Carnivore Minds: Who These Fearsome Animals Really Are

by G.A. Bradshaw

Animals we consider predators are dangerous and unpredictable, devoid of emotion, and capable only of acting on instinct. Or are they? In this pioneering book the founder of trans-species psychology refutes many misperceptions about the carnivores of the animal kingdom. Her studies reveal the great white shark’s capacity for tender maternal feelings, the rattlesnake’s ability to make friends, the orca’s moral code, and much more.
 
G. A. Bradshaw, renowned for leading research on trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in elephants and other species, examines the minds and emotional lives of carnivores through the lenses of natural history, neuroscience, psychology, and animal behavior. She finds that animals who are often characterized as “cold-blooded killers” share the rainbow of emotions that humans experience, including psychological trauma due to violence. Bradshaw decries the irrational thinking behind wildlife policies that equate killing carnivores with “conservation,” and she proposes a new, ethical approach to coexistence with the planet’s fiercest animals.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Science, Animals, Psychology

367 pages, Hardcover

Published March 28, 2017

Reviews

[D.R. Oestreicher · Rating 4 out of 5]

For years, no… centuries, scientists were cautioned not to anthropomorphize animals. All animal emotions or personalities were assumed to be projections by the observer. In Carnivore Minds by G A Bradshaw, the author presents both neuroscience research and field observations to overturn this assumption. The result is compelling and eye-opening.

A word of warning: once the floodgates of anthropomorphizing are opened, the result is profoundly disturbing. If animals love their families and have social structures with morals and cultures, the implications can be deeply upsetting.

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[g-na · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the book's preface:
This exploration into the lives of carnivores offers two messages. First, if conservation only preserves wildlife numbers and bodies without tending to wildlife minds and societies, then it will fail. If they survive, elephants, grizzly bears, and orcas will exist as mere shells unless their souls are nurtured. The second message hits closer to home. For by vanquishing myths that mask the true identity of carnivores, neuroscience reveals a disconcerting truth: it is not the bear, shark, or crocodile who possess the villainous qualities of which they are accused, but our own species. The terror does not lie within, but without.

For decades zoologists were told never to anthropomorphize their subjects, and therefore animals could not have emotions. However, it is a very anthropocentric to think that we are the only species on Earth to have emotions. Here, in an attempt to dispel myths about carnivores being "dangerous, unpredictable, and devoid of emotion," G.A. Bradshaw takes a close look at the emotional lives of seven different carnivores from three different classes: fish, reptiles, and mammals.

There are so many people on this planet and we are so spread out and invasive that we interact with most terrestrial animals--any many aquatic ones as well--on a regular basis. Unfortunately our interactions often have negative results on other species. Bradshaw explains (via well-referenced research, much of which are peer-reviewed papers) that not only mammals such as the coyotes and pumas she devotes chapters to, but also "lowly" species such as rattlesnakes suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, and snakes can be traumatized by seeing the death of a friend or mate.

There is a chapter here about orcas. It is well-documented that orcas have extremely strong lifelong family bonds, and offspring live their entire lives with their mother and close relatives. So it should come as no surprise that capturing an orca to put into captivity rips apart those bonds, causing the animal extreme amounts of stress and psychological trauma. Unfortunately, in at least one orca that led to the animal killing humans in response, but never in the wild has a "killer" whale even acted aggressively towards a human.

A book like this can be considered very controversial in some circles, especially when it is to the benefit of a person (a hunter, Sea World trainer, or egocentric human, for example) for animals to be completely without feelings or emotions. As a zoologist myself I am a bit skeptical and want to make sure any claims are based in fact and are not just sentimentality. But the 45 pages of references including numerous peer-reviewed scholarly papers, US Fish & Wildlife reports, books, and more indicate this is a well-researched book, and the animals' behaviour seem to be evidence supporting the author's claims.

