There Was Catfishing, Now There’s Kittenfishing

There Was Catfishing, Now There's Kittenfishing

Oh lord, another dating term that we have to add to our ever-growing library of terms. Gay dating is hard enough; now we have to keep track of all these trends and traps. We've covered pebbling, Shrekking, Banksying, wildflowering, monkey-branching, and more! For this round, we do a deep dive into the world of kittenfishing. Meow!

We know what catfishing is. Anyone who has used Grindr has probably been the victim of catfishing at least once. Basically put, catfishing occurs when a person uses someone else's pictures to set up a fake identity to engage with unsuspecting prey. Some people catfish to scam people out of money, and some people catfish because they are lonely and want to lure people into online relationships with no intention of actually meeting up.

Well, kittenfishing, as you can assume, is a smaller version of catfishing. When someone is kittenfishing, they are presenting themselves, but are hiding some elements to make the overall picture look better. Instead of a fake picture, it can be a lot of little fake elements that hide certain truths. This term extends from instances of wearing a hat in a profile to hide a bald spot to lying about your age, height, or weight. For those who like to send dick pics, it can even refer to someone who takes a pic of a smaller cock but from a certain angle for it to look bigger. This can even refer to lying about your income and job to fibbing about where you went to school. The possibilities are endless.

People who kittenfish are under the impression that smaller white lies are not as damning as catfishing, and therefore, not as damning. These white lies are assumed as inconsequential and might be overlooked when the truth is brought to light. So your date is 10 extra pounds, is that going to make you leave? So your guy said he worked in corporate for Subway, but he really puts double meat in people's sandwiches. Is that enough to make you run? Well, for some of us, that would be enough to send us running. But others who are looking for a real connection may look over small untruths.

The fact is, kittenfishing is lying. Even if it is on a smaller scale, it is lying at the end of the day. What other lies are they capable of? On the other hand, who in the gay dating world has been 100% honest about everything? Who in the real world is 100% truthful about themselves all the time? Is that even possible?

The LGBTQ community is more prone to kittenfishing. Growing up, we may have built up insecurities because we compared ourselves to societal norms. We wanted to feel included, we wanted to be accepted, and so we may have lied about our sexuality, our butch level, our love of sports. All these things stay with us, and we are still searching for acceptance, even if we have to cover up some realities about our true selves.

If we wanted to take it a bit further, getting Botox, lip, and hair transplants, etc, are all gay versions of kittenfishing. Or is that just trying to better ourselves? We also know those gays who are constantly dying their hair or changing up their style, getting piercings and tattoos. Are we expressing ourselves, or are we kittenfishing who we really are?

It's a slippery slope that we all fall down. How much kittenfishing is too much? Where do you draw the line? Also, how much kittenfishing do you do in your own life?

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