Blog 5

It is hard for me to pinpoint how the past semester volunteering at the PSPCA influenced the work we did in class, because volunteering and fostering at animal rescues has been a significant part of my lifestyle since childhood.  I do not think it altered my perceptions of non-human animals (at least not in any remarkable ways), however I do think that the course material we covered influenced this specific round of volunteering for me.

            While I have always thought about the moral status of animals, the ways they are viewed in society, and so on, I have more or less volunteered at animal shelters and rescues with one central focus: to brighten that day for another animal.  After studying various takes and philosophies on companion animals, I began to see a greater picture with my volunteering.  I’ve thought about the ethical standpoint of pets from time to time throughout my life, but I don’t think I’ve ever evaluated the morality behind the breeding and keeping of pets to the degree I have been this past semester. The in-depth pieces we read on companion animals like Bernard E. Rollin and Michael D. H. Rollin’s “Dogmatcisms and Catechisms: Ethics and Companion Animals” really influenced the way I tried to understand companion animals at the PSPCA.  It’s always disturbed me how little people know about other animals to begin with, and hearing the Rollins’ comparison about how people need licenses and classes to buy a car or gun but nothing to adopt an animal really made me view the animals at the PSPCA in a different light.  I began to feel empathy for these animals in a completely different way than before… Would they get adopted by someone who doesn’t know or even care about them? Would they be abused? Or maybe there’s a chance they’ll find an amazing home.

            Our studies this semester have expanded my mindset on companion animals on so many levels. Never before have I pondered over how to give an non-human animal voice.  And now I find myself trying to speak and connect with animals on a much deeper level… to let them speak freely without putting words into their mouths… to look at them as individuals and learn to understand their personal wants, needs and desires.  I’ve always thought that the greatest form of expression was verbally, but perhaps that is not the case.  Mr. Bones couldn’t talk, but we could understand his feelings, but could there be a way to understand an animal on a deeper level without speaking for them? These thoughts are evidently influencing my daily life and with it the animals I encounter at home, at the PSPCA, while dog-walking, and so much more… even humans, who cannot extensively communicate, like my sister.

            This class has ultimately influenced the way I think about all of our relations, within and without communities and interspecies, and hence my actions are slowly changing as well. The PSPCA gave me a chance to explore some of these new thoughts by turning my experiences there into more than just visits with animals to brighten their days.  They influenced me to just be there with them and to listen and connect to them.

Blog 5

       Well before enrolling for this class, I had scoped out the PSPCA on Erie Ave. I had never visited it, however I wanted to volunteer there so bad, but I never had the means of getting there or the time to do it. That is why I view this class as a blessing because it enabled me and almost gave me an excuse to go volunteer, as horrible as that sounds.  Volunteering at the SPCA not only helped me in the sense that I got to play with and walk dogs all day, which was a dream come true being so far away from my own dogs, and dogs in general. I love dogs so much.
       It also gave me such a great perspective of just how often dogs come in and out of shelters. I have volunteered at a shelter in Arizona, the Marricopa County SPCA, so it was not my first experience in a shelter environment. However down in Arizona, the general shelter dog is a lab, a retriever mix, a lot of Chihuahuas and smaller dogs, and the occasional pit bull mix. This was something I truly appreciate having had experienced; becoming accustomed to and working with pit bull mixes. I learned from this class much more about pit bulls than I ever would have outside of this class. And the best part is that it is all factual evidence and advice, which I have been able to reciprocate to other people, including my mother. She is very uneasy around them, having grown up in a community in rural Ohio where there have been well known  incidences with pit bulls, all tragedies. However my experiences and what I have learned has gradually altered her view towards them and I have even convinced her to let me foster one when I move back home this summer!
       We learned a lot about dogs in general in this class; their behaviors, their perception, their language both verbal and non verbal, and most importantly, we learned how to better understand them. I would have never known that the best way to tell what a dog is thinking or feeling is through watching its mouth. Thanks to Nicole Larocc and Uli for demonstrating this so well! A lesson I will definitely keep with me and that has also come very in handy at the shelter. One of my 'favorites' that has unfortunately been at the shelter for too long in my opinion, her name is Sage she is an all white pit mix and just amazingly beautiful and overly friendly. When i approach her cage even before showing the leash, her tail wags ferociously but the thing that I always notice which I have pointed out to others is what she does with her mouth. She almost smiles which I have learned from Nicole that even though it looks like she is showing her teeth, it is a nervous and excited thing that dogs do sometimes and it comes from stress.
       The SPCA also influenced my reading as well, in a more imaginative sense. When it came to Timbuktu for example, when imagining Mr. Bones, and how he was described and depicted, I had my own vision of him as not one but a few dogs from the SPCA. His traits of obedience, patience, friendliess, and overall understanding of what was going on, really linked him in my mind to a dog at the shelter, Lucy one of my previous 'favorites' before she got adopted! YAY for Lucy! I am an extremely visual as well as tactile learner. So when I can link one thing to another from visual experience, that is how I connect and learn the best. And this would not have been possible having not volunteered at the SPCA.

