(2026-09-05 20:01)FogLikesFeathers14 Wrote:  Hello!

I think that because a wolf is just one of the most commonly known animals also many easily destinct emotional behaviors (Growling, Howling, Snarling, etc.) it comes out more as an animal most people feel connection to. I feel wolves are closely linked to the environment around you. They are also ancestors of our 'man's best friend' dogs, which, people have as pets. Growing up with a dog may influence canine behaviors as well.

I think it's also interesting to consider the other angle of implication that you could draw from this! Which is to say, there are probably folks out there who would learn of their own therianthropy if they only had knowledge of a more niche species!

(2026-09-05 20:01)FogLikesFeathers14 Wrote:  Hello!

SO, as described in the title, I want to describe a theory that I believe on why the theriotype wolf comes up so often as a theriotype in early therianthropy.

To most therians, you are between the few:
Canine
Feline
Or just land mammals

I think that because a wolf is just one of the most commonly known animals also many easily destinct emotional behaviors (Growling, Howling, Snarling, etc.) it comes out more as an animal most people feel connection to. I feel wolves are closely linked to the environment around you. They are also ancestors of our 'man's best friend' dogs, which, people have as pets. Growing up with a dog may influence canine behaviors as well.

Which leads me to the next part of my theory the Animal Knowladge Theory. This theory I know will not apply to all therians but I feel most of the common. This theory is simply, in easy terms: If you know lots about the animal and maybe even possibly enjoy that animal that it may influence your therianthropy.

I believe this because there may be an animal that you grow up loving and later on you notice, "wow, I feel like I have picked up these behaviors and feel very close to this animal, I have felt shifts and animalistic behaviors because of this" thus leading to therianthropy or even just alterhumanity. This could apply to therin, otherkin, and fiction kin as well as the many other terms.

Any thoughts?

From a psychological perspective, I definitely think that because cats and dogs are very widespread in our culture, it makes sense that many therian experiences manifest as canine or feline. As a system we do think our red fox alters were influenced by having cats as a kid, and our tawny owl alter was influenced by having chickens - we felt safe with our pets and not with humans. Having wild animals rather than domestic ones as alters also makes sense for us (i.e. fox rather than cats, owl rather than chicken) based our our emotional state and strong desire for freedom and to be able to escape our home environment.

But it's still interesting how therianthropy can manifest at such a young age, before we could presumably know loads about certain animals - our fox alters emerged at ages 4-6. Or did we know more than we think about foxes at the time somehow, and have forgotten because we were so young? Also you're right that this theory doesn't explain less common theriotypes, like our sea otter alter - not sure we really knew what a sea otter was before he split off at age 7-8ish, but our brain must have done somehow. Or is it a combination of starting to develop feelings/experiences that are animalistic, and the brain subconsciously identifying similarities with animals you see/hear about, and over time developing further in line with that specific species?

@Ocypus_Olensss yeah though honestly, as I stopped considering myself a fake therian [this was annoying as hell because I know I’m a therian, but I have some problems with trusting myself], I will keep doing research about my theriotypes. Its weird, i do relate to foxes, but also dogs, mostly german shepherds, but I hate the idea of being on a leash or the dog loyality, something about the idea of owning someone just disgusts me[i have no ecperience with that so idk why]. I also love backing but in the dog way. That probably means nothing yeahh
Anyways, the fox is not all the truth and I need to see if I havent mistaken this identity with other animal I didn’t know about.
Thanks for the Reynard idea ^^
-Aramantis

There are probably no two therians with the exact same experiences, even if they share the same theriotype, and there's no single true answer to a lot of the "why" and "how" questions.

Of course, I do have my own ideas on the abundance of wolves/canines. Likely nothing that hasn't been brought up before.
For one, like you already said, wolves are incredibly widespread and most human cultures are familiar with them.
It's an iconic and very familiar animal, considering humans and wolves (dogs) have lived alongside each other for tens of thousands of years.
Both are surprisingly similar, especially in social structure, a lot of behaviour and, I believe, emotionally as well. They're not difficult to relate to.
The wolf is in many ways considered an embodiment and the quintessential symbol of the wild, especially in Western cultures.
When thinking of a generic, universal "man-beast", most people will also likely picture a werewolf.
I think it makes a lot of sense that so many young therians and people exploring their identity gravitate towards the wolf at first, whether that's the real animal or a romanticised archetype.

Can't personally relate to the "animal knowledge" (imprinting?) thing, though.
This may be the case for some, but I haven't considered wolf as a theriotype until after I learned about therianthropy, and I've felt nonhuman since way before that.
I was completely obsessed with dinosaurs and dragons all throughout my childhood (I still am) and grew up with cats, not dogs.
Werewolves and wolves came later and it only really started to "click" for me when I learned more about them through documentaries, movies and books.

I have no clue why I'm a wolf. I used to wish I wasn't, mostly because it's the single most common theriotype, but every time I question and analyse it, I come back to the same conclusion. These days, I don't care and am quite okay with being me.

