You might have seen them crawling around campus and wondered what was going on, but chances are you had no idea Furries were living among us.

Meet “Gazi” and Edward, two Hull students with a bizarre hobby of dressing up in animal costumes. Furries, as they’re known, are a subculture who create a “fursona” to express an animal character, which also shares their personality.

They wear their outfits around campus and in the library – Gazi even braved wearing her costume to the hall formal.

The phenomenon is already huge in the US, and it’s growing over here, too. The Furry community have regular meet-ups across the country, where most of the attendees go in their full costume. There aren’t any meets in Hull at the moment, so dedicated Furries trek to Manchester, York or Leeds to meet their like-minded friends. But forums are bursting with Furries dying to bond with fellow Furries, which is where the underground culture is growing

Second year “Gazi”, as she likes to be called in the Furry world, decided to get involved with the subculture after she saw it online. She has since even met her boyfriend through their shared love of Furries.

The English with Creative Writing student told The Tab: “My main fursona is a male wolfdog-hybrid, with a stereotypical emo aesthetic named Gazi. I played around with creating a few characters just to practice drawing, which is why I originally designed him.”

Some Furries hide it from their friends and family, but not Gazi: “It’s not something I really hide, especially as it’s all over my social media pages.” Saying that, she doesn’t usually bring it up unless the conversation turns to hobbies, and won’t divulge any information “unless they’re into geeky stuff too”.

She added: “I don’t wear it everyday. Nobody does. Last year I did wear him around halls. I wore him around the corridors and library. I even had him out for the end of year hall formal too.”

Gazi bought her wolfdog suit from CuriousCreatures with her 18th birthday money. It only cost her about £420, which is cheap for fursuits: most usually cost £2,500 or more. Earlier this year, a full fursuit sold for $11,575.

She saves any left over loan to fund her interest: “I’ve probably spent between £1,000 and £1,500 – or possibly more – on this hobby in the past two and a bit years.”

And Gazi isn’t the only Furry in Hull. 18-year-old Edward has a blue Ice-Wolf fursona called Ice. The Interactive Media student at Hull College became part of the Furry community two years ago, when his dad’s colleague met him through a games server. “It’s just like any hobby” he explains, and compares it to cosplaying.

Conventions are also a key part of Furry life, where they have dance contests, question panels and even showings of Furry movies – he personally recommends Bitter Lake. Edward attends regular meetups in the area, and used to go to a monthly meetup in York. Edward, or Ice as he’s known, said usually about 70 per cent of Furries are in full costume at these meetups. The fursuits are used to boost people’s confidence, and Ice admits he’s only ever dance if he’s suited up. He insists fursuiting isn’t the most important part of being a Furry, though. All you need is a passion for it, apparently.

He said: “I would wear my fursuit at an event maybe, but only if it’s acceptable. I rode the bus all the way to York from Hull in costume. Interest sparks up.”

There are very mixed reactions to being a Furry, both good and bad. Generally people are intrigued, and many fursuiters use their hobby as a way to raise money for charity. Edward recently held numerous stalls selling his gran’s handmade cards to raise money for Dove House in Withernsea with a fellow Furry.

There is a sexual side to being a Furry, too, and even Furry porn exists. But both Gazi and Edward shun the Furry Fetish side of Furryism. Edward said: “There are some people who are like that, but it is a very very small amount.”

They both stress it’s very accessible, and “the best and most important part of furry fandom is the community-vibe, and the feeling it is a place where anybody can fit in”.