Gaining Perspective

I think that the most important thing that the PSPCA gave me was an additional perspective to compare to my previous experiences. In terms of reading, it helps to be able to see all sides of an argument, rather than blindly accepting what you read. Many arguments in the animal world side very heavily in one direction, so having experiences with people who are on both sides of an issue allows me to see and know how I feel in a much clearer sense.

Working with animals is very much a give and take between the individual animal and your own personality. I think that being at the PSPCA made me more aware of the way in which people interact with animals on all ends of the spectrum. In previous work with training and owning animals, it always seemed that a dog/cat could become incredibly attached to one person. After being around so many different personalities of humans and animals at the PSPCA, it made me think about how the uniqueness of two individuals could fit incredibly well together, even when others cannot seem to reach an animal.

Volunteering at the PSPCA was not only a great place to interact with the animals, but it gave me a great deal of insight into how people choose their pets. In class it was mentioned that when potential adopters come in its almost like grocery shopping instead of getting to know an animal. I think that this was an interesting observation that could be viewed a few different ways. On one hand, how do people really choose their pets? In the current American lifestyle, we don’t allot time from our day to spend every day at a shelter for a week looking for the right dog. If you were buying a dog from a breeder, it is often based on looks or one meeting of the dog. If you rescue a stray from off of the street, do you really know their personality or how they will behave in your home? So I think that it is hard to see potential adopters in that sort of light. That being said, not every person should own a pet and I think the decision itself is often impulsive. Thinking about these sorts of social issues is definitely something that has affected me after my time at the PSPCA.

Overall, I think that more people should participate in their community. When I first came to Temple, I began volunteering for Tree House Books, a non-profit bookstore that also supports an after school program for children in the area. Being immersed in the area and families around Temple really helped me to understand a culture that I hadn’t been exposed to before. The PSPCA was a similar experience, where I had never been in that type of culture. I truly enjoyed looking at this aspect of societal/animal culture in an urban setting. 

Blog 5

What initially drew me to this course was the opportunity and neccesity of volunteering at the PSPCA. I had been wanting to volunteering with animals in shelters for a long time, but this course provided the needed push to actually get me doing it. Almost every experience volunteering with the dogs has taught me something, be it about myself, animals, or education. The experiences that I have had while volunteering have also shaped and reinforced my viewpoints on animal literature as well as the points made by some of the authors of the essays, poems, and stories that we read. It is one thing to read about animal welfare, but it affects you at a whole different level once you actually deal with animals who have suffered from the lack of attention and reform of animal welfare and rights. Every time I leave the PSPCA after volunteering, I get a refreshing boost of hope and dedication becasue I have been reminded why things need to change and why I care. Having personal experiences from volunteering also helps make my opinions more solid as well as giving me a basis for comparing the opinions of writers on the subject. This allows me to formulate and defend my own opinions based on my true feelings rather than how good someone else defends and pushes their opinions of animals.

When dealing with such a controversial and personal topic such as is animal welfare and rights, you are bound to end up feeling a variety of conflicting emotions. I found this both in my volunteering and while reading the literature assignments for the class. While reading and volunteering my emotions and responses have varied from sadness to anger to hatred to disappointment and more. When someone cares so strongly about a topic, it is hard to try to academically and equally consider all viewpoints not matter how opposite they may be from your own. This course material, however, demands the student to consider all sides and how they have historically have effects and impacted animal welfare and rights which have molded animal welfare as it currently stands. It is necessary to understand the history of animal welfare and how it has gotten to what iris today in order to create ideas for reform that will be more likely to be successful. The course literature as well as experiences at the PSPCA have helped me to gather a more well rounded understanding of animal welfare as well as what some reasons are for why people stand on the other side of animal welfare than I do. The best way to change someone's mind is by understanding their defenses and manipulating them to have opposite effects. All of these resources, experiences, and gained knowledge will no doubt help aid animal welfare and rights reform to make the world safer and better for animals and humans.

