Encyclopedia of animal rights and animal 206

Disasters and Animals | 163 animal patients Typically, the misbehavior of animals was not seen as being their fault, but as being caused by the stress of being in the clinic or the pain the animals were experiencing While patients’ unruliness usually was not interpreted as being due to moral failings, veterinarians were rarely as charitable in their evaluations of owners The bad behavior of patients was commonly seen as the fault of bad (ignorant, weak, overly permissive) clients Social control—the mechanisms employed in order to maintain individual behavior within the bounds of social norms—is directly related to the issue of deviance and is associated with the relationships between people and animals Dogs, horses, and other animals have been, and continue to be, used in law enforcement as tools or weapons to assist in the maintenance of social order In a study of K-9 officers and their patrol dogs, Sanders (2006) stresses the ambivalence of this relationship, as officers are torn between regarding their dogs as tool or weapons (and thereby expendable) and as friends and partners in crime control Further Reading Dekkers, Midas.1994 Dearest pet: On bestiality London: Verso Evans, E P 1987 The criminal prosecution and capital punishment of animals/1906 Boston: Faber and Faber Fine, Gary Alan and Lazaros Christoforides 1991 Dirty birds, filthy immigrants, and the English sparrow war: Metaphorical linkage in constructing social problems Symbolic Interaction 14(4): 375–393 Hearne, Vickie 1991 Bandit: Dossier of a dangerous dog New York: HarperCollins Laurent, Erick 1995 Definition and Cultural Representation of the Ethnocategory Mushi in Japanese Culture Society and Animals 3(1): 61–77 Sanders, Clinton 1994 Biting the hand that heals you: Encounters with problematic patients in a general veterinary practice Society and Animals 1(3): 47–66 Sanders, Clinton 2006 The dog you deserve: Ambivalence in the K-9 officer/patrol dog relationship Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 35(2): 148–172 Clinton R Sanders DISASTERS AND ANIMALS Any catastrophic event that affects people on a large scale will also affect animals Pets, wildlife, livestock, and captive animals face risks from floods, hurricanes, and earthquakes Fire, drought, and disease can affect wild animals Animals also face risks in technological disasters such as nuclear accidents, oil spills, terrorist attacks, and chemical leaks In addition, large-scale disease outbreaks, such as avian flu, SARS, and foot-and-mouth disease, can devastate livestock populations and local economies Moreover, many diseases are zoonotic, meaning they can spread between humans and animals The intensive agriculture practices widely used today present ideal environments for the rapid spread of livestock disease The close confinement and transportation of birds and animals destined for slaughter means that a disease outbreak in one facility can quickly escalate into a regional or national disaster that devastates the economy Animal stakeholders of all kinds, including pet owners, breeders, zoo keepers, farmers, veterinarians, and others face unique challenges in planning and response The difference between a disaster and an emergency is a matter of scale In both cases, the response begins locally In an