Pets in America: A History - Softcover

Grier, Katherine C.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0156031760 ISBN 13: 9780156031769

Publisher: Mariner Books, 2007

Synopsis

When did America become so obsessed with its pets? It wasn’t as recently as you might think. In fact, as Katherine C. Grier shows us in this lively social history, Americans have a long and abiding fascination with their furry, feathery, and sometimes scaly friends.

Pets in America is the first comprehensive, thoroughly entertaining account of our long history of animal keeping. From White House gerbils to Mrs. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s many cats, from drug-sniffing dogs to celebrity horses, from pet food to training to birdcages to art to cemeteries—no aspect of pet culture is left unexplored.

Peppered with the warmth and humor of anecdotes from period diaries, letters, catalogs, and newspapers, Pets in America is also packed with more than one hundred whimsical pieces of pet Americana—illustrations and photographs of all of man’s best friends. Pets in America is fun social history for a popular audience and pet lovers everywhere.

About this title

Review:

"This work explores the history of animal-human bonding in the context of a growing country with a diverse population. The narrative is entwined with the development of veterinary medicine, animal humane movements, and pet products. If the well-written pr "Lucidly written and well-researched. . . . It is hard to imagine that Grier has left a stone unturned on a topic for which an exhaustive paper trail does not exist by her own admission. . . . [An] insightful and sensitive look at the two centuries that b A welcome addition to the field.--American Historical Review An encyclopedic history. . . . [Pets in America is] scholarly, thorough, informative and animal friendly.--Publishers Weekly Few scholars know more about the complex interactions between people and the animals that share their lives than Kasey Grier.--The Hunt A fascinating look at the development, roles, and effects of pets in American society. . . . Provide[s] a wealth of . . . dependable information that any pet lover would appreciate.--Choice A good social and cultural history of pet keeping in America . . . [A history] that will last us a while.-- Winterthur Portfolio Although [Pets in America's] six chapters can be read independently, they function best together as a sustained narrative that uses broad subjects . . . to probe not just our changing notions about animals but our changing definition of a good society. And because Grier, as she modestly puts it, is 'interested in stories, ' her inquiries can be very entertaining. . . . Grier has a nice habit of tweaking a detail to make a larger point. . . . With her characteristic blend of seriousness and whimsy, Grier confesses to an interest in 'the tension between the apparent desire of American pet owners to experience the 'animal' in our pets . . . and our simultaneous and increasing desire to regulate and control our pets.--New York Times Book Review Lucidly written and well-researched. . . . It is hard to imagine that Grier has left a stone unturned on a topic for which an exhaustive paper trail does not exist by her own admission. . . . [An] insightful and sensitive look at the two centuries that brought us to where we are now.--Antiques Scholars of the history of human-animal relations have eagerly anticipated this book, and the result exceeds expectations.--Journal of American History This work explores the history of animal-human bonding in the context of a growing country with a diverse population. The narrative is entwined with the development of veterinary medicine, animal humane movements, and pet products. If the well-written prose is not enough, the illustrations provide a telling accent. . . . Although grounded in material evidence, the book introduces larger issues--philosophies of caring and belief that, despite enormous social and technological change, span centuries.--Bloomsbury Review [A] remarkably well-written, richly researched study.--Journal of Social History Although ["Pets in America"'s] six chapters can be read independently, they function best together as a sustained narrative that uses broad subjects . . . to probe not just our changing notions about animals but our changing definition of a good society. And because Grier, as she modestly puts it, is 'interested in stories, ' her inquiries can be very entertaining. . . . Grier has a nice habit of tweaking a detail to make a larger point. . . . With her characteristic blend of seriousness and whimsy, Grier confesses to an interest in 'the tension between the apparent desire of American pet owners to experience the 'animal' in our pets . . . and our simultaneous and increasing desire to regulate and control our pets.--"New York Times Book Review" A welcome addition to the field.--"American Historical Review" An encyclopedic history. . . . ["Pets in America" is] scholarly, thorough, informative and animal friendly.--"Publishers Weekly" "Although ["Pets in America"'s] six chapters can be read independently, they function best together as a sustained narrative that uses broad subjects . . . to probe not just our changing notions about animals but our changing definition of a good society. And because Grier, as she modestly puts it, is 'interested in stories, ' her inquiries can be very entertaining. . . . Grier has a nice habit of tweaking a detail to make a larger point. . . . With her characteristic blend of seriousness and whimsy, Grier confesses to an interest in 'the tension between the apparent desire of American pet owners to experience the 'animal' in our pets . . . and our simultaneous and increasing desire to regulate and control our pets."--"New York Times Book Review" "Few scholars know more about the complex interactions between people and the animals that share their lives than Kasey Grier."--"The Hunt" "A good social and cultural history of pet keeping in America . . . [A history] that will last us a while."--" Winterthur Portfolio" "[A] remarkably well-written, richly researched study."--"Journal of Social History" "Scholars of the history of human-animal relations have eagerly anticipated this book, and the result exceeds expectations."--"Journal of American History" "A welcome addition to the field."--"American Historical Review" "A fascinating look at the development, roles, and effects of pets in American society. . . . Provide[s] a wealth of . . . dependable information that any pet lover would appreciate."--"Choice" "An encyclopedic history. . . . ["Pets in America" is] scholarly, thorough, informative and animal friendly."--"Publishers Weekly" "A welcome addition to the field." -- "American Historical Review" ""Pets in America" is a labor of love and a delight to read." James A. Serpell, University of Pennsylvania "Witty, richly illustrated, and entertaining." Joy Kasson, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill "Grier has produced a wonderful book, full of careful scholarship and charming anecdotes." Andrew N. Rowan, Executive Vice President, Humane Society of the United States

From the Back Cover:

Americans love their pets! And our obsession with these furry, feathery, and sometimes scaly friends didn’t start as recently as you might think. Open the first-ever history of pets in America and see for yourself what extraodinary devotion pet-keeping Americans have shown for centuries.

[fun facts to arrange in a whimsical manner, as was done on the Girl Sleuth cover]

Teddy Roosevelt’s White House held guinea pigs, birds, dogs, cats, one young bear, a badger named Josiah, snakes, and a Shetland pony named Algonquin, who once rode in the White House elevator.
P. T. Barnum hosted one of America’s first dog shows?the Great National Dog Show?in 1862.
Posh Americans kept young deer as pets in the early 1800s.
Mark Twain?cat lover extraordinaire?used to walk around with a cat named Lazy draped across his shoulders like a stole.
Sallie Ann Jarret?a bull terrier?was killed in action alongside the 11th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers during the Civil War. She is commemorated by a life-sized statue at Gettysburg National Military Park.

 

KATHERINE C. GRIER is a professor of material culture studies and director of research programs at the Winterthur Museum and a visiting professor of history at the University of Delaware. She lives in Wilmington, Delaware, and Onancock, Virginia, with her husband, two cats, and two dogs.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0156031760
• ISBN 13: 9780156031769
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 496