Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Hunting As A Management Tool? Cougar-Human Conflict Is Positively Related To Trophy Hunting, Kristine J. Teichman, Bogdan Cristescu, Chris T. Darimont

Chris Darimont, PhD

Background: Overexploitation and persecution of large carnivores resulting from conflict with humans comprise major causes of declines worldwide. Although little is known about the interplay between these mortality types, hunting of predators remains a common management strategy aimed at reducing predator-human conflict. Emerging theory and data, however, caution that such policy can alter the age structure of populations, triggering increased conflict in which conflict-prone juveniles are involved.

Results: Using a 30-year dataset on human-caused cougar (Puma concolor) kills in British Columbia (BC), Canada, we examined relationships between hunter-caused and conflict-associated mortality. Individuals that were killed via conflict with humans were …

Ecology Of Conflict: Marine Food Supply Affects Human-Wildlife Interactions On Land, Kyle A. Artelle, Sean Anderson, John D. Reynolds, Andrew B. Cooper, Paul C. Paquet, Chris T. Darimont

Chris Darimont, PhD

Human-wildlife conflicts impose considerable costs to people and wildlife worldwide. Most research focuses on proximate causes, offering limited generalizable understanding of ultimate drivers. We tested three competing hypotheses (problem individuals, regional population saturation, limited food supply) that relate to underlying processes of human-grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) conflict, using data from British Columbia, Canada, between 1960–2014. We found most support for the limited food supply hypothesis: in bear populations that feed on spawning salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), the annual number of bears/km2killed due to conflicts with humans increased by an average of 20% (6–32% [95% CI]) for each 50% …

Companion Animal Statistics In The Usa, Andrew N. Rowan

Andrew N. Rowan, DPhil

Early in 2008, a number of organizations and individuals interested in accurate statistics on pet population numbers and trends gathered in a hotel in Houston, TX to review the available data on estimated pet populations and shelter demographics. While the data and analysis below was produced and subsequently added to by just one of those individuals, the following document takes into account the input from those who attended. For example, it was generally accepted that the AVMA pet population estimates from their quinquennial surveys are likely to be more reliable than the biennial surveys used to produce the APPMA demographic …

The Elephant (Head) In The Room: A Critical Look At Trophy Hunting, Chelsea Batavia, Michael Paul Nelson, Chris T. Darimont, Paul C. Paquet, William J. Ripple, Arian D. Wallach

Chelsea Batavia, PhD

Trophy hunting has occupied a prominent position in recent scholarly literature and popular media. In the scientific conservation literature, researchers are generally supportive of or sympathetic to its usage as a source of monetary support for conservation. Although authors at times acknowledge that trophy hunting faces strong opposition from many members of the public, often for unspecified reasons associated with ethics, neither the nature nor the implications of these ethical concerns have been substantively addressed. We identify the central act of wildlife “trophy” taking as a potential source of ethical discomfort and public opposition. We highlight that trophy hunting entails …

Rehabilitating Rescued Chinese Farm Bears (Ursus Thibetanus): Results, Limitations, And Implications, Peter J. Li

Peter J. Li, PhD

The objects of daily physical abuse and appalling deprivation for up to 22 years, rescued Chinese farm bears (Ursus thibetanus) pose a comprehensive challenge to the Chengdu Asiatic Black Bear Rescue Center, created and managed by the Animals Asia Foundation. This study looks at the unique conditions of the rescued bears, examines the center’s rehabilitation program, and identifies the program’s limitations. Despite the world-class care provided by the center and the qualitative improvement in their health, the bears have irreparable physical and mental incapacitation that undercuts their chances to survive in the wild. This situation questions the moral ground of …

Valuable Behavioural Phenotypes In Australian Farm Dogs, P. D. Mcgreevy, C. M. Wade, E. R. Arnott, J. B. Early

Paul McGreevy, PhD

This report presents findings regarding the ways to optimise the performance of livestock working dogs in Australia. The methods available to optimise dog performance include both environmental and genetic factors. The objectives of this study were to identify objective measures of desirable behavioural phenotypes in Australian livestock working dogs and explore genetic parameters of these 'quality of working life' traits within the Kelpie breed. The document reports on genotyping that reveals gene-behaviour associations and describes heritability estimates that underpin a database for potential estimated breeding value (EBV) calculations.

Estimating The Economic Value Of Australian Stock Herding Dogs, E. R. Arnott, J. B. Early, C. M. Wade, P. D. Mcgreevy

Paul McGreevy, Ph.D.

