Published on 12, July, 2020
Does anyone else do this? I really hate suffering (also bullying) of any kind and this extends to saving worms drowning in puddles, snails in the middle of the path ready to be trod on, bees in the middle of the road and such like. Today I walked past a worm drowning in a puddle and had to turn back to go save it. Any kind of animal suffering means huge emotional turmoil for me, more so than any suffering of humans. I’ll think about it for the rest of the day. It also means I really struggle with adverts asking for donations and showing donkeys in awful states and whatever other animals they show. I have to turn it over as I can’t physically do anything to help them and get an awful feeling in my stomach.
Any kind of animal suffering means huge emotional turmoil for me, more so than any suffering of humans.
I relate to that kind of empathy towards animals rather than humans. I sometimes wonder if autists relate to animals so much because we are both mistreated and misunderstood by much of humanity.
One of the greatest examples of autistic hyper empathy towards animals is the work of Temple Grandin. She was able to recognise how farmed animals were suffering and achieve changes to make their treatment more humane.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/oct/15/autistic-scholar-temple-grandin-the-education-system-is-screening-out-visual-thinkers
Autonomistic said: I sometimes wonder if autists relate to animals so much because we are both mistreated and misunderstood by much of humanity.
It could be that but I also think it's the lack of a communal language.
We can communicate with them in other ways and I think that suits us as does the fact that they don't make verbal demands of us.
We can pick up on their needs.
Autonomistic said:he was able to recognise how farmed animals were suffering and achieve changes to make their treatment more humane.
A superb organisation in this country that works to help farmed animals is Compassion in World Farming:
https://www.ciwf.org.uk/
It's one of the organisations I held the leaflets for when I used to collect for animal charities, but could never read.