Child identifies as a wolf ... WTF?

[Portakalkedi]

Just on Radio 4 now, discussing a child in secondary school who identifies as a wolf, and the school is going along with this. AIBU to think the world (or at least the UK) has gone mad? If said child is living in the woods, catching its own prey etc etc, howling and running with other wolves, which I doubt, then why the hell is anyone going along with it? They are also saying that some others identify as dogs or cats etc. And here was me thinking men 'identifying' as women was bad.

exactly

Using transsexual in place of transgender is considered transphobic - just saying.
There are children claiming to be furries/therian in Western countries- fact. Litter boxes in schools aren’t true but who knows what’s going on in homes?

Tranquilise it load it into a steel box, drive it to the Cairngorms, release it into the wild. when it regains consciousness It's natural hunting instincts will kick in. They want to rewild there anyway, It's cruel to keep a wild animal in an urban environment like a school.

I knew a boy who used to be a tram. He would chug along the road with one foot in the gutter. He ended up as a C of E priest.

I dropped my fork laughing at this one!

I mean, cats absolutely do not do this. But go on.

It's not even a new thing. A boy I knew at school around 2004 was claiming to be vampire well into the sixth form!

Sure, furries exist. That's not the point. The point of these bullshit stories is to make people scared about "wokeness" infiltrating schools and indoctrinating children.

It's a conveyor belt of radicalisation. First you get them scared/offended about kids with litter trays at school. Then it's scared/offended by trans people. Then it's scared/offended by drag queens. Then it's scared/offended by gays and lesbians. Eventually you end up at scared/offended by anyone who isn't exactly like you. It's dog-whistle politics all the way down.

There’s a kid who wears a tail at my kids’ secondary 🙄

I have no idea why it’s allowed.

A cat keeps shitting in the holes dug by my terrier. Lazy bastard doesn't bother to cover it up though -would save me filling in the holes if it did.

I know an autistic girl who pretends to be a wolf. She doesn't actually think she's a wolf, she just play acts. She tends not to in school.

At primary school, another autistic girl used to pretend to be various animals. Again, 'identifying as' is too strong, and she grew out of it.

Surely, this is only happening because of the trans issue though? If you are who you say you are, even though it is not really true ie. a man claiming tobe a woman ,then why can't a child be a cat or the boy I knew as a teen be a vampire? They're all equally impossible, right?

I agree people should not be adding on extra bollocks like litter trays, but it's the logical conclusion (in some confused people's minds) that you can be anything, and it's also the logical conclusion that you can't say "No you're not that thing" if all identities are equally as valid.

I wonder this we did in in primary school at break.

Both my DDs in Y7 and one in Y 8 wore cat ear hairbands - they didn't think they were cats - didn't wear tails just they and some of their mates in early secondary who also had them thought cat ears were cute. Now uniform rules mean such hair bands wouldn't be allowed. They are perfectly normal teens - one at Uni doing well and one doing GCSE - it's only remember as their school photos that year they had hairbands on.

I supposed these days more students and families do push things to extreme but I also wonder if there's not some urban myth building and exaggeration to make wider social point going on

This. It is not normal behaviour and needs professional psychiatric intervention. Possibly the school don't know how else to deal with it until the child gets professional help for a complex situation. Last thing any school would want is to impact negatively on a child's mental health

I work at a school where a child identifies as a cat. Many of these stories are absolutely true.

In bad weather, perhaps they could use a litter tray in the corner of the classroom

Well, exactly! My DS, who is six, often likes to pretend he is a cat, otter, dinosaur, rabbit, etc (he's not particular 🤣). If he is still doing this at 12, I will think I have failed somewhere!

Presumably the BBC fact checked thoroughly before the programme so we can safely assume that this IS happening.
So it raises the question about why any school is going along with this? Other than little children play acting as a helicopter, astronaut, pony etc, no teenager should be acting out like this in school.

Adults need to set boundaries - for all children. The impact on other children of seeing adults take seriously a child in the grip of a delusion that they're a wolf is serious. Compelling children to "respect" the child's identity? Blurring the boundaries between fact and fiction? No wonder kids mental health is wrecked if they encounter adults incapable of distinguishing between fact and reality.

They're just bringing their howl self to school. It's fine if it's not against the school aroo-les.

Adults need to set boundaries - for all children. The impact on other children of seeing adults take seriously a child in the grip of a delusion that they're a wolf is serious. Compelling children to "respect" the child's identity? Blurring the boundaries between fact and fiction? No wonder kids mental health is wrecked if they encounter adults incapable of distinguishing between fact and reality

Exactly this. When did we lose the ability to set sensible boundaries?

The messaging needs to be - you may pretend to be anything you like, be that a girl if you're a boy, a wolf if you're a person, or whatever else you believe helps your happiness and wellbeing. But you shouldn't lose sight of the fact that you are pretending and role playing, and that there is a time and a place where this is OK (in private, or with people happy to go along with it) and a time and a place where you to behave in accordance with reality. As far as school is concerned, lessons are the latter. Breaks could be the former as long as you're not being disruptive to other people. I don't think that is particularly ground breaking or difficult for adults to implement.

I sexually identify as a microwave dinner

because Im ready in 5 minutes

look nothing like my photos

and Im just satisfying enough for you to want me again when you’re desperate..

Most US states would allow you to shoot him!

It's OK someone will have referred them to CAHMS - they'll spend a couple of years on a waiting list and be fine by 2027

Have you started parenting yet or are you still trying to be your child's friend?

(you're the problem everyone else is talking about, just in case you didn't know)