Performing Expertise in Human–Animal Relationships: Performative Instability and the Role of Counterperformance

Schuurman, Nora; Franklin, Alexandra

doi:10.1068/d13014p

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…5 Roberts' own interpretation is that the handler is 'speaking' in a language the horse understands, and that the horse approaches voluntarily. This procedure stages his expertise in particular ways, and the response of the horse is open to multiple interpretations (see Schuurman & Franklin 2015;Birke 2008).…”

Section: Meeting Points In Shared Spacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Meetings are not always peaceful, and connections can be partial (see Latimer 2013). Even within the confines of a stable or a round pen, horses can make it plain that they do not wish to interact (see Schuurman & Franklin 2015). Riders often speak of ways in which their animals may express themselves, perhaps even 'being cheeky', not always behaving in as docile a fashion as riders might like (Birke & Hockenhull 2016; also see Latimer & Birke 2009).…”

Section: Trajectoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Meeting points: choreographies of horses and humans

Birke¹

2017

FJHAS

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In this paper, I explore horse-human interactions as ‘meeting points’, using three points or places at which we come together with horses. These are: in the stable, leading a horse, and riding. Each shapes the interspecies engagement, in a kind of trajectory. Ways of engaging with each other form within the confines of stable or corral, which then continue into other activities. The idea of meeting points serves to emphasise that these are meetings with an other, someone who has agency and who helps to create the patterns of subsequent interactions. These are meetings born out of individual experience, and which help to produce the mindedness of the horse.

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Section: Meeting Points In Shared Spacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Trajectoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Meeting points: choreographies of horses and humans

Birke¹

2017

FJHAS

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“…What is at stake here is the owner's trust in the veterinarian as an expert – such trust can be lost if something happens that raises doubts about the competence and credibility of the expert (Wynne ). In human–animal studies, expertise can be understood as situated rather than as universal, referring not only to spatiality but also to the relationality of the human–animal interaction (Schuurman and Franklin ). This applies to a large extent to veterinary expertise as situations encountered in animal health care can hardly be standardised (Enticott ).…”

Section: Interpreting the Petmentioning

confidence: 99%

Performing good death at the veterinary clinic: experiences of pet euthanasia in Finland

Schuurman

2016

Area

Self Cite

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In contemporary pet‐keeping culture, the death of an animal is managed by the veterinary profession. The situation of euthanising the pet at the clinic is not an easy one for the owner of the animal, who has to manage the emotions involved in the death of a pet, while at the same time worrying about animal welfare in euthanasia. In this paper I explore the performances of good death in pet euthanasia. Drawing on pet owners’ experiences, I scrutinise the practice of euthanasia in the space of the veterinary clinic, emotions felt by owners about pet loss, the role of animal agency and the expertise of the veterinarian in providing the animal with an ending to its life. Theoretically, the paper draws on recent discussions about human–animal relationships as performances, as productive processes in which the relationship comes into being. The data consists of written narratives from a nationwide writing collection organised in Finland in 2014–2015. According to the analysis, the veterinary clinic as a site of pet euthanasia makes the human–pet relationship vulnerable by shifting it away from the home, the space in which the relationship is otherwise experienced and lived. Pet euthanasia nevertheless has the potential to become a relational achievement between the agency and bodies of the owner, the veterinarian and the pet. As such, it is a situated practice in which the animal can be killed at the same time that its relationship with humans is celebrated – an act of responsible killing and of care, with a possibility to provide the animal a good ending to its life.

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“…The emphasis in print and social media sites, which were positive about horse racing, was on the relationship between the jockey and the horse as a partnership. Very little recognition was given to ideas that equine-human relationships are often about power, with humans controlling what happens with horses during their racing career [ 55 , 56 ]. The power relationship was more implicit in online media, where the relationship was portrayed as exploitative.…”

Section: Media Perceptions and Equine Welfarementioning

confidence: 99%

Changing Human-Animal Relationships in Sport: An Analysis of the UK and Australian Horse Racing Whips Debates

Graham

McManus

2016

Animals

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Simple SummaryThis paper identifies the various perceptions held by advocates and opponents about the use of the whip in thoroughbred racing, as portrayed in print and social media. Three time periods in two countries were investigated, Australia (2009) and the UK (2011), following the introduction of new whip rules and the period August 2014–August 2015 for both countries to identify whether perceptions had changed. The major area of contention between advocates and opponents was whether the whip is an essential tool or a cruel instrument. This tension remained in 2015. The research also revealed that people opposed to the whip were more likely to express their views on social media than in print media.AbstractChanging social values and new technologies have contributed to increasing media attention and debate about the acceptable use of animals in sport. This paper focuses on the use of the whip in thoroughbred horse racing. Those who defend its use argue it is a necessary tool needed for safety, correction and encouragement, and that it does not cause the horse any pain. For those who oppose its use, it is an instrument of cruelty. Media framing is employed to unpack the discourses played out in print and social media in the UK (2011) and Australia (2009) during key periods of the whip debate following the introduction of new whip rules. Media coverage for the period August 2014–August 2015 for both countries is also considered. This paper seeks to identify the perceptions of advocates and opponents of the whip as portrayed in conventional and social media in Australia and the UK, to consider if these perceptions have changed over time, and whose voices are heard in these platforms. This paper contributes to discussions on the impacts that media sites have either in reinforcing existing perspectives or creating new perspectives; and importantly how this impacts on equine welfare.

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Performing Expertise in Human–Animal Relationships: Performative Instability and the Role of Counterperformance

Abstract: This paper explores how the human-animal relationship is used to inform

Cited by 20 publications

References 26 publications

Meeting points: choreographies of horses and humans

Meeting points: choreographies of horses and humans

Performing good death at the veterinary clinic: experiences of pet euthanasia in Finland

Changing Human-Animal Relationships in Sport: An Analysis of the UK and Australian Horse Racing Whips Debates

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