Tails from the Classroom E-Book

Dr Russell Grigg

• Herausgeber: Crown House Publishing
• Kategorie: Bildung
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Seitenzahl: 399

Beschreibung

Written by Helen Lewis and Russell Grigg, Tails from the Classroom: Learning and teaching through animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) is a fascinating exploration of the use of AAIs in educational settings and how they can inspire and support learners' all-round development. There is growing interest in the idea of bringing animals into the classroom, but it is only recently that researchers have gathered clear data to show the impact of AAIs on the behavioural, emotional, physical and cognitive development of children and young people. Tails from the Classroom brings together this research in a highly accessible way, illustrated with real-life case studies from a range of classroom contexts. It also includes lots of practical guidance on how to set up, manage and evaluate a project, ensuring that the welfare of all participants, including the animals, is a priority. Helen and Russell discuss how AAIs can contribute towards learning in different subject areas and across the curriculum, sharing a wide range of examples to illustrate possible starting points for teachers in a range of subject and thematic contexts - even in less obvious areas such as the arts, literature, and religious and moral codes. They also provide a historical overview of human-animal interactions, highlighting how animals have played a central part in humans' social, spiritual and cultural development. This then underpins the authors' exploration into animals' potential role in enhancing particular dimensions of children's social, emotional, intellectual and physical development and well-being. This groundbreaking book is not just for animal-loving educators, however. It is for anyone who is serious about inspiring learners of all ages and prepared to explore new ways of doing so. Suitable for educators working with learners of all ages.

Leseprobe

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For Grace and Sofie, Alice, Thomas, Ava and Ruby, the young people in my life. And to the many furry and feathered companions who over the years have helped to make my house a home – HL

To Tom Webb and Colin, who loved their animals – RG

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Acknowledgements

We would like to say thank you to the following people and pets for their contributions to this book:

Ava, Ruby and Sarah Clements

Beverley Gardner, CEO, Trinitas Academy Trust, Kent

Brad and Mel Rundle, founders and directors of Therapy Animals Australia

Caitlin Jones and Nora the dog

Carol Lincoln

Dr Diahann Gallard, Liverpool John Moores University

Donna Carlyle and Ted the dog

Gillian Ball, Sarah Cornish, Natalie Carroll, Kelly Sevenoaks, Otis the dog, and pupils at Christ Church (Erith) Church of England Primary School, Kent

Grace Vobe and Hoola the dog

Hannah Sweetapple and the team at the Egypt Centre, Swansea University

Hayley Anthony, Jonesy the dog, and staff and pupils at Ysgol Bryn Teg, Llanelli

Dr Janet Goodall, associate professor at Swansea University School of Education (and her panda)

Jerri and Joe Kropp and the much-missed Wrigley the dog

Jo Bowers, associate dean at Cardiff Metropolitan University

Joanna Thomas, Georgie the dog, and staff and pupils at Bishop of Llandaff School, Cardiff

John Burns, Abbi Steanson, Natasha Rudge, Katie Gardener and the team, volunteers and dogs at Burns By Your Side, Kidwelly, including Carole and her dog Sally and Emma and her dog Beau

John-Tyler Binfet, associate professor at University of British Columbia, Canada

Jude Penny, University of Gloucestershirevi

Judith Stephenson, Ollie the dog, and staff and pupils at Barbara Priestman Academy, Sunderland

Julie Carson and the staff, pupils and dogs at Woodlands Academy Trust, Bexley and North Kent

June and Mac Allen and the much-missed Honey the dog

Kim Jameson, Willow, Robyn and the much-missed Toby the dog

Laura Braun and Year 5 and 6 pupils at Bury Church of England Primary, West Sussex

Lindsey Watkins and the staff and pupils at Millbrook Primary School, Newport, Gwent

Michael Kaufman and Miyako Kinosita, Green Chimneys, United States

Mike Gough, Claire Whatley, Huw Waythe, Peter Pudding the rabbit, and pupils at Deighton Primary School, Tredegar

Nick Oswald, executive head teacher at Great Ouseburn Community Primary School and Nun Monkton Foundation Primary School, and the late Hedgie hedgehog

Odette Nicholas, Jade the dog, Daisy and Chip the geese, and staff and pupils at Burry Port Community Primary School, Llanelli

Sarah Ellis

Thereza Rees, the much-missed Takoda the dog, and staff and pupils at Glyncollen Primary School, Swansea

Wendy Davies and staff and pupils at Ffrindiau Bach Tegryn nursery, Aberporth

Professor Yamni Nigam and the ‘Love a Maggot’ team at Swansea University

Thanks also to the team at Crown House Publishing – David Bowman, Beverley Randell, Rosalie Williams, Tom Fitton and particularly Emma Tuck for her meticulous eye for detail.

