Out Of Curiosity...

i would give up everything if i could be a raccoon

living on the outskirts of society, in a hollowed out tree with a few others

scavenging for food and finding wild berries on the ground

simply making noises to communicate such as chattering, purring, hissing, barking

occasionally finding a nice human friend and being a nuisance to humans who are jerks

You got any tips for a raccoon therian feeling really dysphoric about their reincarnation choice?

Raccoon tips and tricks

hope these can help!! species dysphoria is the worst :(

make/commission a raccoon therian mask!

raccoon tail!! clip on ones are actually pretty cheap sometimes, and come in lots of colours!

little black “magic mitt” type gloves! nice and thin to keep your grabby raccoon hands agile! you can glue black nails to them to make little claws!

play with things like riddles and puzzles!

get lots of fidgets to keep your little raccoon hands busy!

wash food before you eat it!

wear lots of greys and black!

stripy clothes!!

make yourself a little den out of blankets and pillows to huddle up in!

practice climbing rocks and trees (safely!!)

try staying up a bit later to appreciate the night like your nocturnal self!

get a soft, grey, fuzzy sweater or blanket to wrap around yourself!

learn about raccoon vocals, as raccoons can make over 50 unique sounds! try practicing some!

good luck feeling less dysphoric friend, hope some of these can make you feel more like yourself!

-mono

Requests open!!!

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guys I found the fictionkin shirt of all time

How I feel right now

Sometimes therian spaces just feel like "therians are valid! but-", then they give you an entire paragraph about why you aren't one of the "alright therians"

How I look at them therian tiktoks saying "therians are people who identify as animals but we don't ACTUALLY think we're animals we know we're humans haha" :

Like get yo ass outta here

(PSA: I'm not hating on these creators it's just annoying folks trying to change people's experiences and the definition of therian or otherkin to conform to non-therians/otherkins, to be 'digestible' and 'normal')

oh, you're sad? *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you* *wraps my wings around you*

Hi bird therians! I'd like to present the following list of definitions of avian terminology; instincts and anatomy. Specifically, terms for things that many birdkin may already be aware of due to their own shifts, but not know the word for or even that it's a real and normal thing. Why do I make that assumption? Because my own mind was blown every time I discovered one of these words, the way things I would do or phantom parts I would feel suddenly made sense. So I hope to induce the same reaction in at least someone.

Behaviors

Mantling is mostly a bird of prey thing, the action of leaning over a kill and shielding the spoils with your wings so as to defend it from thieves. I can do no better of a description than a photo, included at the bottom of this post and for raptors it will probably spark recognition.

Rousing is the word for that "slowly fluff up the feathers and then shake the whole body" thing that birds do. Yes, it does have a name! Birds do it when relaxed or just chilly. It is not a threat display. I experience this as like an near-involuntary action -- like scratching an itch or sneezing -- and because I'm not actually raising physical feathers it feels kind of like shivering. But it sort of feels frustrating that I can't seem to achieve it. Like when a sneeze goes away.

Feather-plucking (pterotillomania) is a maladaptive habit birds in captivity develop when they are stressed. You see it most often with parrots, because they're kept as pets more than other birds and are also extremely intelligent so more easily understimulated. Sometimes this does feel like being a bird in captivity and a lot of you might experience this instinct without knowing what it is your brain's asking to do because you have no feathers. Calling it pterotillomania is helpful to me because I have actual dermotillomania and if my body had feathers I'd be plucking them.

Anatomy

Nictitating membrane. Starting with this because you may already know it by now. The third eyelid of birds, translucent, drawn sideways across the eye so that you can keep it moist while still being able to see. Also, as you may know, relevant to cat therians!

Crop. Part of the digestive tract of a bird in the throat where food is temporarily stored before being digested. If you had these shifts it would feel like, according to Wikipedia, basically an enlarged portion of the esophagus.

Keel. An extension of the sternum, the structure to which flight muscles are attached. If you had these shifts it would feel like a thin bone going beneath (or I guess on a humanoid body plan, in front of) your ribcage.

Cloaca. In the interest of not having to mark this post mature, I will not define or describe this one. I encourage you to look it up. Mammals are already working to reduce the stigma surrounding these types of shifts and instincts; we can do the same. There is no shame in it. You're a bird and birds have these. Accept it.

Birds do have sensation in our beaks. There are nerve endings in the beak. Not as much as, say, human skin, but yes, birds can feel touch on their beaks. If you can feel your beak, great! That is anatomically correct, and it certainly does not make you fake!

And now for your enjoyment, a mantling eagle:

made more then we expected haha..

Somewhere around 4-5th grade, there was a documentary around this pack of wolfs and vampires. Let me tell you I watched that thing religiously

I haven't been able to find it again since though

Do you ever look at a fellow alterhuman and wonder who inspired their alterhuman awakening?

I do. I like knowing what motivated others.

Myself, I realized our alterhumanity 10 years ago and the ones that most inspired me were fromfiction, liongoatsnake, & who-is-page. They'd all made excellent essays that would stick in my head to this day.

How about you? What/who helped you explore your alterhumanity?