#no hate or harassment to anyone that has done this ofc but i urge u to think about why u make this correlation and the real people affected

[karmaramen]

if i had a nickel for every au i saw where a nonverbal character is given a button board and the op compares them to a dog, i'd have two nickels—which isn't a lot—but weird that it happened twice.

let me remind you that button boards were made for disabled people way before abled people started using them for their pets. you can have a character using a button board without directly comparing them to an animal.

there are also a variety of other existing nonspeaking communication methods for nonverbal, selectively/situationally mute, speech impaired, or otherwise disabled people you can explore, for example:

sign language: varies by region, like asl vs bsl vs auslan, with many communities having their own separate identities and dialects like basl

communication cards: words or phrases written on note cards, often on a keyring

augmentative and alternative communication (aac) devices: this includes a variety of assistive technology from picture board speech apps to eye tracking for those with limited motor function

each person has a different preference for what best suits their needs and abilities, and without access to aids, many people are able to create their own methods because disabled people are smart! so have fun, do some research, idk man just please stop correlating an issue that real people face to lower cognitive ability!