Syrian refugees in Canada were introduced to a surprising subculture this week when it turned out that the hotel they were being housed in was also hosting the VancouFur Furry Convention.

VancouFur is an annual convention for members of the Furry Fandom (or furries), like-minded people who are interested in anthropomorphic animal characters with human traits and often dress in cartoon-like animal costumes.

Some suggested that seeing the fandom would be a "culture shock" for the Syrians recently arrived in the country.

Most social media postings seem to suggest that the two groups got on well and that the large, cartoon animals went down particularly well with the Syrian children.

One of the furries attending said that the children loved them and that they were "glad we made their transition to Canada fun."

Another quoted a friend saying "world feels a little bit smaller" after the experience:

Another shared a video of one of the children enjoying the large costume head:

According to the VancouFur twitter account 810 people attended the convention, with 171 of them in fursuits – they also managed to raise $1,750 (£1,230, €1,600) for charity at the event at the Executive Airport Plaza in Richmond.

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