Animals Make Us Human A Book Review
Dr. Temple Grandin's Latest Book Sensibly Examines Animal Emotions
Jun 22, 2009
The basic premise of Animals Make Us Human, a book by Dr.Temple Grandin (coauthored by Catherine Johnson), is that all animals possess a sensory-based memory. That is, every species experiences the world by, "thinking and remembering in pictures instead of words."
Such a conviction may seem obvious, as it is a well-known fact that animals cannot speak. Dr. Grandin's point of view, however, directs the reader to a different, more telling truth: an animal's inability to use spoken language does not indicate that it is also emotionally deficient.
Emotion and Animals
Dr. Grandin argues her stance forthrightly, as she mentions veterinarians and other professionals who "deny feelings and emotions in animals." Her counter is that such individuals do not want to believe that animals possess an emotional make-up. It is their "own emotions," she writes, "getting in the way of logic."
Dr. Grandin offers both scientific and pragmatic evidence to account for animal emotions. She writes that, "the same psychiatric medications, such as Prozac, that work for humans also work for animals." Moreover, if one were to, "dissect a pig's brain it's difficult to tell the difference between the lower-down part of the animal's brain," and that of a human brain, which is where both humans and animals synthesize core emotions.
Dr. Grandin cites studies where veterinary professionals attempt to measure the heart rates of animals in distress. The theory behind such an experiment is that, if an animal is "violently struggling and crying," without a significant rise in heart rate, then the animal must not be experiencing negative emotions.
But Dr. Grandin assumes otherwise. Rather than basing a conclusion on tests generated by modern machinery, she relies on good old observation and common sense. She asks whether the aforementioned professionals would reach the same conclusion if they, "measured a low heart rate in a person screaming in pain because the dentist's drill just hit a nerve? No. They would see the whole person as more important than some readings on an instrument."
Dr. Grandin's response to such a study is a prime example of the many practical revelations that fill this book.
Autism and Animal Insight
Dr. Grandin is recognized as one of the most successful people living with Autism today, and she attributes her keen ability to understand animal emotion and behavior to her autonomous mind. She states that, "animals naturally lack language and autistic people have language problems," and that, "to understand animals you need to get away from language and think in pictures, sounds, touch sensations, smells, and tastes.”
But this is not a book about Autism. As the title pronounces, it is one dedicated to creating and maintaining, "the best lives for animals."
The chapters are divided according to species. Dr. Grandin first identifies the physical and mental characteristics of dogs, cats, pigs, horses etc. within their natural habitat, then questions whether their needs are satisfied under human care as pets, on farms, and in zoos and slaughterhouses.
Dogs, for example, are "genetic wolves that have evolved to live and communicate with humans." Grandin concludes that they can read human body language better than any animal, including chimpanzees. In their natural habitat, however, dogs are animals that roam for hours on end, so keeping a dog chained up, in a cage, or even alone in a house for long periods of time severely damages its emotional well being.
In fact, Dr. Grandin believes that cattle in slaughter plants have better emotional lives than some of the most pampered dogs kept within the confines of what humans consider a comfortable living space.
What Animals Need
Cats are wilder than dogs or wolves, and they "talk in smells," but are, "not solitary, self-sufficient loners the way a lot of people think." Because cows are herd animals, they, "need to be close to their buddies and family members," and" "pigs are highly curious animals that have to have something to do with their minds and their snouts..."
But because it isn’t safe to let pets roam free for miles and miles, and because today’s factory farming methods often keep herd animals in isolation and without activities to satisfy their innate curiosities, it is important that people provide substitute activities that work to maintain positive emotions in animals.
These simple, smart and kind observations are endless and indispensable to all animal caretakers from pet owners to animal scientists, from zoologists to slaughterhouse plant managers.
Animals Make Us Human is a pure reflection of Dr. Grandin’s unusual mind, as it reads extraordinarily as both a reference book and a memoir. The insights found within extend to human emotion as well, as the reader both relates to and instinctually feels the truths behind them. This is a book filled with observations and answers that read like wise reminders, and it is brimming with small, smart declarations like, “people are animals, too,” and, “it’s wrong to treat animals badly.”
References
Grandin, Temple and Catherine Johnson. Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Lives for Animals. Orlando, Florida: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009.
ISBN: 978-0-15-101489-7
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