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Contents

Title PageDedicationAcknowledgementsList of figures, tables and boxesIntroductionChapter 1:Tales from the past: human–animal relationships in historyChapter 2:Tales of friendship: animals and their impact on children’s social development and behaviourChapter 3:Tales with feelings: animals and their impact on children’s emotional developmentChapter 4:Literary tales: animals and their impact on children’s language, literacy and communication skillsChapter 5:Tales of adventure: animals and their impact on children’s physical well-being and developmentChapter 6:Tales of all creatures great and small: animals and the curriculumChapter 7:Tales of snails, wolves and teddies: animals as starting points for cross-curricular approachesChapter 8:Cautionary tales: considering the practicalities and ethics of animal-assisted educationChapter 9:Tales of ‘the dog in the playground’: making the most of dogs in schoolsConclusionAppendix 1:Example of a weekly planning sheet to enhance provision for young children’s learning about the life cycle of birdsAppendix 2:Example risk assessment formReferences and further readingIndexCopyrightviii

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List of figures, tables and boxes

Figures

Figure 1.1. Frontispiece of The Criminal Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals

Figure 1.2. A court scene showing the trial of a sow in 1457

Figure 1.3. The cover of the 1888 edition of Goody Two-Shoes

Figure 1.4. A scene from Black Beauty, 1st edn (Sewell, 1877: 121)

Figure 1.5. Hogarth’s Second Stage of Cruelty, 1751. Nero beats his horse while four lawyers look on unperturbed

Figure 1.6. An object lesson on ‘the dog’, 1908

Figure 1.7. A pet club competition, 1906

Figure 1.8. A ‘young farmer’s club’, 1930s

Figure 1.9. Freud and his dog, Jofi, 1937

Figure 2.1. Factors impacting on behaviour

Figure 2.2. Otis, resident at Christ Church (Erith) Church of England Primary School in Kent

Figure 3.1. The development of emotions in children and dogs

Figure 3.2. Rabbits can provide appealing companionship

Figure 4.1. Five components of reading

Figure 4.2. Flynn and his book

Figure 4.3. Dogs make for a patient and relaxing audience

Figure 4.4. An extract from an ethnographer and children’s comics

Figure 5.1. Subtle interaction between Hoola and a child

Figure 5.2. Enjoying a calm interaction

Figure 6.1. A maggot racing gamex

Figure 6.2. Example of an owl pellet dissection sheet

Figure 6.3. Animals in ancient Egypt activities for Key Stage 2

Figure 7.1. Decorated prayer shells

Figure 7.2. Clay wolves

Figure 7.3. Small world bear hunt

Figure 7.4. Mildred’s and Janet’s pandas

Figure 7.5. An example of a describing frame to describe a toy panda

Figure 7.6. Example of a comparing contrasting frame

Figure 7.7. Circle of viewpoints example

Figure 8.1. Dog breed life expectancy

Figure 8.2. The five freedoms

Figure 8.3. Why do rabbits eat their own poo?

Figure 9.1. The process of preparing for a dog in school

Figure 9.2. Burns identification card

Figure 9.3. Burns volunteers and dogs in uniform

Figure 9.4. Letter to parents

Figure 9.5. Sashi’s Paw Plan

Figure 9.6. Signs of progressive stress and anxiety in dogs

Figure 9.7. Trigger stacking in dogs

Figure 9.8. Reading the body language of a dog

Figure 9.9. Subtle and respectful interaction

Figure C.1. The balance scalexi

Tables

Table I.1. Different types of animal-assisted interventions

Table 2.1. Three areas in which children with an autistic spectrum disorder may have difficulties

Table 2.2. Honey the dog’s potential for developing social skills in young children

Table 4.1. Dimensions of motivation to read

Table 6.1. Animals in UK national science curricula

Table 6.2. Skills relating to the foundation phase in Wales (children aged 3–7 years)

Table 6.3. Examples of artwork focusing on animals

Table 8.1. Average life expectancy of common pets

Table 8.2. Average set-up costs of housing three guinea pigs

Table 8.3. Some key information about school pets

Boxes

Box 3.1. The mirror test

Box 3.2. The experience of one psychologist, Joe Kropp, and his therapy dog, Wrigley

Box 4.1. Grace Vobe’s observation of students reading to her therapy dog, Hoola

Box 5.1. Grace Vobe and her therapy dog, Hoola

Box 6.1. An 8-year-old’s interest in insectsxii

Box 6.2. Jo Bowers’ reflection on the educational value of her favourite animal stories

Box 8.1. Ten reasons why it ‘sucks’ to be a class pet

Box 8.2. An animal’s job description

Box 9.1. Dogs and allergies

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Introduction

Clearly, animals know more than we think, and think a great deal more than we know. (Pepperberg, 2013: 214)

One of the Internet sensations of recent years is the remarkable story of Tyler and Beaker in Texas. The story began when 9-month-old Tyler spotted a little duckling called Beaker in the local pet store. Tyler’s father bought Beaker there and then. And over the last four or so years the remarkable intimacy between Tyler and Beaker has been recorded in photographs and videos.1 When Tyler cries, Beaker quacks and runs over to him. Tyler’s first reported word was ‘duck’.

One of the things that most children around the world have in common is their love of animals. Studies show that even when presented with attractive toys to play with, given the choice, young children opt to interact with live animals. Remarkably, Lobue et al. (2013) found that toddlers aged 18–36 months even prefer to interact with potentially harmful animals, such as a black tarantula and a California mountain kingsnake, rather than their favourite toys. For research purposes, these particular creatures were placed in a cage; the outcomes may have been very different if the children had encountered them in the backyard. Psychologists suggest that most children love animals for a combination of reasons. They are attracted by their appearance, noise, movement, visibility and unpredictability, but they also see animals as ‘good listeners’ and comforters. More fundamentally, humans are biologically disposed to care for others, especially those in a vulnerable state. Children naturally stretch out to touch, fondle, cuddle or play with kittens and puppies that are only a few weeks old.

Animals certainly play a prominent part in children’s lives. Around one in two homes in the UK has a pet.2 In another survey covering 4,300 children in the UK, 42% were reported to have more fun playing with their pets than their siblings or friends (Pets at Home, 2015). As soon as children open their eyes, they see 2animal mobiles, toys, pictures, motifs and objects, and they soon hear animal-related fables, stories, songs and rhymes. On average, around a third of a baby’s earliest vocabulary is animal words or sounds. Interestingly, one study of 900 English- and Chinese-speaking children found that even though babies in the United States were unlikely to have ducks living in their immediate families, as compared with children in Beijing, ‘ducks’ still featured in their top twenty words (Tardif et al., 2008).

Of course, there are animals who instil fear and anxiety among humans. More than one in three children (and adults) are reported to strongly dislike spiders and snakes (Muris et al., 1997). Some researchers suggest that over time humans have inherited a hardwired fear of such animals (New and German, 2014). In one recent study, children aged 4 were shown images of spiders and snakes on white backgrounds for five seconds. The children sat on their parents’ laps, but to prevent parents from seeing the images and inadvertently influencing their children’s reactions they were given opaque sunglasses. When the children saw pictures of the snakes and spiders, their pupils consistently dilated more than when they were shown control images of flowers and fish. The dilation of pupils is widely accepted as a sign of stress. It is difficult to overcome the irrational fear of certain creatures. In the children’s book I’m Trying to Love Spiders (Barton, 2015), an arachnophobe tries to overcome her fear. In so doing, she learns about spiders’ impressive web-spinning talents and their habit of consuming insects that are harmful to humans. Education clearly has a key role in helping children to manage their animal phobias.

The western attitude towards animals largely stems from the notion that, as ‘inferior creatures’, they are subservient to humans. After all, humans could tame animals and therefore were superior to them. Historically, legal and religious systems have permitted humans to use animals to meet their needs, even when this might result in the animal’s pain and suffering. Sadly, there is a very long, dark history of the way humans have treated animals, even among those professing to be a nation of animal lovers. For example, it is not widely known that 750,000 pets were destroyed in Britain within one week in the summer of 1939. Pet owners took this decision on the advice of the newly formed National Air Raid Precautions Animals Committee, which urged householders to take their pets to the country for safety or, if they could not do so, ‘it really is kindest to have them destroyed’ (Campbell, 2013: xi).3

Unfortunately, as Horowitz (2019) observes, in the last fifty or so years, despite scientific advances which show that animals feel pain, are capable of rational thinking and (in some cases) demonstrate self-awareness, such knowledge is not universally reflected in the laws of the land.3 Neither is it reflected in practice. For every animal which enjoys human affection, there are myriads more victims of brutality at the hands of humans or machines. Each year, organisations who try to care for and protect animals around the world report unspeakable cases of neglect and cruelty. On average, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) reports that someone rings their 24-hour cruelty line every thirty seconds. In 2019, it received more than 1.2 million telephone calls and each year typically investigates more than 185,000 cases of neglect and cruelty.4 We hope that education can support the development of young people’s understanding and compassion, the need for which features highly in this book.

Throughout this book we use animal-assisted interventions (AAI) as an umbrella term to cover various schemes and initiatives which feature animals for the broad purpose of improving human behaviour in an ethical way. Within the field there are different types of intervention. The American Veterinary Medical Association distinguishes between animal-assisted therapy (AAT), animal-assisted education (AAE), animal-assisted activities (AAA) and AAI resident animals. The differences mainly relate to who provides the intervention and the intended goals (Table I.1). In AAA sessions focusing on reading, children read to a dog mainly on a one-to-one basis, with the dog handler present to ensure safety for all parties while also occasionally offering supportive prompts. In AAE sessions, where there is always an educational goal, the teacher or education expert provides small groups of students with explicit reading strategies and discusses what they have read with them, while the role of the animal is to make the setting more informal and relaxed, thereby motivating the students. Animals can also be actively involved in the sessions, even distributing resources. The use of service animals, such as those which support people with disabilities or those handled by the police, are not considered to represent an AAI.

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Table I.1. Different types of animal-assisted interventions

InterventionMain providerGoalsAnimal-assisted therapyHealth servicesPhysical, social, emotional or cognitiveAnimal-assisted educationSchools, colleges and other educational providersEducationalAnimal-assisted activitiesSpecially trained professionals or volunteersMainly motivational or recreationalAAI resident animalsOwners of particular facilities such as residential care homesSocial

Source: Adapted from https://www.avma.org/KB/Policies/Pages/Animal-Assisted-Interventions-Definitions.aspx

Anthrozoology describes the study of human–animal interactions. As an academic field, it has experienced significant growth over the last twenty-five years. Scholarship has consistently revealed the strong emotional bonds that exist in human–animal relationships, as well as highlighting the broader health benefits humans derive from companion animals for therapeutic purposes.

One of the premises behind AAI is that stress is a significant variable in learning and that it can be mediated through interactions with animals (Sroufe, 2017). The emphasis is very much on fostering students’ self-management skills through AAIs, such as learning to handle stress and self-motivation, as well as building self-confidence and positive attitudes. These social and emotional aspects of learning are discussed further in Chapters 2 and 3. Despite the growing body of literature on AAIs, the theoretical basis is often overlooked. Geist (2011) suggests there is a lack of a coherent, unified conceptual framework, which presents problems for professionals seeking a scientific evaluation of the effectiveness of AAIs and possible funding.5

A less studied but equally valid line of enquiry is the impact such interactions have on animal welfare (Hosey and Melfi, 2018). Becky Bishop owned a dog therapy business in Washington state and took her dogs to visit hospices. She noticed that while people felt better after the visits, her dogs seemed depressed. After hearing about the Reading Education Assistance Dogs (READ) programme, in 2000 Bishop started her own Reading with Rover programme in her local library. She found not only that parents reported gains in their children’s reading, but also that the dogs appeared much happier. On the basis of such stories, there is a need to conduct more systematic and rigorous research on the impact of AAIs on all participants, including the animal.

From an educationalist’s perspective, it is possible to discern the application of various learning and developmental theories to AAIs. Biophilia (literally ‘love of the living world’) suggests that humans have an innate tendency to connect with nature and other forms of life (Wilson, 1990; Kruger and Serpell, 2006). In Chapter 3, we discuss the theory of attachment (Bowlby, 1953, 1969), which posits that learning requires a sense of emotional and physical security gained through ‘attachment’ to another person or, in the context of this book, an animal. Behaviourism emphasises learning through repetition and responding to external stimuli. Ivan Pavlov’s famous experiments on dogs in the 1920s revealed how their behaviour could be conditioned by ringing bells to signal the arrival of food (see McSweeney and Bierley, 1984). The American psychologist John Watson (1930) argued that humans differed from other animals only in the behaviour they demonstrated, and such behaviour could be modified, whereas B. F. Skinner (1965) argued that animal and human behaviour was shaped through positive and negative reinforcement, such as giving rats food pellets or mild electric shocks. Constructivism sees learning as an active process of constructing meaning through interacting with others and their environment. When children interact with animals, they ‘read’ cues and begin to make sense of their surroundings. Jean Piaget’s theory of cognition suggests that children see animals as peers (Piaget, 1929), while, in line with Jerome Bruner’s theory, there are suggestions that ‘play with pets might well have the “horizontal” and symbolic properties shown to be developmentally beneficial’ (Melson, 2001: 11). It is possible to see the influence of these theories when observing AAIs.

‘Learning by doing’ is not so much a theory but a philosophy advocated by John Dewey (1938), who valued first-hand, real-life experience as a basis for learning. Similarly, David Kolb (1984) advocated experiential learning in which students 6engaged in ‘concrete’ experiences, observing and reflecting on these and then abstracting conceptual understanding from them. Through the direct acts of feeding and caring for animals, students acquire knowledge, skills and values that would not be possible through reading about animals or hearing what others have to say.

Motivation has attracted several theories which seek to describe why people behave the way they do. Abraham Maslow (1954) suggested that there is a hierarchy of needs, from basic ones (e.g. food, shelter, love) which must be met before an individual can fulfil his or her talents or potential (a state of self-actualisation). David McClelland (1988) theorised that each of us are motivated by the need for achievement (and the recognition this brings), affiliation (to be with others) and power (to control others). Carol Dweck’s (1986) work on mindsets suggests that some students attribute success to innate talent (fixed) rather than effort and repeated practice (growth). These theorists are relevant to AAIs because motivation is often reported to be a key factor in their success, and is a recurrent theme in this book. Students are intrinsically motivated by their love of animals to interact with them, and learning is optimised when students enjoy the companionship of animals.

The book follows a straightforward structure. Chapter 1 provides a historical overview of human–animal interactions. It highlights how animals have played a central part in humans’ social, spiritual and cultural development, featuring in rituals, ceremonies and customs. While human attitudes towards animals and their treatment of them has always attracted the interest of historians, a growing number of scholars are challenging the notion that only humans make history (e.g. Kean and Howell, 2018). For example, a recent exhibition at the Museum of London called ‘Beasts of London’ explored how animals such as elephants, horses, rats and pigeons have shaped the city and its beastly history. The curators were inspired by the museum’s collection of animal artefacts. Chaline (2011) lists fifty animals – including horses, dogs, rats, beavers, fleas and falcons – that have dramatically changed the course of history.

Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5 focus on particular dimensions of well-being. This is a complex, overarching concept relating to the quality of people’s lives. The Children’s Society definition of well-being is a useful starting point: ‘It is about 7how well we are, and how our lives are going.’5 And so one way of reading this book is to see it as a commentary on how children’s love of animals can contribute to their all-round development or well-being: social (Chapter 2), emotional (Chapter 3), intellectual (Chapter 4) and physical (Chapter 5). These are naturally interrelated dimensions and should be viewed holistically. For example, when a child physically stretches out and smooths an animal, this action releases endorphins in the nervous system, which can reduce anxiety and form the basis of social attachment to animals (Levinson, 1962). It is only out of structural convenience that we examine the physical, social and emotional aspects in isolation.

Chapters 6 and 7 discuss how AAIs can contribute towards learning in different subject areas and across the curriculum. We have not explored the potential of AAIs in every subject; rather, examples are chosen to illustrate possible starting points for teachers in a range of subject and thematic contexts. In some cases, such as science, it should be fairly obvious that learning about animals can develop children’s subject-specific knowledge (e.g. of habitats and life cycles) and skills (e.g. observation, questioning). But animals also feature strongly in less obvious areas, such as the arts, literature, and religious and moral codes.

Chapter 8 addresses the general ethical and practical challenges of managing animals in school. As with any learning experience, careful planning and organisation increase the likelihood of anticipated gains being realised. Finally, given that dogs are the most popular of pets and the growing body of literature surrounding their presence in educational settings, Chapter 9 focuses on maximising the learning potential associated with school dogs. Any intervention that involves animals raises questions about ethical and welfare considerations. As Serpell et al. (2010: 497) point out: ‘the use of animals for animal-assisted activities and therapy imposes a unique set of stresses and strains on them that the “industry” has only recently begun to acknowledge’. The ethical standards underpinning AAIs have not been subjected to any systematic review. Moreover, there are concerns over a lack of standardised training for handlers and practitioners, the absence of regulations regarding working conditions, such as breaks and age restrictions, and the impact such interventions have on the animal’s psychological and physiological condition.

8However, researchers should always adhere to established ethical protocols, with university-based staff expected to follow the respective university’s ethical procedures. Writers themselves also have to make ethical decisions over what to include in their publications based on their own personal convictions. For example, we have not referred to any of the research involving children and dolphins because we believe that the latter should not be kept in aquariums, notwithstanding questions over whether these animals were captured from the wild. Similarly, we have not referred to specific examples of school farms where animals enter the food chain.

Despite the growing interest in AAIs, a running theme throughout the book is the shortage of longitudinal studies to confirm whether the short-term gains which are widely reported are sustainable. However, while longitudinal research provides a stronger evidence base for the benefits or otherwise of AAIs, conducting such research is time-consuming and expensive. An over-reliance on small-scale case studies makes generalisations in a range of educational contexts more difficult. Many such studies rely on personal experiences which are prone to bias because those who are ‘treated’ successfully are naturally inclined to share their stories, raising doubts in the wider scientific community in which hard empirical evidence is sought.

This is not to say that we should dismiss such anecdotes. For example, when 9-year-old Jefro’s autism disrupted the family Christmas, his mum found support through Pawsitive Squad CIC, a non-profit organisation dedicated to helping families of autistic children through the use of dogs (Montague, 2019). The provision of a puppy proved a lifeline in teaching Jefro to handle his stress and anxiety. While they lack the universality that researchers may crave, anecdotes are often more impactful than substantial data. Individual stories leave more of an impression on people than a mass of figures. They are immediate and appeal to the emotions, rather than more abstract and remote statistics which take time to gather, digest and analyse. Nonetheless, more systematic and large-scale studies in diverse settings, which draw on multiple disciplines, will help to enhance our understanding of how, when, where and why animals influence human thinking, emotions and behaviour. Such research will also place AAIs on a more rigorous scientific footing than at present.

Stepping aside from academic questions about research methodology and ethics, it is not surprising that almost all the evidence presents a positive picture of 9interventions. There is a deep-seated attraction to animals embedded in the human psyche. Arguably, there is no need for scientific research to confirm that the mere act of gazing at animals is beneficial to people of all ages. And just in case you had any doubts, scientists have proven that staring at fish lowers people’s blood pressure and reduces heart rate (Knapton, 2015). Perhaps this is why fish tanks are to be found in dental waiting rooms and doctor’s surgeries.10

1 See https://youtu.be/5VcxRepz7TY.

2 See https://www.pdsa.org.uk/get-involved/our-campaigns/pdsa-animal-wellbeing-report/uk-pet-populations-of-dogs-cats-and-rabbits.

3 In 2007, however, the Animal Welfare Act became law in England (already passed in Wales). It places a legal obligation on owners and keepers of animals to care for them properly. In 2019, the case of a police dog called Finn, who was stabbed while pursuing a suspect, highlighted the need for changes in the law to protect service animals who were harmed, and led to the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill.

4 See https://www.rspca.org.uk/whatwedo/latest/facts.

5 See https://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/what-we-do/research/what-is-child-wellbeing; see also Rees et al. (2008).

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Chapter 1

Tales from the past: human–animal relationships in history

We are not animals. We are not a product of what has happened to us in our past. We have the power of choice. (Covey, 2013: 305)

The special relationship between humans and animals, particularly dogs, has a very long history. Deep in Chauvet Cave in southern France archaeologists have found two sets of prints preserved in the soft clay. One set belongs to a child aged between 8 and 10 and the other is the paw prints of a wolf or large dog. Archaeologists think the child was carrying a torch and had stopped during the walk, probably to clean a torch and look at the wall paintings or bear skulls. This is the first recorded dog walk in history and it is estimated to have happened around 26,000 years ago (Harvey, 2019).

This chapter sketches the development of human–animal interactions to provide historical context to the themes discussed in subsequent chapters. While the term ‘animal-assisted interventions’ is a modern one, the basic idea of using animals to improve aspects of human life is very old. Through the ages, animals have provided us with sources of food, clothing, security, entertainment, companionship, wealth and status. They have been worshipped and abused, though not in equal measure. Animals were the main victims of the first agricultural revolution (c.10,000 bc), when humans began the long process of settling and farming the land. Sheep, donkeys, chickens and other animals supplied food (meat, milk and eggs), raw materials (wool and skins) and muscle power. As Harari (2011) points out, the domestication of chickens and cattle was based on brutal practices which included premature slaughtering, mutilation and castration.

Dogs were the first animals to be domesticated by humans. They were used for hunting and fighting, effectively acting as an alarm system against intruders. Over generations, dogs’ keen sense of smell coupled with humans’ 12bow-and-arrow weaponry represented cutting-edge biotechnology to support the development of both species (Fagan, 2009). But dogs were not simply valued for their hunting skills. Our earliest ancestors also appreciated their companionship. In northern Israel, for example, archaeologists discovered a 12,000-year-old tomb containing the skeleton of a 50-year-old woman whose left hand rests on the remains of a puppy (Davis, 1978). One interpretation suggests there was a strong emotional connection between the two, although the puppy may, of course, have been an offering to the gods.

Domestication meant that, over time, humans created dog breeds to suit their purposes. For hunting, bloodhounds are exceptionally good at tracking scents, while collies are intelligent and skilled at herding animals. Other breeds are suited to protecting people and property or demonstrate extraordinary physical stamina. Then there are dogs which have a gentle nature and are suitable as playmates for young children. The evolutionary biologist Mark Pagel (2012) argues that the process of domestication, which he likens to residing in a protective bubble, has changed the temperament and genetic make-up of animals. Domesticated dogs, cats, rats, goats, pigs, sheep and horses all have smaller brains than their prehistoric ancestors. We know that wolves outperform dogs when set searching tasks. Pagel suggests that over the millennia, domestic animals have jettisoned genes they no longer need because humans now do much of the thinking for them. Dogs have become less pack like, while sheep and cows have become calm and relaxed around humans.

An alternative interpretation of these early relationships suggests that it was not humans who domesticated wolves but the other way around. Gradually, some wolves started to live with groups of human hunters and gatherers in a mutually helpful way and, over a long period of time, evolved into dogs. Such a symbiotic relationship even led to a reduction in humans’ sense of smell ‘because our association with dogs had rendered it unnecessary’ (Groves, 2012). Whatever the timing and nature of the human–dog relationship all those millennia ago, the basic principle that this has been a reciprocal one holds true.

In prehistoric societies, it was widely believed that all living creatures and natural objects were imbued with a spirit that animated the body, but which could exist without it. Nineteenth-century anthropologists called this belief system ‘animism’ (from the Latin anima, meaning ‘breath, spirit, life’) and it remains a world view of many indigenous peoples. If animals were treated cruelly, their spirits 13could return to haunt the living, inflict pain and bring about personal or collective misfortune, such as illness or crop failure. The food that people ate and the clothes they wore were, naturally, drawn from animals whose spirits lived on despite the loss of their bodies. When animals were sacrificed to the gods, it was based on the belief that their spirits could convey a positive account of how they were treated, at least up to that point. Animal sacrifice, of course, continues as a prevalent practice around the world. In 2011, for example, the Kyrgyzstan parliament sacrificed seven sheep to drive evil spirits out of the building (Parfitt, 2011).

Ancient civilisations such as Egypt, China, Greece and Rome kept animals for companionship and amusement. They introduced the first menageries, wildlife parks, safaris and zoological gardens as places where animals were collected and displayed to entertain humans. These early zoos also symbolised the status and power of their owners (Carr and Cohen, 2011). We do not know whether pet-keeping in private homes preceded the domestication of animals, but certainly in distant times the owning of pets was something of a luxury. In wealthy households, animals were often pampered. The dogs owned by the Chinese emperors were said to have human wet nurses when pups and, in adulthood, their own servants (Magrane, 2016). Alexander the Great named one of his conquered cities after his favourite dog, Peritas (meaning January). Well-to-do Roman families even paid for tombstones to commemorate their beloved dogs. One grief-struck dog owner declared that he wept with tears for the loss of his dog Patricus: ‘never again shall thou give me a thousand kisses. Never canst thou be contentedly in my lap’ (Abbott, 1912: 187–188).

For thousands of years, humans have used animals for therapeutic purposes. Although the Egyptians sacrificed dogs, they also believed that people’s sores could be healed by a dog’s saliva. The Greeks held the same view and trained dogs to lick wounds at their temple to Asclepius, the god of medicine and healing. Serpell (2010: 22) cites examples of surviving inscriptions which testify to the belief that miracles happened: ‘Thuson of Hermione, a blind boy, had his eyes licked in the daytime by one of the dogs about the temple, and departed cured.’ He suggests that this represents one of the earliest examples of AAIs in history. Similar practices continued through the ages. The first documented example of the therapeutic use of animals in western Europe occurred in ninth-century Geel, Belgium, where animals were part of the thérapies naturelles provided for people with disabilities by members of the community.14

Animals have also found a role in the care of the mentally ill. In 1796, the wealthy philanthropist William Tuke established the York Retreat, which was markedly different from the usual institutions for the insane. Tuke had been moved by the inhumane treatment of a fellow Quaker who died at what was then the York Asylum. Tuke’s new arrangements included provision for gardens and domestic animals (e.g. rabbits, hawks, poultry). Patients wore their own clothing and had the opportunity to work at crafts, read books, write and wander the grounds, spending time interacting with animals. Samuel Tuke (1996 [1813]: 96), the founder’s grandson and mental health reformer, reported that the animals provided ‘the means of innocent pleasure’, while the interchanges ‘tend to awaken the social and benevolent feelings’. In the nineteenth century, the use of pet animals in asylums became more widespread and received support from the British Charity Commissioners.

Animals have had a long association with the world’s major religions. In ancient Egypt it was forbidden to kill cats. They were mummified in such huge numbers that in the early twentieth century archaeologists sold the remains in bucket loads to be ground up as fertiliser (Clutton-Brock, 1981). In Christianity, God told Adam and Eve to ‘Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it; you are masters of the fish and birds and all the animals’ (Genesis 1:28). This mandate of human domination over animals set the course throughout much of Western Christendom’s history, although it should also be noted that the Bible commands Christians to afford animals sufficient rest, food and protection (Exodus 23:4–5). In Hinduism, many animals are venerated, particularly the cow, tiger, elephant and mouse, because of the belief that God resides in all living things. Judaism also teaches that animals are part of God’s creation and should be treated with compassion, given that God made a covenant with animals. In Islam, the Muslim aversion to dogs and pigs along with the Arab affinity for horses, hawks and camels are well-known stereotypes.1 Buddhists believe that animals are sentient creatures with the potential for enlightenment and so treat them with respect, especially given that humans could be reborn as animals.

While religious belief and tradition has shaped the ways in which humans look upon animals, it is the legal system which has governed the parameters of their interaction. Particular species of animals have been protected by law as far back 15as ancient Greece, when, for example, it was illegal to kill storks and grass snakes because they were the most effective means of keeping vipers and rodents under control. And societies have long held strict regulations governing the sale and slaughter of animals.

Under ancient Persian law, animals themselves were regarded as responsible for their actions. Hence, if a mad dog bit a person or sheep, it was punished along the same lines as if it had attempted to commit premeditated murder. The punishment took the form of progressive mutilation, beginning with the loss of the ears and ending with the amputation of the tail, the extent of the punishment depending on the number of victims. Similarly, in western countries from the thirteenth to the eighteenth centuries, animals could be placed on trial for alleged crimes. In his fascinating account, The Criminal Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals, Evans points out that some of the animals were attended to by a defence attorney and the verdict decided by a judge in the face of a prosecutor and witnesses. In 1457, a sow in France was found guilty of murdering a 5-year-old boy and sentenced to be ‘hanged by the hind feet to a gallows-tree’. Her six blood-stained sucklings were included in the original indictment as accomplices. However, they were acquitted due to a lack of any proof that they had assisted in ‘mangling the deceased’ (Evans, 1906: 225). In old Germanic law, it was possible for someone accused of a crime to bring before the court animals as witnesses. Hence, in the case of night burglary, where other witnesses were not available, an injured householder could bring in his cat, dog or rooster as a silent witness of the crime, while under French law a man accused of murder in his own house could swear his innocence in the presence of his cat, dog or cockerel (Hyde, 1916).

Evans lists caterpillars, flies, locusts, leeches, snails, slugs, worms, weevils, rats, mice, moles, turtle doves, pigs, bulls, cows, cocks, dogs, asses, mules, mares and goats as culprits brought before the courts. While this might make the modern-day person chuckle at the thought of caterpillars and the like being cross-examined, there was a serious side to this. Medieval and early modern thinking was shaped by superstition and the hard life-and-death realities of a successful harvest. So, the courts took seriously Captain J. B. Pestalozzi, who in 1659 brought a complaint against ‘certain caterpillars on account of the devastations committed by them’ in five areas of Italy. He demanded ‘that these hurtful creatures be summoned by the proper sheriff’. A summons was immediately issued and five copies posted on trees in the surrounding forests 16(Evans, 1906: 149–150). The illiterate caterpillars were duly charged with ‘trespassing upon the fields, gardens and orchards and doing great damage therein, instead of remaining in their habitat, the forest’. Most significant for the modern reader are the judge’s comments about the rights of caterpillars ‘to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’, provided the exercise of this right ‘does not destroy or impair the happiness of man, to whom all lower animals are subject’. It is noteworthy that the rights of living creatures were being discussed in the courtrooms of western Europe 400 years ago.

Figure 1.1. Frontispiece of The Criminal Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals

Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/43286/43286-h/43286-h.htm

Figure 1.2. A court scene showing the trial of a sow in 1457

Source: Chambers’ Book of Days (1869): http://www.thebookofdays. com/months/jan/17.htm

It has long been recognised that education has a key role to play in preventing the abuse of animals. The English poet and philosopher John Locke (1693) suggested that young girls be given ‘dogs, squirrels, or such things’ to look after as a means of encouraging them to develop empathy for others and a sense of responsibility. Locke thought that through caring for animals, children would learn to care for others. Similarly, the seventeenth-century English political 17philosopher Thomas Hobbes advocated giving children opportunities to care for animals, albeit so they could curb their own beastlike tendencies (see Myers, 1998).

The notion of children taking responsibility in the care of animals became a theme in children’s literature in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In 1765, the anonymous fable Goody Two-Shoes was published as the very first major work of children’s fiction in English (Figure 1.3). It featured the heroine Margery Meanwell, who devoted her life to the care of maltreated animals, and whose actions popularised the phrase ‘goody two-shoes’ to describe a do-gooder or overly virtuous individual.

But it is Anna Sewell’s hugely successful Black Beauty: The Autobiography of a Horse (1877) that represents the peak of this moralising trend of kindness towards animals. In Chapter 13, the reader is left in no doubt that ‘there is no religion without love, and people may talk as much as they like about their religion, but if it does not teach them to be good and kind to man and beast, it is all a sham’. The Victorian moral and social mores are well illustrated in one scene when Black Beauty stumbles and throws his rider, Reuben Smith, to the ground. Smith is portrayed as a gentle and caring groom but with one major failing, alcohol, which was widely seen by respectable society as the main source of moral corruption among the poor. On the night in question, the ‘madly drunk’ Smith demands that Black Beauty rides at full speed in the dark, whereby the poor horse catches a stone, splits his hoof and throws Smith to the ground:

The moon had just risen above the hedge, and by its light I could see Smith lying a few yards beyond me. He did not rise, he made one slight effort to do so, and then, there was a heavy groan. I could have groaned too, for I was suffering intense pain both from my foot and knees; but horses are used to bear their pain in silence.

