Of Fluffy Ponies and Headcanons · 4:31am Jan 22nd, 2014
TricornKing asked me what status fluffy ponies have in my story Shetlander, and I've been pondering about that.
To me, fluffyness is a overexpressive genetic trait similar to Down's Syndrome, perhaps, with the most obvious symptoms being the excessively long, fine ("fluffy") coat, smaller size, poor coordination due to any combination of poor muscle tone, eyesight or hearing, and.. ah... delayed mental development.
Unlike some of the weirder concepts for fluffy pony breeding (cough) fluffies reproduce normally, and with suitable support and assistance can lead reasonably normal and productive lives. However, fluffies are still considered inferior to a noticeable extent and are not encouraged to raise children.
In Shetlander, the use of "fluffy" as an insult can be taken as an indication that, perhaps, Equestrians aren't as ideal as some of us humans would like.
