Why dogs hump and bees get depressed: the fascinating science of animal intelligence, emotions, friendship, and conservation

376 Pages·2013·2.35 MB·English

by  Marc Bekoff

More praise for Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed
“Marc Bekoff’s wide-ranging books are unfailingly scholarly, entertaining,
insightful, and educational.”
— Ingrid E. Newkirk, president of PETA
“Dr. Marc Bekoff has, in his characteristically brilliant, accessible, eclectic, and
compassionate style, rendered unequivocally clear nothing less than an animal
protection manifesto that is likely to resonate for years.”
— Michael Charles Tobias, PhD, president of the Dancing Star Foundation
WHY DOGS HUMP AND BEES GET DEPRESSED
Also by Marc Bekoff
Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears (a children’s book with Jill Robinson) The
Animal Manifesto: Six Reasons for Expanding Our Compassion Footprint Wild
Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals (with Jessica Pierce) Animals at Play: Rules
of the Game (a children’s book) The Emotional Lives of Animals: A Leading
Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy — and Why They Matter
Animals Matter: A Biologist Explains Why We Should Treat Animals with
Compassion and Respect Animal Passions and Beastly Virtues: Reflections on
Redecorating Nature The Ten Trusts (with Jane Goodall)
Minding Animals: Awareness, Emotions, and Heart
Nature’s Life Lessons: Everyday Truths from Nature (with Jim Carrier)
Edited by Marc Bekoff
Ignoring Nature No More: The Case for Compassionate Conservation
Encyclopedia of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare
Encyclopedia of Human-Animal Relationships
Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior
The Cognitive Animal:
Empirical and Theoretical Perspectives on Animal Cognition (with Colin Allen
and Gordon Burghardt)
The Smile of a Dolphin: Remarkable Accounts of Animal Emotions

Copyright © 2013 by Marc Bekoff All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in
part, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, or
other — without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages
in a review.
These essays appeared in a different form at Psychology Today’s website.
Text design by Tona Pearce Myers Photo on page 272 by Heather McWilliams Mierzejewski; illustration
on page 138 by Lenny Frieling. All other photos by Marc Bekoff.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bekoff, Marc.
[Essays. Selections]
Why dogs hump and bees get depressed : the fascinating science of animal intelligence, emotions,
friendship, and conservation / Marc Bekoff.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-60868-219-5 (pbk.) — ISBN 978-1-60868-220-1 (ebook) 1. Animal behavior. I. Title.
QL751.B3655 2013
591.5—dc23
2013024533
First printing, November 2013
ISBN 978-1-60868-219-5
Printed in the United States on 100% postconsumer-waste recycled paper