[Kimberly Edwin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book really annoyed me because of its subjective animal rights bias. Scientists can be off kilter at times and the study of the puma in particular really put the wind up. It can certainly be argued that the life of a wild predator is extremely stressful even at the best of times. Nasty, brutish and short about covers it. However, this book goes out of its way to blame humans for everything that goes wrong in the puma's life. I am no fan of homo sapiens(?) and am fully cognizant of humanity's overpopulation and ruination of the planet, but we weren't at fault for all the stresses in this puma's life. As I recall it, the most dramatic disruption was the result of intraspecific conflict. A male puma attacked the female for unknown reasons and drove her and a cub to a high mountain retreat where there was little food. Both were already close to starvation and the end result was tragic, but much of this can be chalked up to the ordinary vicissitudes of a knife edge existence in the wild.

Imputing motives, as opposed to emotion, to nonhuman minds is problematic at best. We do not need to encourage foolhardy behaviour such as chumming up close with grizzly bears. Speaking of which, a whole chapter about people communing with grizzly bears, and not a word about Timothy Treadwell? At least Bradshaw might have given us some idea of what went wrong in the grizzly maze, what ursine protocol he violated, what boundary he might have overstepped. As far as I'm concerned, I have no desire to get close to a grizzly bear and hope I never do.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I preferred the premise of this more than the execution. I enjoyed Bradshaw's attempts at showing that animals are not mere automatons in a different way than other books have tried, but ultimately I don't think she was terribly convincing at times (I don't need to be convinced, but others do). The subjects were surface level at times and I was hoping that there would be more depth to the discussion. I also felt as though the book could have been shorter and more to the point.

Disclosure: ARC received from Netgalley & publisher in exchange for an honest review. (They may regret this.) Any and all quotes were taken from an advanced edition subject to change in the final edition.

[Mike Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an essential book to read, firstly I would say I dont always agree with the authors views on captivity, however this is just a very tiny section of an incredible book. Looking into carnivores or North America including great white sharks, rattle snakes, puma, orca and more this book sets up case studies exploring the true nature of species often vilified by our own myths legends and ignorance. The animals are spoken about as individuals with experts in the fields recounting data and stories of animals they have worked with for a very strong message, carnivores rarely attack people and when they do it is often out fault. Our actions of mass persecution have cultural effects on species whether from rattle snake round ups to the killing of 40,000 coyotes in certain states of America (40% of theor population) yearly. Animals such as elephants have now been shown to suffer for PTSD symptoms when members of their family are poached, bears, sharks, coyotes and other species all show similar if not the same symptoms. We think we are seperate from the animal world but we aren't we are part of it and a very closesly related part of it.
The message is clear, we create the 'monsters' we fear. However the monsters aren't aggresive child murdering, nightmarish beasts. They are animals who have suffered mass persecution on a scale of genocide, they react through fear and trauma and we need to understand this. I strongly recommend this book to anybody with an interest in behavioir and neurobiology.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Carnivore Mines, author G.A. Bradshaw takes the reader into the brains of "dangerous animals" in our world. I put the term "dangerous animals" in quotes, because after reading this book, most readers will agree that humans are the most dangerous animals (and there are no chapters dedicated purely to humans!). Bradshaw combines psychology and neuroscience to prove that animals aren't so different than human beings. His chapters include explorations into the worlds of rattlesnakes, Great White Sharks, Grizzly Bears, and Mountain Lions, and his focus tends to be on how these animals often suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, often caused by the man-made world around them. An intriguing book, if readers don't let the scientific terms bog them down.

[Arianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone should read this book because in understanding the world around us, our perspective can change and that may lead to the change in the hubris of humankind on the natural world.
Instead of making nature submit, we can understand and co-exist with nature as an ally, not a perceived competitor or something to suppress.
The Earth belongs to all on it, it would be nice if we humans learned to share it.

“After all, what could be mightier than an African lion who can pull down an African buffalo five times his size? The answer, as with all other endangered species, should no longer surprise us: modern humans.”

Excerpt From
Carnivore Minds
G. A. Bradshaw

[Austin Brinkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great information and insight into the minds of our carnivore friends who are too often demonized. However, the misplaced blame on Christianity and European culture for our disrespect of nature instead of modernist rationalism holds this back from a five star rating.