Are Dogs Children, Companions, or Just Animals? Understanding Variations in People's Orientations toward Animals

Abstract

This paper examines the variations in dog owners' attitudes toward, treatment of, and interactions with, animals. Based on 28 in-depth interviews with dog owners from a county in the Midwestern United States, I demonstrate that pets are an important part of many people's lives, often providing companionship, entertainment, and meaningful interactions; however, there are notable, distinct variations in how people relate to them. Pet owners typically exhibit one of three orientations toward pets: "dominionistic," "humanistic," or "protectionistic." The dominionistic have relatively low regard for their pets, valuing them primarily for the uses they provide, such as protection. Those employing the humanistic orientation elevate their pets to the status of surrogate humans and value their pets primarily for the affective benefits they enjoy from their close attachments. The protectionistic have high regard for both pets and animals more generally. They view pets as valuable companions and as creatures with their own interests. This typology offers insights for understanding the source and variety of the often ambiguous and contradictory relations between people and pets. I argue that individual characteristics and experiences impact how people understand and relate to animals, in large part, because they represent exposure to different cultural messages. I suggest that these orientations represent three sets of distinct cultural logics, each with distinct histories and contemporary sources.

Renting with pets: a pathway to housing insecurity?

“…Blouin, 2013;Burns, 2013;Franklin, 2006;Power, 2008), and evidence of connections between housing access and pet relinquishment (e.g. New et al, 1999;Shore et al, 2003), little research has considered how pet ownership may impact on security of occupancy, real or perceived, in the rental market.…”

“…For people living in single-person households, a growing demographic, companion animals can be a significant source of regular social contact (Franklin & Tranter, 2011). There is also a growing tendency for companion animals to be viewed as family members (Blouin, 2013;Fox, 2006;Power, 2008), with 88 per cent of households in Australia (Franklin, 2006) and 63.2 per cent in the US (Burns, 2013) describing their pets this way. Power (2008) shows that in many instances, companion animals come to be viewed as core 'more-than-human' members of the family, with household practices shifting to incorporate their needs and interests.…”

Current perspectives on attachment and bonding in the dog–human dyad

“…Hence, empathetic dog owners with positive attitudes may be more aware of pain in their animal and readily respond to it, thus minimizing stress. Such handlers may have what Blouin described as humanistic views of their animals, regarding them as surrogate humans that offer affective benefits, or protectionistic views of their animals, regarding them as valuable companions with their own interests 32. Blouin also identified a third perspective, dominionistic, whereby animals are viewed with low regard and valued only for their usefulness 32.…”

Gender and leadership in animal sheltering organizations.

“…Aristotle argued that animals lack the power to speak, (Serpell 2002). Companion animals are valued for their emotional support rather than their individual economic value or working value the way that livestock are valued (Blouin 2013). While many Americans value their companion animals and treat them like members of the family and individual subjects, others view pets as either workers or objects that provide service to their owners (Greenebaum 2004;Sanders 2003;Blouin 2013).…”

“…Companion animals are valued for their emotional support rather than their individual economic value or working value the way that livestock are valued (Blouin 2013). While many Americans value their companion animals and treat them like members of the family and individual subjects, others view pets as either workers or objects that provide service to their owners (Greenebaum 2004;Sanders 2003;Blouin 2013). Some owners combine both subject and object view by petting and cuddling with them as puppies and then relinquishing them to shelters when their cute puppy behaviors become annoying as adults (Irvine 2002).…”