Man Tries to Change Name to 'Boomer the Dog'

Gary Guy Matthews is an "anthropomorphic enthusiast," a group perhaps better known as "furries"—adults who dress up in full-body animal costumes. Matthews, a single 44-year-old in Pittsburgh, is now taking it one step further: he's filed to get his legal name changed to that of his animal alter-ego, Boomer the Dog, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. (This all began in high school, when he was obsessed with a short-lived NBC show starring a stray named Boomer.)

He took Boomer as a nickname, eventually made a full-size suit of shredded paper, and started attending conventions with fellow furries. Now a Pittsburgh judge holds the key to the next stage of his life as Boomer, but Matthews could be in trouble, as the judge has said he may rule against the name change if it raises "likelihood of unintended consequences," such as being "seen as bizarre."
(More anthropomorphizing stories.)