LFA - Thinks he's a dog?

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Hi,

I was going to put this in the Parents forum, but this area is way more active and there aren't many LFA issues posted in there anyways, but if a mod feels this should be moved, feel free!!

Just wondering if anyone knows anyone or has ever known any Autistic person, LFA or otherwise who, erm, thinks they're a dog? I don't mean identifies strongly with dogs, or loves dogs alot, I mean....acts like a dog, wants to be a dog.

I've been looking for information on the internet for this for A LONG time and I can't find anything. I'm just trying to figure out my brother (age 19, LFA) a little bit better. Ever since he was a child he's been very 'dog-like', he often prefers to sleep outside (which I don't always let him and the home he lives in never lets him), he likes to eat like a dog straight with his mouth from a bowl, he likes being scratched like a dog, he makes dog noises (whines and barks), and naturally, he occasionally licks me and others, and of course, he LOVES dogs.

Just want to know if anyone else has seen anyone like this before and if you know anything about it? He's been this way pretty much his whole life. It's not 100% of the time, but at least 50%.

Interesting. I remember calling myself a dog when I was 14 because I responded to tone. If someone raised their voice, I would think they were mad at me and they were yelling. People would say they weren't but they seemed mad. It's taken me awhile to finally listen to people and not ignore what they say because I was too focused on their tone of voice and the volume. I kept thinking they are mad if they yell, if they weren't mad they wouldn't yell.

You say he likes dogs, maybe he likes being one because he likes them. I don't know if he really thinks he is a dog or he likes acting like one.

I'm going to guess he really likes them, and perhaps wants to be one, rather than him actually thinking he is a dog.

My little sister will pretend to be a cat or a dog some days. She'll crawl on the floor and want to be petted. And I like to be called the name of some character I really like sometimes.

She wasn't LFA but my ex-step sister used to act like an animal at times (we could never figure out which animal, it looked like a combination). She would whine & pant like a dog, yet rub up against your leg like a cat and waddle from side to side like a penguin. I think it's because she could identify more with animals than she could with people, like on the movie "Birdy" where he says that he wishes he would die and was born again as a bird. He acted in bird ways - chearping, flapping, sleeping in an aviary etc.

The only other people I know (in real life) who are on the spectrum is myself and those attending the monthly AS social group, and none of them act like animals so I guess I'm not a very useful person to reply. Sorry.

Your brother probably understands canine behaviour far better than he understands human behaviour so finds it far easier and less confusing to be dog-like than to act like people do.

I'm really not sure what to advise to do though. Does your brother have a case worker or someone you can talk to about this and find ways to make him more comfortable with human behaviour?

Similar to Brennan's case worker advice, I would recommend a therapist, counselor, or even a group of people to play with. Does he have friends who play along with him acting like a dog? On that note, does anybody give in to treating him like a dog? If so, they should stop, and instead focus on encouraging human behavior. At 19, your brother is an old puppy! Even a normal dog would be very old and sick then.

I can sort of relate in that I disassociated myself from the rest of humanity by calling myself an alien, when I was young, before I got a really sweet therapist. This is why I recommend therapy (or any other kind of expert on human behavior). It works. I also must agree to Brennan's comment that your brother probably understands canine behavior better.

Good luck, KoS!

EDIT: KoS, your choice of forums was wise; this is for general autism discussion. Lastly, I concur with the statement:

I used to think I was a dog as a child, walking on all fours, drinking with my tongue from mud puddles, etc. I knew a spectrum-ish girl in HS (her brother has a Kanner's Dx) who saw no reason to identify with humans or learn social interraction from them. She learned all of her social skills from cats and horses, with whom she identified. I wouldn't be surprised if this sort of behavior is common amongst those on the spectrum.

That's way cool.

When I was younger I used to play 'kitty'. This is actually somewhat odd because I had a pet dog, and all my stuffed animals were dogs, and I loved dogs. But for some reason I liked pretending to be a cat better. Anyways, I would walk around on my hands and knees, go over to my dad and have him pet me, and just generally enjoy acting like a cat. FYI, my dad gave great back rubs, they felt really good.

I am not sure why I exactly enjoyed it, I guess it is just one of those pretend things that children like to do. And since your brother is lower function, it is certainly possible that he never matured past that stage. I can't say that there is any harm in it. Perhaps sleeping out in the cold could be a source of pneumonia, so you may want to avoid that (unless you get him a tent and sleeping bag maybe). Overall, just letting him play pretend isn't going to hurt him.

Is this causing any problems, or are you just asking out of curiosity?

It's been noted at times that there are autistic people whose special interest is animals and who may take that to the point of acting like animals. I was always like that with cats. I even brought my mother toy mice in my mouth, crawled around on fences defending our (cats') territory from neighboring cats, and many other things. I still find it natural to respond in cattish ways to people and situations, although I am too physically disabled to do any more crawling than I have to these days. I still purr, rub faces, meow (in many different ways), etc. My cat seems fine with it. (I'm almost 30.)

I have been accused of being a "furry lifestyler" before and wondered what that is and it's an entire community of people who feel such an intense identification or emotional or spiritual connection to animals that they live out some part of their lives acting like the animals and some get extreme costumes or body modification to look more like the animal. I guess people associate furries with something sexual (and inappropriate for this forum) but that's not what I saw. I don't really hang around with them but the fact that there are entire communities for things like this says something right there.

Anyway I know I'm not a cat but I have acted enough like one that people have wondered if I knew or not. I just always identified more with them than humans and had important relationships with them my whole life.

I am a cat.

It's how I explained my aloofness to social situations for the decade and a half before I learned what Asperger's is, and I still use my diagnosis of being a cat due to lacking a professional dx of AS.

Also my ninjalike balance, tendency to sleep in trees and under bushes or on roofs, in yards, in sand, or curled up in a pile of clothes where the sun hits the floor.


I would encourage him to engage in this behavior in situations where it is appropriate, as it is probably intensely satisfying and relaxing for him.


Incidentally, I've had over 150 cats in my life, and have personally helped deliver over 2/3rds of them, and raised them all their lives. Cried when each one died too, yet not a tear for my dad (though I hated him, but that's different) or uncles.

lol! Yes, me! For more than a year when I was a kid I wanted to be a dog, and acted like a dog, and ran around on 4 legs at school until the teachers reported it to my mom. (And at home for much longer.) I'm PDD/HFA, not LFA. My friends all still compare me to a dog sometimes. (I'm 24 now.)
I don't know if I can explain it. D: It just seems like dogs have more fun, and it's the easiest and best way to act. People are nice to dogs, and people are nice to me when I act like a dog.

edit: I did not grow up to become a furry.

As others have said, it could be pretending to be a dog and he knows that he's not a dog.

I know that I sometimes express myself in cat noises because it makes a situation go easier. For example, growling like a cat instead of raising my voice when annoyed/angered. When I do this my negative emotions are vented but feelings rarely are hurt by this

I should start to growl like a cat, as not to hurt other peoples' feelings.