New World Library is proud to be a Gold Certified Environmentally Responsible Publisher. Publisher certification
awarded by Green Press Initiative. www.greenpressinitiative.org
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
CONTENTS
Preface: Sharing and Celebrating the Fascinating Lives of Other Animals
Part 1. Animals and Us: Reflections on Our Challenging,
Frustrating, Confusing, and Deep Interrelationships with Other
Animals
What in the World Do My Essays Have to Do with Psychology?
Animals in Our Brain: Mickey Mouse, Teddy Bears, and “Cuteness”
Conservation Psychology and Animal and Human Well-Being: Scientists Must
Pay Attention to the Social Sciences
Pets Are Good for Us: Where Science and Common Sense Meet
Children and Animals: Teach the Children Well
Nature-Deficit Disorder Redux: Kids Need to Get Off Their Butts
Animals and Inmates: Science Behind Bars
Animal Cruelty and Antisocial Behavior: A Very Strong Link
Dehumanization and Animal-Human Similarity
Animals Can Be Ambassadors for Forgiveness, Generosity, Peace, Trust, and
Hope
Letting a Friend Go: We Usually Know When It’s Time to Say Good-bye
Part 2. Against Speciesism: Why All Individuals Are Unique and
Special
Individual Animals Count: Speciesism Doesn’t Work
Animal Emotions, Animal Sentience, Animal Welfare, and Animal Rights
Animal Minds and the Foible of Human Exceptionalism
Animals Don’t Laugh, Think, Get Depressed, or Love, Declares a Psychiatrist
What Makes Us Uniquely Human?
Part 3. Media and the (Mis)representation of Animals
Animals in Media: Righting the Wrongs
Are Great Apes “Ultraviolent”?
Chimpanzees and Meerkats: The Importance of Accurate Media
The National Museum of Animals & Society
Animals in Art: Nonhumans Benefit from Responsible Representation
Part 4. Why Dogs Hump: Or, What We Can Learn from Our
Special Friends
Dog Trust: Some Lessons from Our Companions
My Dog Always Eats First: Homeless People and Their Animals
Chancer and Iyal: A Dog, His Boy, and His Dog
Going to the Dogs Is a Good Idea: It’s Not a Dog-Eat-Dog World
Wild Dogs in Captivity Are Still Wild Dogs
Can Dogs Experience Guilt, Pride, and Shame: Why Not?
Hidden Tales of Yellow Snow: What a Dog’s Nose Knows — Making Sense of
Scents
I’ll Have What She’s Having: Dogs Do It, Too
Dogs Know What Others Know: Some New and Exciting Findings about Our
Best Friends
Stealth Dogs Steal Food in the Dark and Snatch It Quietly
Dogs: Looking at the Way We Look at Our Best Friends
Why Dogs Hump
Social Dominance Is Not a Myth: Wolves, Dogs, and Other Animals
Did Cesar Millan Have to Hang the Husky?
Part 5. Consciousness, Sentience, and Cognition: A Potpourri of
Current Research on Flies, Fish, and Other Animals
Animal Consciousness and Science Matter
Scientists Finally Conclude Nonhuman Animals Are Conscious Beings
Do Animals Know Who They Are?
Do Dogs Really Feel Pain and Are They Really Conscious?
Age Before Beauty: Older Elephant Matriarchs Know What’s Best
What Do We Learn from a Tool-Making Genius Bonobo and Copy-Cat Orcas?
Spider Builds Complex Lifelike Replica Decoys Outside Web
Flies on Booze and Apes on Apps
Bold Fish and Brilliant Lizards
Tool Use by a Dingo and a Dog
Chimpanzees in the Crossfire: Are They Cleverer Than Us?
Apes Say “No” with a Head Shake, Animals Are Lefties and Righties, and
Getting Out in Nature Is Good. Duh!
Do Animals Have Spiritual Experiences? Yes, They Do
Part 6. The Emotional Lives of Animals: The Ever-Expanding
Circle of Sentience Includes Depressed Bees and Empathic
Chickens
Emotional Honeybees and Brainy Jellyfish
The Birds and the Bees and Their Brains: Size Doesn’t Matter
Crabs and Fish Feel Pain: Expanding the Circle-of-Sentience Club
The Emotional Lives of Reptiles: Stress and Welfare
Gorilla Joy and Chimpanzee Grief Without a Doubt
Gorillas Dismantle Poacher’s Traps: Compassionate Conservation of the Gorilla-
Kind
Do Wild Animals Suffer from PTSD and Other Psychological Disorders?
Did a Female Burro Commit Suicide?
Grieving Animals: Saying Good-bye to Friends and Family
A Fox, a Cougar, and a Funeral
Humpback Whales Protect a Gray Whale from Killer Whales
Empathic Chickens and Cooperative Elephants: Emotional Intelligence Expands
Its Range Again
Empathic Rats and Ravishing Ravens
Bonobos: Going Out of Their Way to Help Others
Do “Smarter” Dogs Really Suffer More Than “Dumber” Mice?
Part 7. Wild Justice and Moral Intelligence: Don’t Blame Other
Animals for Our Destructive Ways
Wild Justice and Moral Intelligence in Animals
“What Were Wars?” Don’t Blame Other Animals for Human Violence
Human-Like Violence Is Extremely Rare in Other Animals
The Moral Lives of Animals: What Did Herman Melville Have to Say about
Animals?
Give Peace a Chance: We Do Not Have to Go to War
Part 8. The Lives of Captive Creatures: Why Are They Even
There?
Zoos and Aquariums Do Not Accomplish What They Claim They Do
“Faux” Animals in Cages Deserve Much Better
“Zoothanasia” Is Not Euthanasia: Words Matter
Elephants in LA Zoo Aren’t Happy or Content, Says Judge
Deaths at SeaWorld: Animals Are Dying to Entertain in This SeaJail
Tilly’s Willy: In the Name of Science?
Rewilding Animals: Going Home at Last
Rewilding Dolphins: Good News for Tom and Misha
Whipping Horses Doesn’t Work
Rise of the Planet of the Apes Shows That Real Primates No Longer Need to Be
Used in Movies
Buddy the Chimpanzee Killed in Nevada Because He Wasn’t Really a Pet
Part 9. Who We Eat Is a Moral Question
Animals’ Lives Matter: Sentience and Feelings Count
Who We Eat Is a Moral Question: Vegans Have Nothing to Defend
Dead Cow Walking
My Beef With Temple Grandin: Seemingly Humane Isn’t Enough
Going “Cold Tofu” to End Factory Farming
Brain Scans Show Vegetarians and Vegans Are More Empathic Than
Omnivores
Killing Other Animals for Food Does Not Make Us Human
Babe, Lettuce, and Tomato: Dead Pig Walking