making up for lost time; my party mix bag of thoughts on being therian

i love being therian. i have been other than human since i was at least a lamb. and yet i only recently discovered therianthropy.

on being in a flock

being a sheep means being part of a flock. you protect your own. my flock is made of those who are other than human. that includes therians, yes, but anyone marginalised by our human-centric society matters to me with the (albeit small) platform that i have. i am looking out for, in my own small way, otherkin, clinical lycanthropes, alterhumans, nonhumans and holotheres (and anyone else not mentioned, i see you and i love you. stay safe). you deserve to live in a way most authentic to you.

on loving as a sheep

yes i have more to say on this, but for now, i want to mention how different love is as a sheep compared to from a human. a sheep will push its head into a human (often interpreted as 'snuggling/cuddling') if it feels safe around you. not because it feels obligated. as an autistic sheep, this is particularly pertinent to me, and i really resonate with this. i have always been deemed 'standoffish' as a lamb, because i don't want to touch people. but as a prey animal, touch is scary. proximity is scary. so if i choose to get close to you well. you must be something special. (same with eyecontact btw. but i'll talk more about all of that in another essay.)

on validation

i intend to write much more about this, but for now, this will have to suffice.

i don't like the culture of validation in the therian community (using this as an umbrella because i haaaate the terms alterhuman and nonhuman when they are applied to me. you don't call a sheep that everyone sees as a sheep 'nonhuman' so don't call me that).

there i said it. i don't like to talk about negative things on this page (first essay was about minors being unsafe LOL) but i still don't think we should encourage or validate insecurities related to being a 'creature' (also don't like this term but it's better). because of this, we end up focusing so much more on making and sharing reblog-bait posts that say that every identity MUST be explicitly validated otherwise we are inherently exclusionary. why don't we focus on uplifting the personal stories and anecdotes shared by members of our community? is this not more validating in and of itself? i want to sit in a field under a clear night sky and share stories between spiritual, pyschological and physically-identifying therians, otherkins, holotheres, clinical lycanthropes, alterhumans and nonhumans. i want to hear what the robotkin has to say. i want to listen to papyrus himself share his struggles with being perceived as human.

on tiktok

please get better taste in social media platforms that harvest your data.
...
...no but seriously, why use tiktok? the rampant misinformation, the likeliness that a friend you're not 'out' to yet will see it and the, to be frank, obsession with pandering to ableist humans - or indeed, aligning oneself with them - is absurd. other platforms offer better, higher quality, content.

on my theriotype

once again, a topic i would like to expand on but for now, this is a teaser.
i love being a sheep. i love having big floppy ears and a long tail that hasn’t been docked. i love eating grass and drinking fresh water from the trough. i love my herd and i love lambs. i love how big strong rams and dogs protect the herd from wolves. i love smelling cows in the paddocks next to us and playing all day.
i just love being a sheep.

on arts and grass (arts and crafts)

going to be making a whole section of my blog dedicated to different crafts for those with sheep theriotypes, but hopefully this suffices for now.

here i am having finished most of my diy sheep therian gear (that i had at the time of writing)! these are all the crocheted sheep gear pieces i have at the time of writing this essay, 05.09.2024 (5th of Sep).

here is my finished yarn tail for my sheep theriotype! i took some slight creative liberties with the position of the black but i adore it. i accept free customs for these over on tumblr if you're australian or willing to pay extra for shipping :0) details here!

on my identity

and so we come to the end of this rather long winded series of reflections. how do i actually identify? i've said a lot but nothing on how i personally identify. this is because i can't put it into words.
but let me try.
i identify as a sheep, and am therian. this means that while i am able to see that i have a human body, my spirit is wholly finnsheep crossed with valais blacknose sheep in look and personality and kinship. i can see my hands and my legs and they cause me dysphoria and confusion because i am meant to have wool and hooves and walk on all fours.

i hope that explains things.