This study aimed to estimate the value of the typical Australian herding dog in terms of predicted return on investment. This required an assessment of the costs associated with owning herding dogs and estimation of the work they typically perform. Data on a total of 4,027 dogs were acquired through The Farm Dog Survey which gathered information from 812 herding dog owners around Australia. The median cost involved in owning a herding dog was estimated to be a total of AU$7,763 over the period of its working life. The work performed by the dog throughout this time was estimated to …

Whip Use By Jockeys In A Sample Of Australian Thoroughbred Races—An Observational Study, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Robert A. Corken, Hannah Salvin, Celeste M. Black

Paul McGreevy, PhD

The use of whips by jockeys is an issue. The current study viewed opportunistic high-speed footage of 15 race finishes frame-by-frame to examine the outcomes of arm and wrist actions (n = 350) on 40 horses viewed from the left of the field. Any actions fully or partially obscured by infrastructure or other horses were removed from the database, leaving a total of 104 non-contact sweeps and 134 strikes. For all instances of arm actions that resulted in fully visible whip strikes behind the saddle (n = 109), the outcomes noted were area struck, percentage of unpadded section making contact, …

Environmental Factors Associated With Success Rates Of Australian Stock Herding Dogs, Elizabeth R. Arnott, Jonathan B. Early, Claire M. Wade, Paul D. Mcgreevy

Paul McGreevy, PhD

This study investigated the current management practices associated with stock herding dogs on Australian farms. A parallel goal was to determine whether these practices and the characteristics of the dog handlers were associated with success rates. Success rate refers to the proportion of dogs acquired by the farmer that were retained as working dogs. Data on a total of 4,027 dogs were obtained through The Farm Dog Survey which gathered information from 812 herding dog owners around Australia. Using logistic regression, significant associations were identified between success rate and seven variables: dog breed, housing method, trial participation, age of the …

Strong Selection For Behavioural Resilience In Australian Stock Working Dogs Identified By Selective Sweep Analysis, Elizabeth R. Arnott, Lincoln Peek, Jonathan B. Early, Annie Y. H. Pan, Bianca Haase, Tracy Chew, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Claire M. Wade

Paul McGreevy, PhD

Background: Working dog handlers and breeders have strong opinions on characteristics that are desirable in the breeds that they use to handle stock. Most of these characteristics are related to conformation or behaviour. This study explored whether the genetics underlying desirable working behaviour traits might be identified by selective sweep analysis; a method that identifies long regions of strong homozygosity combined with allelic divergence from a comparison group. For this analysis, we compared genomic haplotype architecture in two breeds derived from common founder stock but subjected to divergent selective pressures. The breeds studied were the Australian Kelpie, which is registered …

The Effect Of Noseband Tightening On Horses’ Behavior, Eye Temperature, And Cardiac Responses, Kate Fenner, Samuel Yoon, Peter White, Melissa Starling, Paul Mcgreevy

Paul McGreevy, PhD

Restrictive nosebands are common in equestrian sport. This is concerning, as recent evidence suggests that very tight nosebands can cause a physiological stress response, and may compromise welfare. The objective of the current study was to investigate relationships that noseband tightness has with oral behavior and with physiological changes that indicate a stress response, such as increases in eye temperature (measured with infrared thermography) and heart rate and decreases in heart rate variability (HRV). Horses (n = 12) wearing a double bridle and crank noseband, as is common in dressage at elite levels, were randomly assigned to four treatments: unfastened …

On-Farm Welfare Assessment For Regulatory Purposes: Issues And Possible Solutions, Jan Tind Sørensen, David Fraser

David Fraser, PhD

On-farm welfare assessment has been used mainly for non-regulatory purposes such as producer education or to qualify for voluntary welfare-assurance programs. The application of on-farm assessments in regulatory programs would require four issues to be addressed: (1) selecting criteria that are widely accepted as valid by diverse citizens, (2) setting minimum legal levels, (3) achieving the high level of fairness and objectivity required for legally binding requirements, and (4) achieving the cost-efficiency needed for widespread use of the methods. Issues 1 and 2 pose a particular problem because different citizens disagree on what they understand as good animal welfare, with …

Four Types Of Activities That Affect Animals: Implications For Animal Welfare Science And Animal Ethics Philosophy, D. Fraser, A. M. Macrae

David Fraser, PhD

People affect animals through four broad types of activity: (1) people keep companion, farm, laboratory and captive wild animals, often while using them for some purpose; (2) people cause deliberate harm to animals through activities such as slaughter, pest control, hunting, and toxicology testing; (3) people cause direct but unintended harm to animals through crop production, transportation, night-time lighting, and many other human activities; and (4) people harm animals indirectly by disturbing ecological systems and the processes of nature, for example by destroying habitat, introducing foreign species, and causing pollution and climate change. Each type of activity affects vast numbers …

Veganism As An Aspiration, Lori Gruen, Robert C. Jones

Robert C. Jones, PhD

iven the violence, objectification, domination, commodification, and oppression inherent in industrialized food production, some conscientious consumers have adopted vegan practices. This chapter discusses two conceptions of veganism, lifestyle/identity veganism, VI, and veganism as a goal/aspiration, VA. It argues that due to conceptual and practical flaws with VI, conscientious consumers should adopt VA. It considers and rejects the so-called compassionate carnivore movement. It then explores arguments denying the casual efficacy of adopting any form of veganism. It concludes that VA can make a difference, and those in consumer cultures are obligated to adopt and practice it.