Connecting the PSPCA with the classroom

I think that volunteering at the PSPCA had a particularly strong impact on how I read Timbuktu. Because Timbuktu is a novel about a companion animal, it was easy to relate what I saw in the shelter to what I saw in the pages of Auster's book. Timbuktu offers a lot of great insight about dogs in general, such as the way they perceive sight and smell. By questioning how Mr. Bones experienced the world -- how smelling the neighborhood was akin to reading the newspaper -- I was able to then apply that same line of questioning to the dogs and cats at the PSPCA.

Reading, in turn, influenced how I felt about volunteering. Volunteering made me feel good because I felt like what I was doing mattered, like I was truly making a difference. Reading philosophically-based works about animal welfare, and reading poetry that looked at animals in a more artistic light, reinforced that good feeling. Not only was I helping, but I was living a life that fell in line with my values, and I was experiencing first-hand what I was learning in the classroom. I think the combination of community service and classroom learning struck a very nice cord, and above all, it will make future volunteering a lot less daunting and unfamiliar.

-Shannon P. Kelly

Blog 5

Volunteering at the PSCPA reinforced my learning in class because whenever I learned about new concepts or ideas in class it stuck with me during my time with the dogs and cats. It also changed my understanding of them and influenced how I treated them. I tried talking to the dogs like Willy talks to Mr. Bones for instance.. whether that has any effect at all is obviously unknown but there's no harm :) 

Volunteering there also helped learn more about the shelter animals situation and I could say influenced the way I received the information I learned in class. I know that in my journals and essays volunteering at the PSCPA definitely had an influence. It gave me a lot of opportunities to reflect on both sides of the argument. A lot of the readings from AE affected the way I saw different situations and arguments like the ones about whether they were they could be a moral agent or the different shades of anthropomorphism. 

I think that I have to admit though, that after volunteering at the PSCPA I can't help feel a bit sad and hopeless. And ashamed. Because those homeless caged animals are a product of our society and proof of how we've failed to create a sustainable relationship with the creatures that rely on us. 

Bridging the Gap

From Heather Dyer:

Volunteering at the PSPCA informed my reading by giving context to relate to. Instead of reading abstract works such as Timbuktu, I was able to place myself within the story and think critically about real life results and consequences of certain actions. When I was working with the dogs at the PSPCA, I thought about Timbuktu and pondered the true mental capabilities of the dog. Because of Paul Auster's notion that dogs are capable of much more than humans give them credit for, I was constantly wondering while I walked the dogs how much they understood and what they were thinking about. As I would talk to the dogs, I felt they could not understand the actual words I was saying, but they could hear in the tone and inflection in my voice what I meant. I think it is these nuances in the human language that bridge the gap between the human language and dog language. 

 

In my writing, I was able to connect my experiences with the dogs at the PSPCA with the articles in the Animal Ethics Reader as well as Paul Auster's novel. Tom Regan writes in his article that it is not an act of kindness to treat animals with respect equal to that of humans, it is an act of justice. I found at the PSPCA this was especially true and practiced by all employees and volunteers. Everyone at the PSPCA had similar ethical mindsets toward animals and followed Willy's (Timbuktu) example, never questioning that the dogs had comparable abilities as humans, and in response, everyone treated the PSPCA dogs as equals. 

 

I am glad our class was able to have hands-on experience with the PSPCA dogs because it put everything we read, wrote, and discussed into context. Even if you have a dog of your own, it is not the same as visiting the PSPCA. I personally do not think about the capabilities of my own dog as much because we naturally treat her as one of the family and because we are so used to having her around, we do not think twice about it. However, when you are at the PSPCA and experience dogs who have had difficult lives, the dogs become more human. They seem to experience and react to the same struggles as every human goes through, and you can see this when you visit and interact with them. Although we cannot directly communicate with them, with a little interpretation, we can see how similar dogs are to us emotionally, and that they are just like us. 

