Look At Yourself With Kindness And Love

AWAKENING DAY

reblog thread!! Everyone who wants to partecipate will share the date of their awakening (as specific or as generic as they feel comfortable) by reblogging to this post!

Here’s mine!

Being alterhuman does not mean you have some ~special ability~ to interact with wild animals.

DO NOT go touching/chasing/ generally messing with wildlife. You aren't special and you could harm those animals, or be harmed by them. Even small things like bugs can kill you. You aren't immune to rabies.

If you scare wild animals by chasing them for species euphoria or whatever, you can genuinly kill them. Birders have a term for when it happens to birds, its called a Dread Flight. When you unnecessarily scare a wild animal, you are causing it to waste energy it needs to survive. Wildlife can't afford to waste energy. You're enjoyment is NEVER worth disturbing wildlife.

You do not have the training to rescue wild animals just because you're alterhuman. If you don't have the actual training to resue wildlife and you genuinely find an animal in need of help, CALL A FUCKING WILDLIFE REHABILITATION CENTER!!!! It isn't that hard to find the number for your local center and they'll tell you what to do, if anything, and help you if necessary.

I am a horse. I’ve ridden other horses before, albeit as a guest at a ranch within my area. For the times I’ve visited my kind and interacted with them, I’ve done so under clear instruction from those who regularly take care of them, train them and work with them.

At no point have I ever gone out of my way to interact with my kind under the assumption that I’m engaging with them from one species member to another. Nor have I engaged with them under the assumption that— because I too am a horse— I know what I’m doing. This is because I understand mindfulness is of utmost importance. Riding is a privilege, not a right. So is engaging with your local wildlife. Your behavior makes all the difference, and those consequences are often irreversible. Besides, OP already listed some pretty good reasons on why this matters.

I know folks like to get up close and personal with animals. Usually, it’s to pet them, take pictures or act out to get a reaction out of them if they feel emboldened enough. In my case, they won’t hesitate to do so without the animals, the trail boss or any other staff who work with these animals in mind, knowing damn well they don’t know these animals or their behaviors. Sometimes, these folks turn out okay but get a scolding. Sometimes, they go into full Karen Mode because the staff did their job by addressing their guests’ behavior. I’ve seen group members get kicked out because they had the bright idea of trying to sneak inside in the stables nearby. These are individual cases from the ranch near me and the trail rides I’ve been on.

Back when I went on trail rides, I didn’t make any sudden or overly touchy movements while being paired up with a horse. I’d also watch my volume once I was in proximity with my riding companion. Yes, I’m an animal like them but I’m still responsible for my own behavior. Inappropriate behavior could bring immense distress or harm the horse and even myself. The chances of an accident happening is never a guaranteed zero. Moreover, other horses aren’t going to assume I’m socializing with them as another horse. They’re going to assume I’m posing some kind of a threat to them or refusing to back off and act accordingly, which is something that many folks— in AND outside of this community— need to keep in mind. Entitlement to an animal’s space or existence is an issue that a lot of folks have, even if that’s not your intention! To you, it may not come off as entitlement because you’re doing something that brings you some kind of euphoria. Even so, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re using another animal’s existence as an excuse to gratify yourself. That’s not okay.

I understand wanting to express your animality. I understand wanting to be recognized among your kind or among other animals in general. I get it, but you cannot jeopardize the wellbeing of your local wildlife and any other animals for your validation.

Building off this point, you do not want your theriform conspecifics to view you as an animal like them. You may think you do, but you don't.

You do not want a bull to be territorial with you the way it is with theriform bulls. You do not want a horse to be food aggressive towards you. You do not want a cat to slap you (cat scratch fever, hello). You do not want a dog to hump you. You do not want a parrot to mate-bond with you.

You need to keep in mind that theriform animals view you as human, for the sake of your own safety and theirs.

After developing my horse otherlink, and coming to see myself as a horse, my relationship with them changed. But their relationship with me did not. And that's why I've been able to maintain a friendship with a draft horse without getting injured - because she doesn't see me as a strange two-legged horse, she sees me as a little human who's nice to her, that she doesn't need to compete with, and who stops petting her when she gets pushy they way she does with theriform horses

"euthanasiac" by Daffodil @hoofweed is live on our website 🪻 "when you do it, try to not look me in the eyes as the life leaves them. do not let the flies linger on me. you know i spent my time flicking them away."

read the full poem now: