Carrots and sticks: a discourse on interspecies partnership and culture in dog sport

[摘要] English: Dogs are not only good to think but good to live and become with. In this study I exploredthe overarching concerns of interspecific relations among 'schutzhund people: anemerging multispecies sub-culture in South Africa pertaining to a German dog sport calledschutzhund. Four predominant areas of investigation developed: dog training philosophy,dog-human communication, interspecies partnership, and multispecies culture.The aim of this study was to conduct an ethnographic enquiry into the culture (i.e. mindsand lives) of dog-handler partners in the multispecies total institution of schutzhund. A blendof multiple techniques was used to gather information, including in-depth interviews,participant observation, photography, and kinesics. Data was collected from multiple sitesand analysed by means of triangulation. An attempt was made at combatting the'problem of voice so common in human-animal studies by including dogs in the researchprocess as subjects rather than objects.Primary findings revealed firstly, that dog-training philosophy has a direct impact on howhumans perceive dogs. Three key training philosophies were identified, namely: carrots(positive reinforcement), sticks (compulsion), and motivational training (a combinationmethod). Secondly, the components and requirements for dog-human conversations weredescribed in the form of a toolkit. The concept of speaking bodies emerged as dog andhuman co-created their own 'third language in training. Thirdly, research portrayed theinterspecies partnership between dog and handler as a dance; an attempt at synchronizednegotiations of power, control, and leadership. Various interactive restrictions were exposedsuch as ambiguity, inconsistency, and anthropomorphism. I argue here that the relationalboundaries between humans and animals are markedly blurred by mutual embodiment.Finally, dogs were characterized as agents of empire who were discovered to be coconstructersof the social and cultural realities humans share with them. Findings alsopointed to schutzhund as serious leisure and in conflict with many 'real-life commitmentswhich raised various political and feminist concerns.

[发布机构] University of the Free State