Synopses & Reviews
Over the past thirty years there has been a tremendous growth in interest in the multidisciplinary field of human-companion animal interactions and relationships. The increased interest in human-pet relationships is not surprising considering that pets are kept in at least half of the households in Western societies. What is so special about the relationships people have with their pets? Are we very different from our ancestors in the way we feel about animals? What does pet keeping tell us about ourselves and our relationships with people? Can pets be good for our health? Does having pets help promote empathy for other humans? Companion Animals and Us brings together some of the newest research from a wide variety of disciplines including anthropology, history, psychology, sociology, and human and veterinary medicine to explore these and many other questions. This book will provide fascinating reading for anyone interested in understanding more about the human-pet relationships.
Review
"This excellent scholarly work belongs in all libraries with large psychology or animal-technology sections." Booklist"Companion Animals &Us offers perspectives on our relationships with nonhuman housemates, drawing from a growing scientific literature, and stimulating many important questions to answer in the future." Ethology 2001
Synopsis
Pets are kept in over half of all households in western societies. But why do we keep pets? Are they good for our health? Did our ancestors keep pets too? This book explores our complex relationship with pets and will interest graduate students, researchers and general readers in many subjects.
Synopsis
In western societies, pets are kept in at least half of all ouseholds. But why do we keep pets? Are they good for our health? Did our ancestors keep pets too? Can they promote good will towards other animals and people? This volume explores these and other questions about our relationship with pets. It will be of interest to students and researchers in anthropology, history, psychology, sociology and veterinary science, and to interested pet-owning general readers.
About the Author
James Serpell is the Marie A. Moore Professor of Humane Ethics and Animal Welfare at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, where he also directs the Center for the Interaction of Animals & Society. He received his bachelor's degree in Zoology from University College London (UK) in 1974, and his PhD in Animal Behavior from the University of Liverpool (UK) in 1980. He moved to his current position at the University of Pennsylvania in 1993. Dr. Serpell is the current President of the International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ). He serves on the editorial boards of most of the major journals on animal welfare, applied animal behavior, and human-animal interactions. His research focuses on the behavior and welfare of companion animals, the development of human attitudes to animals, and the history of human-animal relationships. In addition to publishing more than 70 journal articles and book chapters on these and related topics, he is the author, editor, or co-editor of several books including Animals & Human Society: Changing Perspectives (1994), The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behavior & Interactions with People (1995), In the Company of Animals (1996), and Companion Animals & Us (2000).
Table of Contents
1. Introduction Anthony L. Podberscek, Elizabeth Paul and James Serpell; Part I. History and Culture: 2. The social significance of pet-keeping among Amazonian Indians Philippe Erickson; 3. Motivations for pet-keeping in Ancient Greece and Rome: a preliminary survey Liliane Bodson; 4. Hunting and attachment to dogs in the Pre-modern period Sophia Menache; 5. Children, 'insects' and play in Japan Erick L. Laurent; 6. The horse bar mitzvah: a celebratory exploration of the human-animal bond Norine Dresser; 7. Creatures of the unconscious: companion animals as mediators James Serpell; Part II. The Nature of the Relationship: 8. Companion animals and human health: physical and cardiovascular influences Erika Friedmann, Sue A. Thomas and Tim Eddy; 9. Personality research on pets and their owners: conceptual issues and review Anthony Podberscek and Samuel D. Gosling; 10. Love of pets and love of people Elizabeth Paul; Part III. Pets, Families and Interactions: 11. The influence of current relationships upon pet animal acquisition Rachael M. Harker, Glyn Collis and June McNicholas; 12. Pets in the network of family relationships: an empirical study Sheila Bonas, June McNicholas and Glyn M. Collis; 13. The meaning of companion animals: qualitative analysis of the life histories of elderly cat and dog owners Marie-José Enders-Slegers; 14. Human-cat interactions: relationships with, and breed differences between, non-pedigree, Persian and Siamese cats Dennis C. Turner; Part IV. Welfare and Ethics: 15. Secondary victimization in companion animal abuse: the owner's perspective Arnold Arluke; 16. Veterinary dilemmas: ambiguity and ambivalence in human-animal interaction Joanna Swabe; 17. Rethinking bestiality: towards a concept of interspecies sexual assault Piers Beirne.