Body modification

Body modification, also known as body alteration or physical transformation, is the deliberate altering of the human anatomy or human physical appearance.

It is often done for various reasons: aesthetics, sexual enhancement, rites of passage, religious beliefs, and as self-expression, among other reasons.

In its broadest definition it includes plastic surgery, body implants, socially acceptable decoration (e.g. common ear piercing in many societies), etc.

Body modification and furry
In the furry community, it is generally used to refer to the use of surgery to make one's body look furry in appearance (see Stalking Cat.) Some body modification to a human body varies from the easy to perform, hard (expets) and to the illegal.

Current technologies
Very simple forms of body transformation are available, such as plastic surgery. People can be given forked tongues, have their throats modified to produce purring sounds, have horns or muzzles grown with coral implants, or have their ears stretched out into proper membrane ears.

However, these changes are expensive, sometimes require anti-rejection drugs, and are obviously artificial. Most furs who desire physical transformation see current technology as insufficient. This use of plastic surgery and other physical methods on furries is sometimes known as Moreaufication', based on the concepts put forth in the 1896 science fiction novel by H. G. Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau.

Future technologies
Most furs refer to a combination of genetic engineering, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and chimerazation as a possible way to accomplish full body transformation.

In theory, via genetic engineering, a pseudo-form combining both the target's DNA and the DNA sequences for the desired animal traits  could created manufactured. After growing the organs individually to see if the created DNA is viable, full organs would be grown, and genomics used to introduce the new amalgamated DNA into the subject as an additional native sequence. While core organs (heart, brain, lungs, liver, kidney) would never have to change, the external organs (skin, claws, tails, etc) could undergo massive changes without rejection.

But even when the technology is achieved and the DNA coded, in theory it would still be a frighteningly expensive process to change and/or graft a new custom DNA altered organs to the target subject.

Non-biological grafted prosthesis, an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, offer a more current, promising possibility for body modification (tails, ears, etc...).