Asperger Pets

 

Today I, Ethan Stranger, will be discussing… “Pets” , we know them, we love them, sometimes even hate them, but they’re ours and are part of our families. So let’s get started. A pet (obviously) is a domesticated or tamed animal kept for companionship or pleasure, but pets can also help those with various disabilities. Some people with disabilities struggle to make human friends and the feeling of loneliness can very quickly creep in and stay. Often, whenever neurodiverse try to make actual human friends, it can lead to awkwardness or to rejection - and most of the time we won't really understand why. So, allow me, Ethan Stranger, to tell you the story of my pet dog, Chewie & what really makes him more like a special brother to me than an actual pet.

So the Dog that you see in the picture above, that’s Chewie (Picture, Top Center), in his Halloween Costume, as “Simba, from The Lion King.” Now, allow me to give you the backstory as meeting Chewie was quite an adventure. It all started back in mid-2015, two months after I graduated from High School. My Mom & I left for Kathmandu to be with my Dad (due to his new job). One Day, I felt like going for a walk around the neighborhood. During the walk I passed several pet stores that had puppies outside in cages. After cooling off, I told my Mom what I had just seen and  from there (I don’t know what caught her attention), but we went back to a pet store, where the pet store owner (speaking in his thick Nepali accent) randomly handed us a Japanese Spitz puppy - it was love at first bite. At first Chewie was reluctant to leave his cage because we had separated him from his brother and his two sisters and a German Shepherd puppy. Slowly he learned to trust us and he earned the name “Chewie” because of  the bad chewing habits he quickly developed. Other possible names were “Fluffy, Snowy, Snowball, Ice or Ice Bear”. 

As my days in Kathmandu continued, I bonded with Chewie quite well. I was lonely during my time in Kathmandu so any company was more than welcome. I had just graduated from High School and everyone I knew was gone. Even though I kept in touch through Email, Messenger & Facebook, I was halfway around the world, so there was no way anyone was going to hang out with me - this was the first time that I really felt lonely, like literally alone.  I remember for the first several months, Chewie had to sleep downstairs because he didn’t know how to climb up the stairs. One night he got stuck halfway up!  He was completely housebroken, always warning us when he had to do his business outside, but he had difficulty sleeping sometimes.  When he was still a puppy, (center picture), I reenacted the whole Lion King thing with Rafaki lifting Young Simba up (which really bothered my Mom)…

As Chewie got older, he became more of a Rebel, acting like a wild animal (especially whenever we gave him a bone),he would growl and threaten to bite people, he even formed a bad habit of barking at strangers he wasn’t too familiar with. He did develop a strong bond with our Nepali Driver, for he would pet-sit Chewie and he also owned a Japanese Spitz, who was older and became Chewie's friend. When it was time to return to the States, Chewie was tagging along, but my parents and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. That is why I did the “Flying Pet Airlines” post, to encourage airlines to make travelling with pets much easier and safer for both pets and their owners.

When Chewie first set his paws on US soil, whenever my Dad and I took him for a walk, every dog he encountered attempted to charge at him, barking rudely as we went by. Even my uncle’s dogs didn’t like him!

So, during the time that I spent with Chewie in Nepal, I actually treated him more like a brother than a pet.  Like I said, despite his aggressive behavior and his whimpering for too much attention, I still love him (we’re like Charlie Brown & Snoopy) - he was able to fill a strong spot of solitude in my life and for that I’m very grateful to him.

However, as Chewie became older and I learned about my Asperger's, our relationship became somewhat rocky, as Chewie came to whimper for more attention, always circling the table, jumping for food. Often, he doesn’t even want to eat his normal food (unless you provoke him to). Nowadays I feel like Chewie’s annoying habits are getting on my nerves… but I know that he's just a dog reacting to a situation he doesn't really understand, so it would be unfair to mistreat him for this.

I still love my Chewie, with all of the ups and downs our relationship might have, as if he were my brother, much more than just a pet dog (Picture, Below).

So for those of you with Asperger’s who struggle to bond with your dog, I know it can be frustrating, but all it takes is love and understanding - this last one is particularly difficult for people like us, but we need to make an effort, understanding is key. I guess it was either destiny or fate that really brought us together. I can't imagine what I would have done without a good friend like him.

Ethan Stranger Signs Off.