As for Smith’s wife and six small children, they are consigned to the much-dreaded workhouse. Beauty tears his knee, ending his life as an admired carriage show horse.18

Figure 1.3. The cover of the 1888 edition of Goody Two-Shoes

Source: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Goody_Two-Shoes_(1888)

Figure 1.4. A scene from Black Beauty, 1st edn (Sewell, 1877: 121)

Source: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Black_Beauty#/media/File:Black_Beauty_(1877),_page_6.jpg

Unfortunately, regular reports from the RSPCA (established in 1824) highlight extraordinary cases of abuse against animals. In 1906, one typical inspector’s report from north Wales referred to humans beating donkeys, kicking horses, mutilating dogs, plucking feathers from a live pigeon and placing hot cinders under a horse’s tail.2 In 1911, the Protection of Animals Act was passed to try to prevent such outright cruelty to animals, although this has persisted.

Cats, of all domesticated animals, have had a torrid history since they were once revered and honoured by the ancient Egyptians. For a thousand or so years, they have been associated with the devil and persecuted as a result. They were massacred whenever a plague broke out, most notably during the Black Death (1348) and Great Plague of London (1665), which ironically made the outbreaks worse in that there was one less control over the rodent population. In France during the 1730s, printers’ apprentices became so jealous of their masters’ cats, 19who they believed were fed better, that they arranged for their mass slaughter in ‘the Great Cat Massacre’.

The English artist William Hogarth highlighted the plight of dogs, horses, cats and other animals in his series of engravings known as the Four Stages of Cruelty, published in 1751 (Figure 1.5). The fictional Tom Nero begins his path of cruelty by torturing a dog, ‘progressing’ to beating his horse, and then to robbery and murder. His ‘reward’ is to be hung on the gallows, after which his body is dissected by surgeons. Hogarth was dismayed by the cruelty to animals he saw on the streets of London, and his prints – which appeared on cheap paper – were targeted at the lower classes often held responsible for such despicable acts. The simple moral message was that the path from childish thug to convicted criminal was a short one.

Figure 1.5. Hogarth’s Second Stage of Cruelty, 1751. Nero beats his horse while four lawyers look on unperturbed

Source: https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/hogarth/hogarth-hogarths-modern-moral-series/hogarth-hogarths-4

While legislation was one solution to animal cruelty, education was another. With the development of compulsory elementary schooling in the late nineteenth century, the potential of using animals in schools attracted the interest of educational reformers. In 1869, the philanthropist Angela Burdett-Coutts, who was passionate about animal welfare, wrote to The Times calling for ‘systematic teaching’ in schools about ‘the principles of humanity towards animals and a knowledge of their structure, treatment, and value to man’.3 This was a plea in the context of growing concern about the ill-treatment of animals.

20Animals had featured in educational books for many years, first as a means of helping children learn to read and later as a form of moral instruction. One of the earliest reading books, the seventeenth-century Latin primer Orbis sensualium pictus (‘The World of Things’, 1658) contains phrases such as the ‘Duck quacketh’ and the ‘Bear grumbleth’. The idea was that children would learn the alphabet by mimicking animal noises. In the eighteenth century, a market developed for children’s books which offered an ideal means of conveying moral and religious truths. One of the most popular was Sarah Trimmer’s Fabulous Histories (1786), which tells the story of how a family of baby robins and human children learn to live side by side in harmony (Shaw, 2015).

In the 1890s, the Church of England Society for Promoting Kindness to Animals (established 1893) lobbied the Education Department to include time in the curriculum for children to learn about the nature and requirements of familiar animals. Arthur Acland, secretary of the Education Department, responded by pointing out that new instructions to schools would direct them to talk about animals in ‘object lessons’, in which the emphasis was to be on highlighting the importance of being kind to animals. He suggested that schools might host ‘caged birds, fish in aquariums or doves in the playground’.4 Perhaps because of logistical reasons or fear of inciting too much excitement among the children, teachers preferred pictures of animals or even stuffed versions rather than the animals themselves (Figure 1.6).

Many teachers also misunderstood the purpose of these lessons, which was to stimulate children’s curiosity about animal life – not ‘a lecture but a lesson full of questions so directed as to make the children discover as much as possible for themselves’.5

21

Figure 1.6. An object lesson on ‘the dog’, 1908

Source: Lowndes (1937: 36). Jews’ Free School, Whitechapel. London Metropolitan Archives

During the first half of the twentieth century, as the curriculum broadened, schools became more creative with their teaching approaches. In the more progressive schools, nature study and local walk-arounds became popular, which enabled children to gain more first-hand experience of wildlife through visits to farms and zoos. In some schools, children ran pet competitions (Figure 1.7) and learned to look after animals such as chickens (Figure 1.8).

Figure 1.7. A pet club competition, 1906

Source: Lowndes (1937: 141). Cited source: Miss L. E. Walters, late HMI22

Figure 1.8. A ‘young farmer’s club’, 1930s

Source: Lowndes (1937: 141). Cited source: Kent Local Education Authority

In the nineteenth century, interest in animal intelligence grew in the wider context of what makes us human and distinct from non-human animals. Most famously, in 1868 Charles Darwin published his two-volume The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication, based on his extensive studies of domestic animals, wild fowl, goldfish, bees, cultivated plants, ornamental trees, fruits, flowers and the like. Darwin was informed not only through his own meticulous observations but by spending time with those who worked every day with animals. He socialised, for example, with ‘pigeon fanciers’ in the local ‘gin palace’, or drinking house, gaining information about differences among pigeons. His daughter Henrietta also developed an interest in pigeons, recalling ‘the Pouter pigeon was good-natured but not clever, and I remember a hen Jacobin which I considered rather feeble-minded’ (Bodio, 2009). Followers of Darwin concluded that even the humblest of animals were capable of rational thought and that human and non-human animals only differed by degrees of intelligence rather than differences in kind.