A Japanese man identified as Toco is making headlines once again. In 2020, he garnered attention for commissioning a hyper-realistic dog suit worth INR 12 lakhs, transforming himself into a border collie. Recently, Toco expressed his desire to turn into other animals like a bear, panda, or more. However, Toco is not alone in this unique pursuit. In 2023, another Japanese man spent a staggering three million Yen (roughly INR 20 lakhs) to transform into a wolf.
Meet Toru Ueda, a Japanese engineer who finds solace in dressing up as a wolf after a busy week. “When I wear my costume, I feel I’m no longer human,” the 32-year-old told The Times. “I’m free of human relationships. All kinds of troubles, related to work and other things — I can forget about them.”
Like Toco, who wears a dog suit, Toru had his giant wolf suit made by Zeppet, a company renowned for creating hyper-realistic costumes for movies and TV series. Toru met with Zeppet’s team three times in person and exchanged over 40 emails to communicate his vision. While he wanted his wolf suit to look realistic, he also needed it to allow him to walk. Thus, his suit depicts a wolf standing on its hind legs. Zeppet’s team of three employees created Toru’s wolf suit in roughly seven weeks.
“At the final fitting, I was amazed at my transformed self in the mirror,” Toru said about his wolf costume. “My order to ‘look like a real wolf walking on hind legs’ was difficult – to say the least – but the complete suit looked exactly like what I imagined.”
Toru explained his transformation further, saying, “When I look in the mirror, I see a wolf, and that is very moving. I’m not a werewolf — that’s a kind of monster, and I am not a monster.”
Psychologists note that individuals like Toco and Toru, who enjoy turning into animals, may identify as Therians. The term Therian, derived from Greek, is used for people who consider themselves non-human animals.
