them because they make the drawing more busy than it needs to be and I only add them if I need them for effect.



This is pretty much it. Unless your art style is going for near realism or photorealism, the whiskers are too much, and can even look rather uncanny too.

Like, Nick Wilde and Fox McCloud look rather disturbing with whiskers and realistic fur.


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## Deleted member 82554 (May 25, 2020)

Fallowfox said:


> I do whiskas... _Sexy _whiskas.



Ftfy.


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## redhusky (May 25, 2020)

Fallowfox said:


> I do whiskas.


Swol kitty!~


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## Deleted member 132067 (May 25, 2020)

Ziggy Schlacht said:


> Ignoring my avatar, I do omit them as they tend to lead to cleaner faces. Though, if these are supposed to be civilized furs, one might argue they're trimmed as otherwise they get caught in things?


Many animals need their whiskers to survive because they depend on then to strongly support their tactile senses. Cutting them of to seem more civilized would be like ripping out a cat's tail because in modern furry society it simply doesn't fit into style anymore.

Logic aside, having whiskers on a sona or not strongly depends on the srtstly in which the sona is depicted.
Sometimes they greatly improve a picture, especially in term of details. Sometimes they would just be "too much".


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## Herdingcats (May 25, 2020)

I like whiskers, but they're hard to draw well on a face. But I keep trying anyway.


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## Ziggy Schlacht (May 25, 2020)

ClumsyWitch said:


> Many animals need their whiskers to survive because they depend on then to strongly support their tactile senses. Cutting them of to seem more civilized would be like ripping out a cat's tail because in modern furry society it simply doesn't fit into style anymore.
> 
> Logic aside, having whiskers on a sona or not strongly depends on the srtstly in which the sona is depicted.
> Sometimes they greatly improve a picture, especially in term of details. Sometimes they would just be "too much".



A tail helps with balance, it still serves a purpose in a modern world. It's also filled with bone, blood, etc. and wouldn't be all the fun to cut off. Whiskers are literally just stiff hairs. They also don't do you much good if you walk around on two legs and keep your head away from places they'd be useful. I've never thought "damn, this crowd would be so much easier to negotiate if I had some hairs on my face." They basically just act as a buffer in the dark or otherwise cramped spaces.


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## Deleted member 132067 (May 25, 2020)

Ziggy Schlacht said:


> A tail helps with balance, it still serves a purpose in a modern world. It's also filled with bone, blood, etc. and wouldn't be all the fun to cut off. Whiskers are literally just stiff hairs. They also don't do you much good if you walk around on two legs and keep your head away from places they'd be useful. I've never thought "damn, this crowd would be so much easier to negotiate if I had some hairs on my face." They basically just act as a buffer in the dark or otherwise cramped spaces.


Whiskers grow three times deeper into the skin than fur or hair does, on top of that they're additionally anchored to it through hair bellows. Those bellows have capsules filled with blood and multiple nerve endings.
How would it be any more "fun" to cut off?
You surely pulled out a bit of hair from your head on accident. Not dead hair. Did it hurt? Now imagine you had several nerves more attached to it's rood which make for a complex tactile system.


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## Manny (May 25, 2020)

I have whiskers


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## _Ivory_ (May 25, 2020)

I just think they are a not so important detail, especially when the art has a cartoony style where there are not many details and the design is kept simple. 
Its just that when you look or think of an animal your attention is drawn to the most important aspects of it that make it unique and different from other animals. So thats why even in representations they rarely appear


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## Ziggy Schlacht (May 25, 2020)

ClumsyWitch said:


> Whiskers grow three times deeper into the skin than fur or hair does, on top of that they're additionally anchored to it through hair bellows. Those bellows have capsules filled with blood and multiple nerve endings.
> How would it be any more "fun" to cut off?
> You surely pulled out a bit of hair from your head on accident. Not dead hair. Did it hurt? Now imagine you had several nerves more attached to it's rood which make for a complex tactile system.



There's part of me that wants to argue that this is totally fine, that they should just be ripped right on out. With rusty pliers. But there's another part of me that's really confused why you're still on about "ripping them out" in the first place. I said "trim" as in "cut short" not rip out. As in trim them to keep them tidy, perhaps short enough that they aren't visible in photos.


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## Deleted member 132067 (May 26, 2020)

Ziggy Schlacht said:


> There's part of me that wants to argue that this is totally fine, that they should just be ripped right on out. With rusty pliers. [...]


Well then, good talk.


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## Heyhoi (May 30, 2020)

Not a cat, but my boyo had whiskers!  I usually try to add whiskers to rodent and feline characters that I make.  But yeah, add whiskers can ruin a drawing if you aren't careful!


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## KiokuChan (Jun 10, 2020)

I generally put whiskers on cats, and I like my fox whiskers very much!


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## KiokuChan (Jun 10, 2020)

FluffyShutterbug said:


> My fursona is SUPPOSED to have long, cute whiskers, but nobody ever remembers to draw them in art I buy...


That's sad. Oddly they seem to remember them in a good bit of art I get.


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## Ruki-the-Zorua (Jun 10, 2020)

Who wouldn't want whiskers? They are much fun to have, and on top of that, they look pretty cool, giving your sona  a unique appearance! I made my Aurian, (A cat/fox hybrid from the Andromeda galaxy), named Monosuki have whiskers. In fact, it's a signature on his design!


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## FluffyShutterbug (Jun 10, 2020)

KiokuChan said:


> That's sad. Oddly they seem to remember them in a good bit of art I get.


I feel like it's because most people don't remember that foxes have cat whiskers?


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## KiokuChan (Jun 10, 2020)

FluffyShutterbug said:


> I feel like it's because most people don't remember that foxes have cat whiskers?


I'm a fox too though... ; p


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## FluffyShutterbug (Jun 10, 2020)

KiokuChan said:


> I'm a fox too though... ; p


Lol, I know.
But I don't even know how many foxxos remember the whiskers.


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## HistoricalyIncorrect (Jun 10, 2020)

Talk for yourselves. My whiskers are always well groomed and stylised in fashion of XVII A.D Polish/Ukrainian warlords.


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## FluffyShutterbug (Jun 10, 2020)

Whiskerzzz


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