I identify as a Llama, and you should respect me: Inside the world of the 'furries' who only eat from bowls, use litter trays and walk on all fours - as health minister insists they deserve 'dignity'

Sir Keir Starmer's new health minister Ashley Dalton has raised eyebrows by backing the idea of people identifying as llamas, saying that they deserve 'dignity and respect'. To most, the idea of someone identifying as a South American pack animal may seem beyond the realms of absurd, but to a small but growing community of people who feel more aligned to furry creatures than they do humans, the news will come as cause for celebration.

A growing number of individuals around the world have rejected their human identity, claiming instead that they feel more comfortable being thought of as cats, dogs, horses. There is even one woman who indeed appears to have self-identified as llama. Online, thousands of young people calling themselves 'therians' or 'furries', gather to share tips on 'trotting', feeding, and suggestions on how to persuade their school or workplace to let them use a litter tray rather than a human toilet.

The term therian refers to people who identify as non-human animals on a deep level and engage in behaviours associated with their animal identity. They differ from furries, who see their animal persona as a character - with or without a sexual element - while therians innately feel animal characteristics. While it may seem peculiar to many, the therian community appears to be growing across all walks of life - from adults who periodically dress as pets for 'escapism', to children in schools who refuse to be identified as human.

Many choose to express their identities by adopting a cat mask or wolf mask, depending on which animal they feel an affinity with. Though dogs and cats are popular choices, some believe they are foxes, wolves, or even some creatures who are now extinct. The trend has sparked outrage, with a handful of schools across the UK - including three in Scotland - having been revealed to allowing children with 'species dysphoria' to identify as other creatures.

The social media user runs a popular TikTok account called punk.rock.llama, where she frequently posts comedy videos dressing up as fictional characters and performing mimes with her various animal puppets (pictured). Elsewhere, others have paved the way for the emerging species-friendly space. Last year, US singer Dorian Electra added litter trays to public toilets at venues they were touring in a bid for 'inclusivity'.

In a video posted to TikTok, the singer showed them crossing out a sign that read 'all gender restrooms' and replacing it with a sign that read 'species' over the word gender. Here, FEMAIL takes a look at the people who call themselves pets, munching from bowls, using litter trays and walking on all-fours to live out their 'real' identity. While it may have sounded absurd to many, one American woman on TikTok does claim to identify as a llama.

The social media user runs a popular TikTok account called punk.rock.llama, where she frequently posts comedy videos dressing up as fictional characters and performing mimes with her various animal puppets. In one video posted to the app, she filmed herself puppeteering as a llama. She captioned the video: 'I identify as a llama, a threat, and A Bit Much.'. Several in the comments commended the video, which featured a lip syncing of a TikTok sounds. One wrote: 'You're awesome!!!'.

Another resonated with her llama identity, writing: 'Hello punk rock llama I'm laidback llama. Nice to meet you and your content!'. US singer Dorian Electra added litter trays to public toilets at venues they were touring in a bid for 'inclusivity'. Elsewhere on their page, where she boasts 148,000 followers, the self-identifying llama posts videos dressing up as various fictional characters and lip syncing TikTok songs.

Human pups. In 2016, a Channel 4 documentary shared insight into the secret world of 'human pups', a pet play craze here in the UK that sees humans dressing and behaving as dogs. The strange hobby involves 'pups' getting people to take them for walks, eating from a bowl and dressing head to toe in costume. According to the documentary, 10,000 people follow the pet play craze, including Tom, a technician from Hertfordshire in his thirties.

His alter-ego is a Dalmatian dog called Spot, and describes dressing up as and behaving like a dog as a form of 'escapism'. 'You disappear and start chasing puppy toys. You go so deep into the head space, you crave it and want it. It's just magic,' he said in the documentary. Unable to cope with his peculiar hobby, Tom's fiancée Rachel called it quits on their relationship - though at the time the pair remained friends.

Tom revealed he had spent £4,000 on his canine habit over a ten-year period. In the documentary he showed off a rubber costume complete with breathing tube. In 2016, a Channel 4 documentary shared insight into the secret world of 'human pups', a pet play craze here in the UK that sees humans dressing and behaving as dogs (Tom dressed as his alter-ego, Spot, and his ex-fiancé Rachel). According to the documentary, 10,000 people follow the pet play craze, including Tom, a technician from Hertfordshire in his thirties (pictured).