Feathered Roommates: Autistic Special Interests, Neurodivergent Pets, and the AuDHD Animal Spectrum

Some people have a pet. Nikki Dinwiddie has a neurodivergent household that includes two Great Danes, a goat in perimenopause, and what she describes as feathered roommates. She is a therapist. This tracks. Nikki and I get into what it actually looks like when the whole household is neurodivergent, kids, husband, dogs, and possibly the goats. We talk about animals as an autism special interest, why parrots are feathered roommates and not pets, and where each of us falls on what I'm calling the autistic animal spectrum. Spoiler: we are not on the same side. We also get into goats with a PDA profile, elephants who understand their own mortality, orcas organizing to flip yachts, and what animals know about us that we consistently underestimate. Plus Nikki closes us out with a snake fact that I was not prepared for and neither are you. Nikki practices in Concord, New Hampshire and is licensed in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts, specializing in autism, ADHD, and the LGBTQ community. She can be found at balancementalhealth.com.  00:00 Intro: AuDHD, Animals, and the Whole Neurodivergent Household 04:36 Suspiciouition: How AuDHD Therapists Spot Each Other 07:42 Autism Special Interests, Autistic Parents, and Why We Became Therapists 12:00 Parrots Are Feathered Roommates: The Ultimate AuDHD Pet 21:25 Sensory Issues and Animals: The Neurodivergent Animal Spectrum 31:29 Neurodivergent Sensory Trauma, Animals in Captivity, and Zoo Ethics 38:33 Do Animals Understand Us? What Neurodivergent Pet Owners Know 43:46 Late Autism Diagnosis, Masking in Childhood, and Growing Up Neurodivergent 47:31 Animal-Human Connection: What Our Pets Actually Know About Us 47:32 Ethical Pet Keeping, Bioactive Vivariums, and Showering With Your Parrots 56:07 Elephant Matriarchs, Orca Pods, and Animals Who Have It Figured Out 56:07 Final Facts: Snakes Have Two Penises and Other Things You Needed to Know