The Lives and Deaths of Shelter Animals

by Katja M. Guenther

Winner of the 2021 Distinguished Book Award, American Sociological Association Section on Animals & Society

Monster is an adult pit bull, muscular and grey, who is impounded in a large animal shelter in Los Angeles. Like many other dogs at the shelter, Monster is associated with marginalized humans and assumed to embody certain behaviors because of his breed. And like approximately one million shelter animals each year, Monster will be killed. The Lives and Deaths of Shelter Animals takes us inside one of the country's highest-intake animal shelters. Katja M. Guenther witnesses the dramatic variance in the narratives assigned different animals, including Monster, which dictate their chances for survival. She argues that these inequalities are powerfully linked to human ideas about race, class, gender, ability, and species. Guenther deftly explores internal hierarchies, breed discrimination, and importantly, instances of resistance and agency.

Genres: Politics, Sociology, Anthropology, Nonfiction

312 pages, Paperback

Published August 11, 2020

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the animal welfare world, this pretty much is the recommended reading for the year; I've heard so much about this book, and I did dive in with high expectations that probably affected my view. I found chapters 3 and 6 to really fit the themes of examining implicit bias and inequality that I was expecting and they were extremely interesting. I think those two chapters standing alone would be equally effective.

The rest felt very focused on (and biased about) the battle of volunteers (AKA 'the good guys') versus shelter staff (AKA 'the bad guys'). Overall, much of the book felt more like an opinion piece than research or analysis.

I appreciated the final chapter's attempt to suggest solutions, but I think more research should have gone into that - or it should have been excluded. For example, Guenther (briefly) mentions TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) for feral cats but then suggests all feral cats wear collars with bells, which is not a safe solution - there's a reason breakaway collars are what are typically recommended for housecats! - and there's a lot of research easily available for free about TNR and specifically on the 'feral cats versus wildlife' topic.

[Britney Tennant · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was thrilled when this book published, as academic analysis of this field is rare, and book-length studies rarer still. There are some pieces which will forever change the way I answer questions like "why are pit bulls so hard to adopt."

But the book is disappointing in many ways, too. Though it makes clear this is one assessment of one animal shelter, it repeatedly paints an overworked, underpaid, underresourced staff as unsympathetic kill-happy monsters. Framing years of an us-vs.-them culture in which admittedly privileged volunteers are the only thing standing between the animals and certain death. This perpetuates a problematic stereotype of shelter workers and the profession as a whole. The book could have done so much more to help shelter workers, and animals by extension. But it did not.

The final chapter was a poor inclusion, in my opinion. Taking away from the academic tone and rigor of the rest of the book while painting a bizarre picture of a utopia in which society is completely different. Fanciful, yes. But not at all helpful or appropriate in the context of the greater analysis.

Despite this, there are some really good points throughout the book. Its promise of examining shelter outcomes through the lenses of race and class are achieved in insightful ways. This is a book to generate discussion about the role and influence of shelters in a greater community context. I recommend it for anyone involved in shelter work, with the caveat that it has high and low notes throughout.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book makes an important link between systemic racism and high rates of killing in animal shelters and argues for what Guenther calls a Humane Communities Revolution, a struggle for social justice that centers animal-friendly affordable housing, living wages, recognition of the importance of animal-human bonds, and ending the domination of animals by humans. The book also deals with how dynamics of race, class, and gender conflicts play out in the treatment of animals, especially dogs, in shelters. There are some sad moments in the book but it takes a necessary, clear-eyed view of ways in which animal shelters AND animal rescuers reproduce white supremacy. Anyone involved in animal rescue should read it.

[Emily Fugate · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the one hand, I really appreciated the parallels made between policing/"helping" communities and policing/"helping" animals. As someone in the animal sheltering community, I see first hand ties between lack of support for humans leading to the death of more animals.

However, this book bounces between (valid) complaining about current systems then making claims about how humans shouldn't interact or utilize animals in any way. Its off putting and turns away non-abolitionist readers. I think some of the more out there ideas should have been made into a second book.

[Ainsley Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredible inside view of the issues that come along with working in the animal industry. I loved how well the author connected issues in the shelter to broader issues such as racism, sexism, and classism. I read this book for a sociology class, but its the first assigned book that i actually kept reading past the end of the semester.

[Vader · Rating 1 out of 5]

5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish