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Kerri Schopf
CAS 137H
Ben Henderson
10/29/15
Paradigm Shift of Pets into Members of the Family
Pets are no longer just creatures of amusement, enjoyable for the owner to feed
and forget. Pets are no longer bred simply for functionality. Pets have become part of the
family. They are included in Holiday cards, they are doted upon with gifts, they are given
fancy meals, and they receive presents on their birthdays. This is not normal behavior for
a pet owner just 30 years ago, but is a recent change brought about by the deeper
understanding and appreciation the American public has towards their animals. Animals
were seen as sacred, and one with humanity in the 1600s when Native American roamed
North America. The settlers that came did not have the same respect for animals, and pets
were simply creatures of amusement. Although many royal figures owned pets, they were
not seen as an integral part of the family. Over the years, pets became completely
aesthetic. Dogs were bred for hunting, protection, and size. Cats were kept around to take
care of the mouse problems in the home (Crandal). The animals were not seen as sentient
beings capable of returning any love that was given to them. The most recent shift
occurred during the 1980s, when companion animals were seen as family members rather
than just a fun toy for the family to enjoy. Over the past 30 years the American view of
pets in the household has changed from functional helpers and ornaments to pampered
family members, which indicates increased awareness of animal capacity for complex

emotions. To simply this analysis most of the discussion will revolve around dogs
specifically, although it may apply to many animals. This essay will address what the
differences are before the 1980s and after, why the change occurred, and how this new
attitude will shape the physical, emotional, and mental health of the families that have
companion animals.
Prior to the 1980s pets were still seen as creatures less complex and sentient than
humans. In a book entitled History of Pets, written in 1917, the author describes pets as
little creatures and speaks of them as if they are objects (Crandal). The authors word
choice was a conscious decision to demonstrate inferiority of the pets and the inhuman
qualities that it has. Authors writing about pets in the past 30 years have moved to words
like companion animal because this reference humanizes the pets. Google nGram
demonstrates that both the word pet and companion animal have been increasing in use
while the word creature has been drastically declining (Google Books). This just proves
the shift that has already been observed in the culture. The shift in language is reflective
of the shift in action. Literature referencing animals in todays culture describes the
appearance of the dogs, and the common personality of certain breeds, as well as the
basic care needed, while literature written before the 1980s focuses more on the function
of the animals. The History of Pets explains how to care for the dogs if they will remain
outdoors, how to set up their shelter, and their success in hunting. It also claims that cats
are kept around as a check to the increase of rats and mice (Crandal). This further
demonstrates the way humans thought of their animals as ornaments or tools rather than
human-like pets. The book written in 1917 would remark about the appearance of the

dog, but it would center on the functional use, or ornamental value of the animal rather
than how cute it is. Animals before the 1980s were seen as ornaments and tools to use
around the house, and the shift towards animals being thought of as human-like
companions only occurred in the last 30-40 years.
This shift not only changed the way humans thought about animals, but also on
how they treated animals. Pets used to be given scraps of the family meals, or kept
outside throughout the night, or given little affection, but all of this has changed in the
past 30 years. In her article Walsh explains The amount of money spent on pets has
doubled over the past decade, exceeding the gross national product of many developing
nations (Walsh). The increase in spending is due to greater pampering of their
companions. Along with the increased attachment humans have towards their pets comes
increased desire to treat them to little luxuries. Just as a parent will dote upon their
children, pet owners will dote upon their pets. Walsh says later in her paper that pet
owners pay more for veterinary care, surgeries, fancy meals, spas, and day care (Walsh).
All of these things would be given to a human child without second thought, but it is a
more recent mindset that makes it commonplace to be given to a dog. These things stem
from the shift from master over the animals to guardian of their pets (Walsh). The master
mindset common before the 1980s caused humans to give little extra care to their
animals, while the new family oriented mindset gave humans a reason to truly nurture
their companions.
The shift becomes apparent when comparing literature but the reasons behind it
are not so clear-cut. It began when humans were able to advance their technology enough

not to fear nature (Mullins). The fear was replaced by respect and an increased desire to
understand it. This however was only one small step towards the ideologies of today.
Humans still believed that other life forms had been created expressly for the purpose of
human exploitationhumans alone possessed rationality, language, consciousness, or
emotions (Mullins). These beliefs have since been disproven by a number of scientific
discoveries. For this reason, a great deal of the credit for the paradigm shift of animals as
family members can be given to the scientific advances made since the 1980s. One man,
undertaking what he called the Dog Project, took an MRI of a dogs brain to discover
what they actually were thinking. He discovered that they definitely responded to
different humans in different ways based on whether or not they were familiar. Not only
this, but he proved they dont simply love humans because that is their food source. They
have complex emotions that stem from their emotional connection to their owners.
(Berns, 2014). This was an astounding breakthrough supporting the anthropomorphic
thinking about pets. Another man, a psychologist, owns a dog named Chaser who is able
to identify over 1,000 different objects. The most important discovery made with this is
the fact that the dog is capable of inferential thinking (Cooper, 2014). These kinds of
discoveries provide the evidence to people with pets that their dog really is capable of
complex emotions, therefore is worthy as a human-like companion.
The scientific discoveries, when paired with personal experiences validate what
humans have begun to notice in their dogs: the ability to have complex emotional
reactions to stimuli. This realization has caused humans to relate to their pets and look to
dogs as companions. Walsh explains that dogs are able to read human cues and behavior,