Equality of Representation

From Heather Dyer:

Traditional representations of animals in stories has been to teach children various life lessons regarding positive character traits and morally upstanding actions, however using animals to accomplish this can seem unethical to some because the animals are misrepresented as being capable of such actions. This inaccurate illustration causes the animals to be held to unrealistic expectations, and consequently, the misrepresentation of animals has become detrimental to the relationship between humans and animals. Perhaps a more friendly representation of animals would be to use their actual actions in the wild as life lessons rather than placing another human meaning on top of their already existing qualities. This solution would highlight the animals’ actual traits rather than giving them human traits we can more easily relate to. Rather than being “sly” like a fox, humans could think about being perseverant and hard-working like the ant who continues the same action repeatedly throughout his life, working within a larger group to accomplish a task.

Paul Auster’s Timbuktu represents animals in a more positive light compared to traditional illustrations. Auster acknowledges the mental capabilities of Mr. Bones, and creates a relationship between human and animal where there is equality from both individuals. Timbuktu serves as a model of human animal relations by allowing the human a glimpse, even if partially fictional, into a dog’s mind. By understanding and accepting the capabilities of the dog, humans are much more likely to treat them with the same attitude they would treat a fellow human being. 

 

Mistreatment of animals seems to be due largely to the fact that animals are believed to be at a lower class or social strata than humans and therefore are capable of enduring the treatment. The fact is, animals seem less capable of handling mistreatment or misrepresentation because not only can they not understand why they are be treated in a certain way, they also cannot stand up or represent themselves as easily as humans. It is important for every human to come to the kind of understanding of animals that Timbuktu offers because once there is an understanding of animals, humans will feel more obligated to act as moral agents, and the animals’ treatment will improve. 

From Amanda Nardone

Terri's presentation made me feel some mixed emotions.  Any time someone set out on a mission for justice, is possible that this mission can cause one to lose sight of its context. I feel that taking cats to shelters is not necessarily the right answer.  We are not the cat, we are the humans. We may perviece their reproduction as a danger to themselves, but the same could be said of our species. Is it right for some outside force to decide to spay and neuter us? Cats make me feel these mixed emotions because they seem to be far more successful in the city than a dog or other domesticated animal. Yes, they have to battle their way to survival, but this is the same for any other animal. The difference between a wild and a domestic cat is temperament. 

Timbuktu created this viewpoint in me. I had previously believed that as humans, we have the responsibility to take the animal to the shelter and have someone adopt it. In Timbuktu, Mr. Bones has the ability to chose his companion because he is a stray and can come and go as he chooses. He is concerned over the human's capacity for kindness and fears those who might want to harm him. I think this model is more successful because it is more true to how domesticated animals evolved in the first place. The wild human and the wild animal chose each other instead of the human picking the animal from a cage.

Mr. Bones and Human-Animal Relations

Timbuktu allows the reader to gain insight into the mind of a dog, Mr. Bones. It not only addresses issues that dogs face, but also issues that humans have to deal with, such as homelessness or marital problems. By making Mr. Bones into such a likable and relatable character, I think that people can find more empathy with animals. Mr. Bones could be helpful for human animal relations when thinking about some of the obstacles that he has to face. The first that comes to mind is his unhappiness with the kennel and feeling ill but not being able to communicate. The idea of communication is key in his relationship with Willy as well as with his later caregivers. Human-animal relations with dogs are incredibly intertwined due to the nature of their domestication. Mr. Bones helps to further the cause for proper care and treatment of animals by provided necessary empathy. 

A Compassionate Influence

While many stories "use" animals to portray humans or some sort of concept, I think that in many cases the "use" of animals in storytelling can be beneficial or influential for animals themselves and our relations with them.  Timbuktu is a prime example of the impact that deeply portraying the life and mind of an animal can bring to light.  Auster depicts Mr. Bones as more than a companion pet or object; rather, he shows him as an insightful, thoughtful, compassionate, deeply sentimental and perceptive being, all of which allow for the readers to easily connect with him on a deeper level.  I believe that this form of representation totally promotes enhanced relationships with animals and also enhanced treatment and understanding.  Even though certain attributes of Mr. Bones' character are not exactly realistic at times (as far as we know), the amplified persona of his character enables human readers to more vividly connect with him than they (arguably) normally would. If people more vividly understood what it feels like to be surrendered to a shelter or to be raised for slaughter, would they continue to do so? Perhaps literature can play a vital role in getting people to make emotional and personal connections with non-human animals, since storytelling, reading, composing and such are all prominent aspects of our society.

Sometime ago at ACCT (the Animal Care and Control Team of Philadelphia) I heard someone say "it's just a dog" in regards to his friend's worry about the dog's future (who they were surrendering for a behavior issue).  Perhaps if they had known what it felt like, why he or she was behaving the way he/she was, etc., they wouldn't have made the decision to surrender as they did.  Non-human animals, like humans, have their own wishes, desires, interests and needs, and I truly believe that literature may be one (of the many) ways to get people to think about animals in another, more equal and righteous light, as Timbuktu does. 

Learning from Animals

Throughout history, animals have served as moral compasses in literature. From folk tales to fables, animal characters in stories provide a backdrop for everyday human life. They teach lesson on good versus evil and right versus wrong. In many of these stories, the main animal characters are completely anthropomorphized. They have human characteristics that make it easy for human readers to connect and associate with the animals actions and the lesson that they teach. However, instead of using these stories as a value to us humans, we should use them to better understand the nature of animals and the moral implications behind their treatment. In Paul Auster's novel Timbuktu, Mr. Bones' actions and the insight provided into the mind of the dog can be instrumental in enlightening people about how human-animal relations are much more than just observation. The way that Mr. Bones is given human qualities helps the reader connect with the dog and learn that dogs may have more capabilities than previously thought. Instead of learning how we can better improve ourselves from the lessons that animals teach in these kinds of stories, it would be more important to think about how we can better improve our relationships with animals, making animal welfare a more positive reality.

Reality Rules vs. Artistic Freedom

Although I am eager to discuss the implications of animal representations in literature, I am concerned that the discussion will cross reasonable limitations. I think it needs to be stated that fiction is fictional, and that in the art of fiction, an author should have freedom to manipulate the world as we know it for the sake of his/her art. We would not have Animal Farm, or even The Lion King if it weren't for this capacity we, as humans, have to use animals as metaphors for ourselves. Regardless of whether these representations are accurate or not, anthropocentric or not, absolutely great pieces of literature have come from this exact writing method.

It should also be noted that animals are not the only ones misrepresented in the telling of stories. In fiction, there are writers of realism, who portray things as they are, but this is just one type of story-telling, and it need not be the norm. Our heroes come from writers who can think bigger, and more creatively, again, not just for animals, but humans as well. A hobbit didn't actually journey to Mordor on foot to save Middle Earth, but there is truth in the idea that a small person can make a large difference. My point is, every work of fiction has a grain of truth in it, and I don't think this aspect of writing will ever be distinguished, nor should it.

Paul Auster has provided us with a different means of portraying an animal in his novel, Timbuktu. He writes from the perspective of a dog, and in doing so, he is able to construct a story that readers can relate to and learn from. This opens the door for animal activism, if it reaches the right audience. I applaud this effect, but I repeat that I do not feel it is the only way of representing an animal in fiction.

I will use the example of Chekhov's "Misery." In this short story, a man is searching for companionship -- he has lost his son, and, more than anything, he just needs to talk to someone about it, needs to say it out loud and have someone understand. But no one will listen. By the end, he tells the story to his horse, who listens quietly and stays by his side. This story is incredibly sad and emotional, and not at all about the animal. But it shows a positive relationship between humans and animals -- one which suggests that, perhaps, the animal is more compassionate and patient and stable in this life. It never needs to go into the perspective of the horse to get this message across, though it does sacrifice a real understanding of the horse's experience of the world.

My question is -- at what distance must we write about the animal? Is it helpful to write from the animal's perspective, or to use it as a metaphor? Is realistic always right? Even Auster employs the use of the fantastic to tell his story about Mr. Bones. In the end, I think Auster's novel gives a lot of useful information and brings up abstract thoughts about the loyalty of dogs, the naming of animals, and the concept of the afterlife for our pets. But I do not think that this style of writing should become the rule as a result.

-Shannon P. Kelly

Technicalities

"For the most part, animals have been used in storytelling to give instruction to humans about how to live (e.g., Aesop's fables)"... I do not wish to center my post about arguing with this opinion, but I feel that I must state my view of this to keep true to my opinions.