Skeptics And “The White Stuff” : Promotion Of Cows’ Milk And Other Nonhuman Animal Products In The Skeptic Community As Normative Whiteness, Corey Lee Wrenn

Corey Lee Wrenn, PhD

This article discusses a dairy advertising campaign featuring skeptic Derren Brown. I explore the various health claims made in the ads as well as a report Brown featured on his website that claimed consumption of cow’s milk is linked to longevity. I discuss how dairy consumption is largely linked to race and ethnicity. It is a practice enjoyed primarily by European whites as most nonwhites are lactose intolerant. Lactose intolerance is a normal biological process associated with weaning, but it is medicalized and made deviant because it is not part of the white experience. I also mention comments made by …

Why “Good Welfare” Isn’T “Good Enough”: Minding Animals And Increasing Our Compassionate Footprint, Marc Bekoff

Marc Bekoff, PhD

In this brief essay I take a broad perspective on the notion of unraveling welfare and consider animals living in different conditions ranging from caged individuals in laboratories and zoos to free-living or almost free-living wildlife. I’ll step outside of the laboratory because billions of animals are slaughtered for food in an industry that tortures them on the way to their reprehensible deaths and at the places at which they are slaughtered. Furthermore, government agencies around the world kill millions of free-living and wild animals because they’re supposedly “pests”. This is a different sort of essay but I hope it …

Animal Welfare And Individual Characteristics: A Conversation Against Speciesism, Marc Bekoff, Lori Gruen

Marc Bekoff, PhD

It seems impossible for a human being not to have some point of view concerning nonhuman animal (hereafter animal) welfare. Many people make decisions about how humans are permitted to treat animals using speciesist criteria, basing their decisions on an individual's species membership rather than on that animal's individual characteristics. Although speciesism provides a convenient way for making difficult decisions about who should be used in different types of research, we argue that such decisions should rely on an analysis of individual characteristics and should not be based merely on species membership. We do not argue that the concept of …

Minding Animals, Minding Earth: Science, Nature, Kinship, And Heart, Marc Bekoff

Marc Bekoff, PhD

This paper emphasizes the importance of broadening behavioral, ecological, and conservation science into a more integrative, interdisciplinary, socially responsible, compassionate, spiritual, and holistic endeavor.2,3 I will stress the significance of studies of animal behavior, especially ethological research concerned with animal emotions, in which individuals are named and recognized for their own personalities and temperaments, for helping us not only to learn about the nonhuman animal beings (hereafter animals) with whom we share Earth, but also for learning about who we are, our place in Nature, our humanness. We can be best understood in relationship to others. I will also develop …

Naturalizing Anthropomorphism: Behavioral Prompts To Our Humanizing Of Animals, Alexandra C. Horowitz, Marc Bekoff

Marc Bekoff, PhD

Anthropomorphism is the use of human characteristics to describe or explain nonhuman animals. In the present paper, we propose a model for a unified study of such anthropomorphizing. We bring together previously disparate accounts of why and how we anthropomorphize and suggest a means to analyze anthropomorphizing behavior itself. We introduce an analysis of bouts of dyadic play between humans and a heavily anthropomorphized animal, the domestic dog. Four distinct patterns of social interaction recur in successful dog–human play: directed responses by one player to the other, indications of intent, mutual behaviors, and contingent activity. These findings serve as a …

Gender Differences In Attitudes Toward Animal Research, Jennifer J. Eldridge, John P. Gluck

John P. Gluck, PhD

Although gender differences in attitudes toward animal research have been reported in the literature for some time, exploration into the nature of these differences has received less attention. This article examines gender differences in responses to a survey of attitudes toward the use of animals in research. The survey was completed by college students and consisted of items intended to tap different issues related to the animal research debate. Results indicated that women were more likely than men to support tenets of the animal protection movement. Likewise, women were more likely than men to favor increased restrictions on animal use …

Canada’S Commercial Seal Hunt: It’S More Than A Question Of Humane Killing, David M. Lavigne, William S. Lynn

William S. Lynn, PhD

No abstract provided.

Animals, Ethics And Geography, William S. Lynn

William S. Lynn, PhD

No abstract provided.

