Back to the Jungle: Taking Your Animal Tattoo Designs to the Next Level

Thursday 12th of March 2009 06:59:52 PM [Add To This Article]

When most people think about getting an animal tattoo design, they think of leopard tattoos, butterfly tattoos or, at the most extreme, maybe a full back eagle tattoo or a jaguar tattoo that appears to be ripping through their skin. They might even decide on an elaborate wolf tattoo that symbolizes their inner wild side or a snake tattoo that coils around an arm or leg. Usually, people do not think of actually becoming the animals that they have tattooed on their bodies, but for a certain subset of the community, tattooing is the best way to release their inner animal and reveal themselves in their true form and persona through animal tattoo designs.

Animal tattoo designs that are intended to make the tattoo owner appear more like a certain animal are not particularly common, but they are very noticeable. Generally, these designs tend to be either feline or reptile, largely because these types of animal patterns are easily identifiable. Snake or lizard scales on the arms, legs or even all over the entire body are a great way to make yourself feel more sinuous in your human skin. People who adopt this look often also may have their tongues “forked” or split using cosmetic surgery. This results in a very snakelike appearance that is permanent and striking. This surgery can be performed professionally and should not be attempted at home since you can easily bleed to death and your tongue will probably heal back together in one piece if the procedure is not performed correctly. Beading and other body alterations can also help enhance a reptilian appearance. Similarly, cat fur patterns are popular and help people release their inner cats. Many individuals feel a strong affinity for cats or even believe that they were cats in previous lives or should have been cats in this one. For these people, getting leopard spots, tiger stripes or even facial tattoos or implants to give them whiskers and other catlike features actually helps them feel more comfortable in their human skin. Accompanying plastic surgery can include clefting the lip for a more feline facial look, and implants in the face to give one a more catlike profile. Feline tattoos are also extremely easy to recognize, which makes them a very popular form of animal tattoo design because it is easy to spot them and identify them even if you are not particularly familiar with or fond of cats.

If you are considering getting an animal tattoo design to make yourself feel more like the animal in question, then you should carefully consider the extent of your tattoo and the design. Generally, it is best to work with a single artist in order to insure continuity throughout the design, and to plan out the entire tattoo in advance and then work in stages. This will not only allow you to keep your ultimate goal in mind as you work on your tattoo, but also let you determine as the tattoo progresses when you have reached the stage of completion. Some people prefer to let their animal personality dominate their human one, and these people generally get their animal tattoo design from head to toe. Others stop with partial sleeves, back tattoos or even animal tattoo designs that accentuate their human body’s beauty by tapering to a point at the lower back or flowing down the arms and legs in an artistic fashion. A good way to determine whether or not  you will enjoy your animal tattoo design when it is permanent is to try the look with semi-permanent body paint that will let you wear the design around for days or even weeks before making a firm commitment. This strategy is no different from the “perfect tattoo” strategy, and it is just as judicious because it will enable you to test drive your animal tattoo design before committing to it permanently. Since an animal tattoo design has the potential to change your entire visage and body permanently, it is a good idea to find out how you will feel about other people’s reactions to your body tattoo as well as your own.

There are several tattoo celebrities who have made their careers and their fortunes though animal tattoo designs. The Enigma is a tattooed man who is covered with puzzle piece tattoos, has horn implants, filed teeth and an extremely reptilian look. Katzen, his former wife and co-star, has feline stripes all over her body and implants that look like cat whiskers. These individuals are beautiful and unique, but their tattoo decisions have permanently impacted their lifestyles in a major way. If you are thinking about a similar tattooing decision, weigh the outcomes carefully before you make a permanent move.