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Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard to Think Straight About Animals

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Hal Herzog

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“The thing about Glen is that, despite her offhand manner, she loves me. I know she's only a cat. But it's still love; animals, people. It's unconditional, and it's both the easiest and the hardest thing in the world. Sometimes, after counseling sessions, I desperately want to buy vodka, lots of it, take it home and drink it down, but in the end I never did. I couldn't, for lots of reasons, one of which was that if I wasn't fit to, then who would feed Glen? She isn't able to take care of herself. She needs me. It isn't annoying, her need -- it isn't a burden. It's a privilege. I'm responsible. I chose to put myself in a situation where I'm responsible. Wanting to look after her, a small, dependent, vulnerable creature, is innate, and I don't even have to think about it. It's like breathing.”

PetsHuman Animal RelationshipsPet Care
Book:Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
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“People also tend to refer to nonhuman animals as “it” or sometimes “he,” regardless of the individual’s sex. This one-sex-fits-all approach objectifies and denies individuality. In fact, nonhuman animals who are exploited for food industries are usually females. Such unfortunate nonhumans are not only exploited for their flesh, but also for their nursing milk, reproductive eggs, and ability to produce young. When guessing the gender of a nonhuman animal forced through slaughterhouse gates, we would greatly increase odds of being correct if we referred to such unfortunate individuals as 'she'.”

LanguageGenderAnimalsVeganismDairyFactory FarmingPronounsHuman Animal RelationshipsWord ChoiceHuman Animal Studies
Book:Sister Species: Women, Animals and Social Justice
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“What we are mistaking for a voluntary attraction of animals to humans can be explained by the “imprint phenomenon.” This biological process, first described by Konrad Lorenz, is responsible for the fact that animals, including humans, learn species-specific information, behaviours, and skills at specific points in their development. Imprinting is how animals learn early to attach to their mothers and identify with members of their own species. It is the mechanism that allows us to domesticate animals and nurture intimate relationships with them; as long as we integrate or selves into young animals’ lives before the attachment period ends, we can divert their identification with their own families and species onto ourselves.”

AttachmentAnimalsHuman Animal RelationshipsImprintingEthologyPet OwnershipSpecies Relations
Book:Un vétérinaire en colère - Essai sur la condition animale
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“When a pet is adopted within its imprint period, the attachment it felt to its mother is quickly transferred to the new owner, who steps in to meet the pet’s physical and emotional demands. Herein lies the reason pets become so instantly bonded to us. The process may seem harmless on the surface, even natural, but keep in mind that the normal progression of things would have the young animal soon beginning to detach from its parent. Whereas the animal’s mother would discourage continued dependence, the surrogate mother, the new owner, encourages it. In this way, the case of usurped identity is never followed by detachment. Quite the contrary: the whole dynamic of interactions between people and their pets relies on the maintenance of the bond. Because of this, pets remain infantile, never reaching any level of autonomy or emotional maturity.”

AttachmentAnimalsDependencyHuman Animal RelationshipsImprintingEthologyPet OwnershipSpecies Relations
Book:Un vétérinaire en colère - Essai sur la condition animale
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“Humanity passed from a world of tolerant pagan polytheism to the black and white duality of Christianity. Something was either on the side of God, salvation, and goodness or on the side of the devil, evil and perdition. The tolerance, logic, rationality, and knowledge of natural phenomena that were an integral part of the Classical world were manipulated by the Church in favor of the supernatural, the mysterious, and faith in providence.”

ReligionChristianityHistoryPaganismWolfWolvesCultural StudiesHuman Animal Relationships
Author:Luigi Boitani
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