I am quite new to the therian sphere of communities online, and from what I read I personally think this is a question better left unanswered, in a way (that's funny from me since I am quite inquisitive)

It makes sense to me why people may relate to wolves both spiritually and psychologically, my theory is that they may relate to another social meat-eating animal that may not even be canine, eg. otters, hyenas, vultures or even wasps! I also think that there are more mammalian therians because mammalians are closer to us and easier to relate, and also normally people know more mammalian species than other animals!

I guess my therian experience was an odd one, although I love studying about species who stand in a odd point taxonomically, specially endemic species, I have never shown much interest to maned wolves, nor I felt any connection to canines. I actually went through a patch in my life where i developed a phobia of dogs, and I also am still not fully comfortable around them, it's like, I find them cute and all but I don't like their smell nor I'd live with one. With a mix of constant visions, behaviours of mine and phantom shifts, and some spiritual things (and some later deeper research) I realised I am a maned wolf, but I would never have guessed if I didn't have the knowledge I have on different animal species and behaviours, I would have just assumed I was a wolf, fox or coyote of sorts.

To close this off, even if a person's actual theriotype may be something like a bony eared ass fish or a Falklands islands fox, if they relate to wolves and "wolf activities" makes them feel better, I guess sometimes it's better not throw them again to a whole questioning process, unless they are willing to! Ontop of it I think since there are many wolf therians, I guess it makes it easier for them to form packs, eg. someone is a sea otter, but they can find companionship easily because they identify as a wolf, and they can feel included among other wolves, since they never found another sea otter therian, idk if this makes sense hsgdjhgshg

Buuuut I do have a project coming up to aid in this, I'll be making a behavioural bestiary of sorts so people may find they species more easily, even if its a less known one! Its among my threads if you are curious
-
Also @Aramantis if red fox is truly how you feel, dont let others opinions change you, remember what you feel was not a choice, it was involuntary and its simply who you are. As my mother says "Not even Jesus satisfied everybody, he was made perfect and yet he got crucified for who he was" not meaning this in a religios way but, you cant appease to everyone, someone will always have something to complain about you and thats okay! You owe them nothing, the only person in place to judge you and make choices for you is yourself! But if you do feel bad saying "red fox" you may try to sound a little fancier and say Reynard

The imprinting theory (which this seems somewhat based on) never quite resonated with me.

I grew up with cats. Imprinting happened there for sure, I'm cat-hearted and I retain some feline behaviors to this day even though many of them died down over the years. All of them feel learned, and they are.

I never liked canines much. Funny coincidence, I already mentioned this today in another post... but either way, my dislike of them could have been called hatred. When your heart of hearts loves a cat colony with all it's got, dogs can cause much heartache and they did. I despised them. The only reason I don't anymore is because I had to accept myself, otherwise it would persist.

My canine behaviors feel very much innate and they were happening long before I hung around cats much. To this day they are still as they always were, nothing changed.

I read White Fang and Call of the Wild a couple of times as a kid and I loved them, but they didn't cause my therianthropy. I enjoyed them so much because I already related.

I think the only thing these books affected when it comes to my theriotype is my subspecies, not my species. When all subspecies of your theriotype are almost indistinguishable it's hard to tell with certainty which one you belong to (if any), so it is oddly suspicious both myself and the wolves from these books are Yukon wolves. Had I not read them, I'd probably either be "just wolf" or maybe even a different subspecies.

That is to say, I think the imprinting shaped something that was already there.

As for knowledge... well, I was a total cat nerd growing up. I could name like 50 breeds in one breath and I just had to know everything about them.

If anything, I'm supposed to be a cat right now.

@FogLikesFeathers14 Hmm, this is an interesting thought. I honestly don't have many fleshed out theories of my own, but I can share something interesting that I've experienced myself that's a major reason I'm so confused about this topic: when I was younger, I watched many, many documentaries about different animals of all different types. However, one time when I was 8, I saw a wolf documentary for the first time. In the very first minute or two of the episode, I immediately had a strong, deep sensation of "this is me." The more I learned about wolves, the more I felt strongly that I was one. So I don't know how exactly it came about for me since I hadn't previously been exposed to wolves and their behaviors, but I'm also just one of very many wolf therians. However I have heard a few other testimonies similar to my own, so I guess that's something to consider.

Hmm, @FogLikesFeathers14, I think you can be right, and your theory may due to that also apply to my theriotype [red fox].
About wolf therians, I also think that humans as well as wolves usually have the need to belong to some community, just like wolves in a pack.
That isn’t any theory, just an observation I think quite obvious, but it does not mean somebody isn’t a wolf therian if they feel a need to be in a pack.
I have been considering jackal as maybe my theriotype instead of wolf, but honestly I’d need more focus and research to tell that.
It may be also because I feel like my theriotype is „too popular” while that’s something I cannot change, and I don’t want to be considered fake because of it[some people really can consider that bruh]
I still strongly believe my theriotype is a fox [not only].
-Aramantis