I absolutely still also want to cuddle and owl (the bigger, the better for me though!) but from handling feathers, other owl parts, and various wild, pet, and farm birds, birds I feel are slightly less satisfying IMO to cuddle. I always think to myself it should be more like a plushy, but they are just a balloon covered in down that doesn’t seem to be as into the experience as I am. Mammals are the cuddle animals, They feel how my brain expects them to feel, and they sometimes also actually enjoy it in return.
I will always suggest experiencing things in whatever ways you can to gain better understanding, but my hands on bird time has always somewhat feel short of my initial excitement other than in a purely empirical way. Plus I don’t want salmonella because I’m absolutely going to try to check it out and smell it because I’m weird and those are still valid data points to me! 😅
Smell is absolutely important sensory input. Even though I seem to have allergies year-round, after not smoking for a couple of years, I realize how much I missed!
Smell is an easy one to take for granted, and like you said, if you smoke or get sick or something and can’t smell, it can make a lot of difference.
I think it’s just interesting. My dogs and cars all lived together but they smelled different from each other, at least the dogs from the cats. That means there’s something to observe there, and my nose was right there to analyze it…
Your comment made me think of Joy Milne. I read about her ability to smell Parkinson’s disease. She only got taken seriously after a scientist she had spoken to, learned about the research on dogs’ ability to smell cancer.
I heard about her! If we have time to be less stressed, I bet most of us would discover insane innate abilities that currently seem miraculous. Slowing down and exploring ourselves is key. Maybe that’s part of the reason we’re not allowed to slow down.
I can remember a period where there were multiple news stories about cats supposedly detecting their humans’’ cancer before doctors found it.No studies have been done on it, but it wouldn’t shock me.
Cats and dogs. Human partners and friends, too, if they speak up about sudden changes in breath or body odors, such as sweet, fruity, moldy, decomposition, etc. I would imagine it takes a rather close and trusting relationship, eg I trust you aren’t saying things to be hurtful/I trust you to receive my comments in good faith.
I definitely noticed when my first cat got kidney failure, though I didn’t know what it was at the time. Also when my girlfriend was going through some mental issues it was one of the ways I could tell. We’ve got all our senses for a reason, we should use them!
I absolutely agree. Our society and even cultural habits can pull us away from ourselves, giving us a sense of distraction, separation, going in too many directions. When we get quiet and still, coming fully back into ourselves, we start to notice things again.
I’m glad you commented today. This was a fun chat and I had been thinking about you this week since I hadn’t seen your name in the comments for a while.
I absolutely still also want to cuddle and owl (the bigger, the better for me though!) but from handling feathers, other owl parts, and various wild, pet, and farm birds, birds I feel are slightly less satisfying IMO to cuddle. I always think to myself it should be more like a plushy, but they are just a balloon covered in down that doesn’t seem to be as into the experience as I am. Mammals are the cuddle animals, They feel how my brain expects them to feel, and they sometimes also actually enjoy it in return.
I will always suggest experiencing things in whatever ways you can to gain better understanding, but my hands on bird time has always somewhat feel short of my initial excitement other than in a purely empirical way. Plus I don’t want salmonella because I’m absolutely going to try to check it out and smell it because I’m weird and those are still valid data points to me! 😅
Smell is absolutely important sensory input. Even though I seem to have allergies year-round, after not smoking for a couple of years, I realize how much I missed!
Smell is an easy one to take for granted, and like you said, if you smoke or get sick or something and can’t smell, it can make a lot of difference.
I think it’s just interesting. My dogs and cars all lived together but they smelled different from each other, at least the dogs from the cats. That means there’s something to observe there, and my nose was right there to analyze it…
Interestingly, I just watched a video about the different cancer smells. It was fascinating!
Your comment made me think of Joy Milne. I read about her ability to smell Parkinson’s disease. She only got taken seriously after a scientist she had spoken to, learned about the research on dogs’ ability to smell cancer.
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/23/820274501/her-incredible-sense-of-smell-is-helping-scientists-find-new-ways-to-diagnose-di
I heard about her! If we have time to be less stressed, I bet most of us would discover insane innate abilities that currently seem miraculous. Slowing down and exploring ourselves is key. Maybe that’s part of the reason we’re not allowed to slow down.
I can remember a period where there were multiple news stories about cats supposedly detecting their humans’’ cancer before doctors found it.No studies have been done on it, but it wouldn’t shock me.
Cats and dogs. Human partners and friends, too, if they speak up about sudden changes in breath or body odors, such as sweet, fruity, moldy, decomposition, etc. I would imagine it takes a rather close and trusting relationship, eg I trust you aren’t saying things to be hurtful/I trust you to receive my comments in good faith.
I definitely noticed when my first cat got kidney failure, though I didn’t know what it was at the time. Also when my girlfriend was going through some mental issues it was one of the ways I could tell. We’ve got all our senses for a reason, we should use them!
I absolutely agree. Our society and even cultural habits can pull us away from ourselves, giving us a sense of distraction, separation, going in too many directions. When we get quiet and still, coming fully back into ourselves, we start to notice things again.
😁
I’m glad you commented today. This was a fun chat and I had been thinking about you this week since I hadn’t seen your name in the comments for a while.