Discourse And Wolves: Science, Society, And Ethics, William S. Lynn

William S. Lynn, PhD

Wolves have a special resonance in many human cultures. To appreciate fully the wide variety of views on wolves, we must attend to the scientific, social, and ethical discourses that frame our understanding of wolves themselves, as well as their relationships with people and the natural world. These discourses are a configuration of ideas, language, actions, and institutions that enable or constrain our individual and collective agency with respect to wolves.

Scientific discourse is frequently privileged when it comes to wolves, on the assumption that the primary knowledge requirements are matters of ecology, cognitive ethology, and allied disciplines. Social discourse …

Contested Moralities: Animals And Moral Value In The Dear/Symanski Debate, William S. Lynn

William S. Lynn, PhD

Geography is experiencing a ‘moral turn’ in its research interests and practices. There is also a flourishing interest in animal geographies that intersects this turn, and is concurrent with wider scholarly efforts to reincorporate animals and nature into our ethical and social theories. This article intervenes in a dispute between Michael Dear and Richard Symanski. The dispute is over the culling of wild horses in Australia, and I intervene to explore how geography deepens our moral understanding of the animal/human dialectic. I begin by situating the inquiry into ethics and animals in geography. Next, I provide a synopsis of Dear …

Enforcing Wildlife Protection In China, Peter J. Li

Peter J. Li, PhD

Since China enacted the Wildlife Protection Law in 1988, its wildlife has been threatened with the most serious survival crisis. In the prereform era, wildlife was a neglected policy area. Serving the objective of reform, the Wildlife Protection Law upholds the “protection, domestication, and utilization” norm inherited from past policies. It establishes rules for wildlife management and protection. This law provides for penalties against violations. Yet, its ambiguous objectives, limited protection scope, and decentralized responsibilities have made its enforcement difficult. Political factors such as institutional constraints, national obsession with economic growth, shortage of funding, and local protectionism have made the …

China’S Bear Farming And Long-Term Solutions, Peter J. Li

Peter J. Li, PhD

No abstract provided.

Animal Rights Vs. Humanism: The Charge Of Speciesism, Kenneth J. Shapiro

Kenneth J. Shapiro, PhD

The present article examines a concern I have had for some time about the compatibility of humanistic psychology with the emerging animal rights movement. Beyond working out my position, the paper has the additional educational and, frankly, political purpose of bringing animal rights issues to the attention of humanistic psychologists.

The article applies certain concepts of contemporary animal rights philosophy, notably "speciesism," to both the philosophy of humanism and humanistic psychology. While on a philosophical level, certain concepts are discussed that would likely block a rapprochement, I feel that humanistic psychologists as individuals are likely to extend their compassion to …

Dog Movie Stars And Dog Breed Popularity: A Case Study In Media Influence On Choice, Stefano Ghirlanda, Alberto Acerbi, Harold A. Herzog

Harold Herzog, PhD

Fashions and fads are important phenomena that influence many individual choices. They are ubiquitous in human societies, and have recently been used as a source of data to test models of cultural dynamics. Although a few statistical regularities have been observed in fashion cycles, their empirical characterization is still incomplete. Here we consider the impact of mass media on popular culture, showing that the release of movies featuring dogs is often associated with an increase in the popularity of featured breeds, for up to 10 years after movie release. We also find that a movie’s impact on breed popularity correlates …

Forty-Two Thousand And One Dalmatians: Fads, Social Contagion, And Dog Breed Popularity, Harold A. Herzog

Harold Herzog, PhD

Like other cultural variants, tastes in companion animals (pets) can shift rapidly. An analysis of American Kennel Club puppy registrations from 1946 through 2003 (N = 48,598,233 puppy registrations) identified rapid but transient large-scale increases in the popularity of specific dog breeds. Nine breeds of dogs showed particularly pronounced booms and busts in popularity. On average, the increase (boom) phase in these breeds lasted 14 years, during which time annual new registrations increased 3,200%. Equally steep decreases in registrations for the breeds immediately followed these jumps in popularity. The existence of extreme fluctuations in preferences for dog breeds has implications …

Teaching: Natural Or Cultural?, David F. Lancy

David Lancy

This chapter will argue that teaching, as we now understand the term, is historically and cross-culturally very rare. It appears to be unnecessary to transmit culture or to socialize children. Children are, on the other hand, primed by evolution to be avid observers, imitators, players and helpers—roles that reveal the profoundly autonomous and self-directed nature of culture acquisition (Lancy in press a). And yet, teaching is ubiquitous throughout the modern world—at least among the middle to upper class segment of the population. This ubiquity has led numerous scholars to argue for the universality and uniqueness of teaching as a characteristically …