Although I agree- partially- with this statement, I wouldn't say that most stories use animals such as the fables do, instead I would say that most stories that are commonly known amongst peoples would fall under similar themes as the fables. That is to say that there is a lot of literature out there about animals that are truthfully represented in their own right, but these stories may not be as mainstream.

Something that I try to consider when reading literature that relates humans and animals directly is that not only is the animal given human qualities, but the human is also given animal qualities. Now this can be a good or bad thing. If the human has done something wrong and is thus compared to an animal, the animal will almost definitely be looked at in a negative light. However, one person may view a trait as negative in one situation, but given another situation that same "negative" trait may be what saves or helps you. What I am trying to get at is that even though the animals are often compared or noted because of something they did wrong, if the same characters would put in a completely different scene, we could gain a much more positive view of the animal. Everyone both human and animal has faults and successes, so instead of trying to blame children's books and tales for degrading the animals, we should instead find ways to use animals in storytelling as positive role models rather than as what you don't want to be or do.

I also feel the need to point out that the question states "But could there be other uses of animals that go beyond their instrumental value for humans?" Even when trying to brainstorm how we can more positively and/or accurately portray animals, we think of their use. Maybe the problem isn't that we aren't showing uses of them that are good for both human and animal, maybe the problem is that we are asking how they can be useful to use rather than why they are admirable and worthy in their own right. As humans we are selfish, there is no surprise in that, but why do we get to define what is worthy. Why does something have to have direct benefit to us to deserve safety, care, shelter, respect? I believe that it is because we are afraid. We are afraid of what we can't control, so if we can't find a way to control it or break it down, we find a way to lower its worth.

Getting back to literature... In all honesty, I believe that if we want to truly represent the animal, we need to do just that. Represent the animal- not its worth to us, or its perceived intelligence- just the animal- simply and justly. If we want to represent a pet, by all means include humans because the human family is important in the life of a pet. However, if you want to talk about a wild animal, what role do humans play. The only true roles that I see between wild animals and humans are hunting/poaching, destruction of habitats, and maybe the occasional instance of one saving the other. In Timbuktu, Auster does a great job of keeping the dog mostly true, but it is still largely about his encounters and relationships with humans. I respect that it shows all types of people which makes it more realistic, as well as implying that stereotypes are not always correct and every human and animal is different.

Personally, I enjoy reading about fictional animal related stories that are very unrealistic. There is nothing wrong with such literature as long as the audience understands that it is not a true representation.

Literature introduced me to Animals

Novels like Timbuktu use human imagination to put ourselves in the shoes of the animals. It is only by inducing sympathy for these animals through things such as anthropomorphism that they can advocate a position and usually its for animal welfare. These novels are instrumental in creating change and its books like 'Black Beauty' and 'Call of the Wild' that have really changed the way that we perceive the animals that are part of our civil fabric. Rarely do people really consider what its like to live in a world where you have no control, are at the mercy of 'owners' and can do nothing but attempt to adapt to every situation that you are thrown into. Even though these novels are fictional it still demands the attention and consideration of what could possibly be true. Personally as a kid I would only read books that were centered around animals. I read the 'Thoroughbred' series, 'Misty of Chincoteague',  'Hank the Cowdog' and others. I think it may be one of the main reasons for why I'm so obsessed with animals and so sensitive towards their needs - especially because growing up we didn't have animals. My parents are Korean and pet owning was not very big when they were kids. We had fish sometimes but they never lasted long and we had a small Sheltie but he ran away because our Grandpa tied him to the front porch and would never let him inside and we didn't have a fenced backyard. Eventually when I got older my parents allowed me to have a dog which I was able to train and take care of, but it's obvious that my love for animals originates from literature. 

And even though writing that gives animals human attributes is seen as wrong because its a misguided representation of who they are, it seems necessary when your audience is human. How else are we to understand them? Even if it is selling them short, I believe it gets the point across that they have needs just like we do, and that its better to suppose that they have capacities just like us and maybe more, than to suppose that they don't at all. Lets give them the benefit of the doubt. 

