hi!! ^_^ I see that you’re a wolf therian and I’m curious if u have any advice for those that are questioning if they are a wolf or a different wild canine? If u want to share, how did you discover it yourself? personally, I’ve always pretended to be a wolf as a child. I’ve always loved them. I’ve been identifying as a wolf therian for a while. but in a way it doesn’t feel completely right. I’m definitely a dog, but I wonder if I’m still another wild canid. The only other canids that could potentially fit are coyotes and maned wolves. but I keep feeling wolfy and imagining my body as such. I think it’s bc of how exposed and interested in wolves I’ve been lately. I’m unsure of how to shake it. bc I want to experiment with labeling myself as a different canid. when I think about it my traits are more similar to those two instead of wolves. I kinda don’t want to be a wolf. but I don’t have the same connection to them…. Yet. do you have any tips on figuring out which fit beyond research? how do I know what feels right? how do I know when my identity is genuine or if it just bc I want to be something?
Hello hello anon! Good question!!! This might be a tad rambly as im not the best at coming up with summaries or words. Sorry if this goes in circles or doesnt make sense! I'll try to go in a straight line as much as possible. Plus i will make spelling mistakes sorry for that in advance as well! How i found out about theriananthropy was literally i was scrolling on tiktok and found out about that it existed at all and was supportive. I knew about otherkin through my friend {who is dragon kin among other kins}, and i thought nothing of it. I had never looked inward to strongly with myself but i knew that being called human wasnt right in the slightest. Then it happened. My first shift. Well at least my first wolf shift. My first ever shift was that of a rat, but that is a story for another time. My first ever wolf shift is hard to remember due to some memory problems but i remember going straight to my friend about it, freaking out. I thought it was only a one time thing, the shifts. But they kept happening. I wasnt sure what it was and i wanted my friend to help me essentially. I am very close to him as ive know him from elementary school and we told each other EVERYTHING. He then {calmly} explained to me what i was experiencing. And we went on an internet scavenger hunt of sorts. Looking at definitions, comparing them to what i was experiencing, and coming to a hard conclusion. I remember feeling semi lost and in denial for about a week. But i remember having a wolf phantom shift. I knew it was wolf as thats how i mentally addressed myself at that time. I felt ears and a tail. I walked on my toes sometimes as that felt natural. At work. Which was very awkward. When i came to the conclusion i was a wolf, it was more of a gut feeling. I didnt want to be a wolf at the time! I wanted to be a hyena or something else i currently can not remember. But not a wolf!!! My friend told me to go with my gut. See what felt right. Look at images of that animal and compare to how i saw myself in that moment. And thats what i did. I did some research into red wolves specifically as thats what felt correct. And it hit me right across the face! I am a red wolf. It made sense, i pretended to be a werewolf for example as a child, i wore a {fake} tail to highschool as i felt like i had a tail. And i came to accept it. Thats just my wolf experience though, my other theriotypes and kin types each had a different experience but i dont think ya wanna be here all day for that lmao. My advice is to go with yer gut! While research does wonders, you know you better then prob more creatures. What /does/ feel correct? If you have shifts of any kind, what are they? How do you mentally address yerself species wise? When you look inward, what do you see staring back at you? I hope this answered yer question! I love rambling so thank you for asking this!! ^^ {I was wanting to wait till my poll had more answers but i really wanted to answer this ^^;}
