English Boys' Activities: Pets


Figure 1.--This English boy ws photographed with the faithful family pooch, probably during the 1950s. The pooch looks like an airdale.

It is difficult to say what country most appreciates pets, but Britain would have to be very high up and probably at the head of that list. We are not entirely sure why that was. We see early indications such as King Charles II posing with his spaniel. (17th century). It was probably the Industrial Revolution (18th century) that was the major factor. The Industrial Revolution had a range of impacts. It generated great wealth and greatly expanded the middleclass. Expanded income and leisure greatly expanded pet keeping. It also resulted in greatly increased urbanization. Thus not only did more people began keeping pets, but they brought those pets inside the home. [Shevelow] Along with these developments, the crusade against slavery began in Britain. Parliament tasked the Royal Navy with the responsibility of ending the slave trade. The British anti-slavery movement focused in on the idea that men and women were being treated like animals, chained, whipped, and even worse. A side affect of that crusade was to make English people increasingly aware of the mistreatment of animals. It is no accident that the nation tht led the crusade against slavery also was the first country to pass an animal cruelty law--the Illegal Treatment of Cattle Act (1822). This was a weak law, but followed a decade later by a revised law which extended the protection of the law to bulls, dogs and other domestic animals, and cattle (1835).

Popularity

The British are widely known as animal lovers. It is difficult to say what country most appreciates pets, but Britain would have to be very high up and probably at the head of that list. We are not entirely sure why that was.

Keeping Pets

Dogs were working animals. We see aristocrats with pets, but not the common people. We see early indications such as King Charles II posing with his spaniel. (17th century). It was probably the Industrial Revolution (18th century) that was the major factor in brining about pets for the common man. The Industrial Revolution had a range of impacts. It generated great wealth and greatly expanded the middle class. Expanded income and leisure greatly expanded pet keeping. It also resulted in greatly increased urbanization. Thus not only did more people began keeping pets, but they brought those pets inside the home. [Shevelow] This created a demand for smaller breeds. A good example is the little black dog photographed with John Montague Stopford in 1871. Along with these developments, the crusade against slavery began in Britain. Parliament tasked the Royal Navy with the responsibility of ending the slave trade. The British anti-slavery movement focused in on the idea that men and women were being treated like animals, chained, whipped, and even worse. A side affect of that crusade was to make English people increasingly aware of the mistreatment of animals. It is no accident that the nation tht led the crusade against slavery also was the first country to pass an animal cruelty law--the Illegal Treatment of Cattle Act (1822). This was a weak law, but followed a decade later by a revised law which extended the protection of the law to bulls, dogs and other domestic animals, and cattle (1835).

Pet Owners

A wide tange of people kept pets from the very rich to the very poor. And those enjoying pets begin with the very yoong to the very old craving companionship. And the pets ranged from humble mutts to pestigious, costly purebreds. Social class affected one ablity to care or pets. But in fact it was not very expensive to keep pets at least until fairly recent times. This has changed in modern times especially with an astronomical increases in vet fees. This is in part becauses medical advances mean that much more is possible today than earlier--but it means that vets fees can mount into the yhousands of dollars. This adopting purebreeds tended to come from the better off segment or at least compfortable middle class. Some feel so strongly about their prestigious pooches that they form clubs and gettogthers to enjoy them. The childtrn involvd also form close attachments to specific breeds and want them as adults. There are all kinds of popular clubs in Britain for the ownes of induvidual breeds who can participatein shows and other activitis with their pooches.

Types

We note all kinds of pets in England, including budgies (paraqueetes), dogs, cats, fish, hamsters, mice, parrots, snakes, and other animals. The two most well known pets are of course cats and dogs. And the Brirish are especially noted for their devoltion to their cats and dogs. This reputation probably stems from the fact that the British were the first country to enter the Industrial Revolution and thus the first country in which the middle class and better-off working ckass commonly kept small pets. Many breeds of small dogs were bred in Brirtain during the 19th century so they could be kept as pets in the expanding industrial cities. Britain has one of the highest density of cat and dog owners in the world. The choice of dogs and cats is interesting. One academic study that about a quarter of British houselolds had cats and nearly a third had dogs. [University of Bristol] That means about half of household had onre of the other, a few of course had both. That mean about 10.3 million cats and 10.5 million dogs. Interestingly their was a higher incidence of university degrees among cat owners than dog owners. Another study suggests that, "Man's best friend, the faithful hound, has been usurped by the self-sufficient feline as the most popular pet. Today's busy lifestyles mean that cats, with their independent natures, have ousted their more demanding rivals in the affections of millions of families." The numbers show, however, the relative numbers are fairly close. One interesting aspect of British pet keeping is that the strong association between boys and dogs celebrated in literature in America seems less true in Britain. The British pet keeper commonly described is usually an adult, not children.

Examples

We see several examples of pets kept by English boys archived in HBC. A HBC reader remembers the RAF family dog that they took with them to Germany. Of course one of the greatest pet stories of all time is Lassie Come Home. Another great favorite is "National Velvet". A griter story is "Kes"(UK, 1970) about a kestrel, less familiar outside Britain. And when the British run out of their own pets, they write stories about pets in other countries. One of the best is A Dog of Flanders (US, 1959)--based of course on a British book. Notably we note far fewer srories about pets outside of Anglo-American literature.

Sources

"More cat owners 'have degrees' than dog-lovers," BBC News Online (February 6, 2010).

University of Bristol. "UK domestic cat and dog population larger than thought," (February 6, 2010).

Shevelow, Kathryn. For the Love of Animals (2008).







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Created: 2:29 AM 7/21/2008
Last updated: 1:06 AM 11/16/2015