From Dominique Norris

I was quite interested in the presentation on dog behavior and body language by Nicole Larocco. I found myself making comparisons to what I had seen in the shelter and in my own family pets through the entire presentation. It also made me realize how critical and hypocritical I sometimes am when dealing with human-animal relations. I have noticed that I am often critical (in my thoughts- never verbally) of the people coming to look to adopt an animal. They often seem judgemental or ignorant of the animals by way of comments or faces that they make. They are often immediately disgusted by the dogs that are barking a lot and/or that don't look like the perfect and pristine dogs you may find at a pet shop. I have also been annoyed by their lack of understanding of animal behavior. Sometimes people will try to pet or pat dogs or just stare at them. Soon after reflecting on these thoughts that I've had, I've realized that they may not be reading the signs correctly or at all, but I have also done the same thing. The point that I sort of got at in this reflection is that you can't expect people to understand something that they have never been taught. Therefore, I try to be more patient with people who may not have had the opportunities that I have had to learn about animals and their body language.

I was also intrigued by training a dog through positive reinforcement. Of course, I have tried to be as positive as possible, but I have found it quite hard to cheerfully call a dog's name to try to get their attention instead of yelling at them or pulling their leash when they continue to ignore you. It is especially difficult at the PSPCA to get the dog's attention sometimes because the dogs are constantly encountering different volunteers all with slightly different approaches and tactics, so I imagine that it can be quite hard for them to get a solid understanding of what means what. I have noticed this same problem with my cousin's son. He floats between his mom, grandma, aunt, and grandpa. Each person has a different set of rules and consequences so he gets easily confused with what he is actually allowed to do.

This same problem can also be seen in Timbuktu. When Mr.Bones' master dies, he wanders around and comes upon a group of boys. He has no basis on which to judge how the boys will act and so he is taken by surprise when the boys treat him drastically differently than his master did. Just as all humans are different, so are dogs. Every human has different needs, and so does each individual dog.

The Heart of Communities

           After hearing Claire Tillman and Terri Martin’s presentation on animal welfare and humane education in the community, I began to think about how vital communities are and also how seemingly neglected they have become. Humans, like many other species, are co-dependent or community-oriented animals. However, after spending time at the PSPCA and other animal rescues and after spending almost a semester studying human-animal community, I have begun to wonder if perhaps our societies do not fully support the natural spirit of communities. To me, communities are places of support and coexistence with other humans, species and the environment; where people work together, help one another, etc.  But it seems as though this important aspect of life, of giving, caring and helping is not common way.  For example, during Terri Martin’s presentation, it became clear that a major struggle for her is getting other people to care and help one another and other animals.  It seems to me that many people are trapped in their own umwelt, if you will, and have difficulty embracing and acknowledging the needs and welfare of other animals and people that they share the planet with.  I have also seen this at the PSPCA and with the other animal rescues I work with: so many people (not all) come to adopt an animal for their own self-interests and not necessarily for the animal’s well-being. I cannot count how many times I have had someone contact me with a list of specifications about the kind of cat or dog they want, but I can only remember less than a handful of times that people have contacted me with a genuine interest to help the stray or feral cats or lost dogs that they see on the streets or in the backyards.  

            At the same time, I’ve also encountered many people who come to PSPCA wanting to a rescue an animal and give him or her a loving, nurturing home, but I often wonder whether or not they try and help the homeless animals that are living on the streets or if they ignore them like so many do. I even remember a person asking me about adopting a cat and saying something along the lines of, “there are a bunch of stray cats in my backyard that are friendly and they made me realize that I want to get my own cat.” I cannot help but ponder over the need and want to help animals and people within one’s own community, and how our city, our earth would be if we all cared a little bit more about everyone and everything else.

            The humane education program that Claire Tillman enacted for k-8 children is an amazing example of the significance of working within communities. The fact that Claire’s program not only helped children to learn how to treat animals in their homes and communities and how to care for them but also influenced them to treat one another kindly truly demonstrates how powerful working with one another and caring can really be. It made me think that if everyone was more knowledgeable of the other animals that exist within our communities and knew how to care for them, perhaps there would not be as much suffering. Perhaps if all adopters at the PSPCA were required to partake in the volunteer cat and dog handling classes there wouldn’t be as many returns or dumps, or have licenses for owning pets like Bernard and Michael Rollin suggest in their article on “Dogmaticisms and Catechisms: Ethics and Companion Animals.”  What if everyone worked together to help one another and other animals?

It’s a known fact that biodiversity is vital to life, but I think working with one another and helping and caring for all aspects of our communities is just as imperative.