Article ID: CBB001214610

In Dogs We Trust? Intersubjectivity, Response-Able Relations, and the Making of Mine Detector Dogs (2014)

unapi

The utility of the dog as a mine detector has divided the mine clearance community since dogs were first used for this purpose during the Second World War. This paper adopts a historical perspective to investigate how, why, and to what consequence, the use of minedogs remains contested despite decades of research into their abilities. It explores the changing factors that have made it possible to think that dogs could, or could not, serve as reliable detectors of landmines over time. Beginning with an analysis of the wartime context that shaped the creation of minedogs, the paper then examines two contemporaneous investigations undertaken in the 1950s. The first, a British investigation pursued by the anatomist Solly Zuckerman, concluded that dogs could never be the mine hunter's best friend. The second, an American study led by the parapsychologist J. B. Rhine, suggested dogs were potentially useful for mine clearance. Drawing on literature from science studies and the emerging subdiscipline of animal studies, it is argued that cross-species intersubjectivity played a significant role in determining these different positions. The conceptual landscapes of Zuckerman and Rhine's disciplinary backgrounds are shown to have produced distinct approaches to managing cross-species relations, thus explaining how diverse opinions on minedog can coexist. In conclusion, it is shown that the way one structures relationships between humans and animals has profound impact on the knowledge and labor subsequently produced, a process that cannot be separated from ethical consequence.

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Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB001214610/

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Authors & Contributors
Elan Barenholtz
Alexandra DeCesare
Brad Bolman
Stephen Hoover
Emily N. Stark
Kelle Dhein
Concepts
Animal behavior
Behavioral sciences
Animals
Dogs; cats
Science and war; science and the military
Animal psychology
Time Periods
20th century
20th century, early
19th century
Early modern
Medieval
21st century
Places
United States
Great Britain
Americas
Japan
Europe
Egypt
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