If you have ever wished that the Cardassians in Deep Space Nine had reptile tails…

consider this headcanon.

(or perhaps tailcanon).

ALT

They live under an aggressively conformist dictatorship.

So… in the same way that overly conformist environments for humans will often enforce short haircuts and shaven faces… most Cardassians are required (by workplace restrictions, federal law, or social pressure) to keep their tails cut.

The tail will grow back if left alone, but rarely does a Cardassian feel safe doing so.

There have been parts of human history when the work of barbers and surgeons overlapped– partially due to both jobs requiring sharp instruments.

This was even more natural to Cardassians, because the regrowing nature of the tail means the minor surgery of removing it is comparable to a haircut.

However, multi-use instruments also play a role. Tail-surgeons– already possessing the supplies for cutting and stitching– would often branch out into any other field that could use that equipment.

Which, for Cardassians, can range from “espionage and violent interrogation techniques” to “garment repairs and alterations.”

So. Garak knows whereof he speaks… when he calls himself

“a simple tailor.”

ALT