accurately interpreting even subtle hand gestures and glances (Walsh). Humans have
begun to notice this in their own dogs and so interact with them more, forming a real
bond with the dog. Dogs are also always watching and interpreting, and they adapt their
behavior according to what they believe we are thinking (Parvin). This is huge because it
shows the capacity for empathy, which humans most relate to. It is the emotional
connection formed because of this shared empathy that spurs humans to attribute humanlike qualities to their dogs and therefore treat them like family. This quality about dogs
has only been realized in the past 30 years because of the increased contact and reliance
humans have had with their pets. Walsh points out that life has become increasingly fast
paced and stressful (Walsh). Along with this, divorce rates have increased causing pets to
become the new confidants rather than spouses. The increased close interaction with dogs
has given humans the opportunity to discover their pets abilities to understand humans,
and contributed to the recent paradigm shift of pets as family members.
This new interaction with dogs has had an effect on the physical, emotional, and
mental states of the owners. The increased contact with dogs has led to the discovery that
they have the ability to detect diseases such as cancer. There have been many cases of
dogs pointing out cancerous moles to their owners, and even one dog who was tested and
able to find colorectal cancer 33/37 times (Tse, 2015). A little more generally, owners of
dogs are found to have a better immune system and lower blood pressure (Walsh). These
benefits are a result of the humans close contact with their animals, a behavior that is
only more common in the past 30-40 years.

The mental and emotional benefits of dogs in the family are even more numerous
and apparent. The benefits begin from early childhood because children are actually able
to understand care and affection better from dogs than even their parents (Blazina).
Because dogs are seen as family members, children are able to have a closer
companionship with them, and in turn learn more from their furry friends. It is proven
that dogs promote positive psychosocial development of children and that the
presence of a dog lowers the behavioral, emotional, and verbal distress of a child in
stressful situations (Blazina). Furthermore, when children grow up with a dog in the
family they have enhanced self-esteem (Zasloff and Hart) because of their close
interactions with their dog. With the increased negativity in the American life, it is
important that children get to experience pure relationships, and dogs are like pure
siblings the children are able to relate to. Dogs benefit adults just as much as they do
children too. Simply petting a dog triggers the release of neurochemicals associated with
relaxation (Walsh).
Without the scientific discoveries that have been made regarding dogs in the past
30-40 years, it may have taken dogs much longer to work their way into the family
structure of humans. Before the 1980s animals were seen as hunting tools and ornaments
that were attractive to observe. They eventually shifted into an integral part of the family;
they were loved, pampered, and relied on as a confidant. The scientific discoveries made,
and the increased reliance on dogs as companions has resulted in the common view that
dogs are just like children or siblings. The result of this is the increased welfare of
families physical, mental, and emotional health.

Words: 1755
Works Cited
Berns, Gregory. "Neuroscientist Gregory Berns Reveals What Dogs Are Thinking." Interview by
Claudia Kawczynska. Bark: Dog Is My Co-Pilot 1997-2015: n. pag. Web.
Blazina, Christopher, Guler Boyraz, and David Shen-Miller, eds. The Psychology of the HumanAnimal Bond. Springer, n.d. PDF.
Cooper, Anderson. "The Smartest Dog in the World." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 5 Oct. 2014.
Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
Crandal, Lee S. Pets: Their History and Care. New York: Henry Holt, 1917. Biodiversity
Heritage Library. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Google Books. Ngram Viewer. Google, 2013. Web. 27 Oct 2015.
Mullin, Molly H. "Mirrors and Windows: Sociocultural Studies on Human-animal
Relationships." Annual Review of Anthropology 28 (1999): 201-24. ProQuest. Web. 21
Oct. 2015.
Parvin, Paige. "Gregory Berns on What Our Dog Is Thinking." Emory Magazine. Emory
University, Winter 2014. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.
Tse, Iris. "7 Surprising Health Benefits of Dog Ownership." Live Science. Purch, 30 Nov. 2012.
Web. 27 Oct. 2015.

Walsh, Froma, PHD. "Human-Animal Bonds I: The Relational Significance of Companion


Animals." Family Process 54.3 (2009): 462-80. Rpt. in N.p.: Blackwell, n.d. ProQuest.
Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Walsh, Froma, PHD. "Human-Animal Bonds II: The Role of Pets in Family Systems and Family
Therapy." Family Process 48.4 (2009): 481-99. ProQuest. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Zasloff, R. L., and L. A. Hart. "Animals in Elementary School Education in California." Journal
of Applied Animal Welfare Science 2.347 (1999): n. pag. Web.

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