Šterk Karmen, Brložnik Maja
Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Veterinary Faculty, Small Animal Clinic, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Front Vet Sci. 2023 Aug 4;10:1202606. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1202606. eCollection 2023.
Over the past three decades, the veterinary profession has faced a cultural shift towards postspeciesism that requires a reassessment of the foundations of the existing distinctions between human and non-human animals proclaimed by the speciesism paradigm, which represents institutionalized discrimination against species and recognizes only the subjectivity of humans. Based on ethnographic observations in anthropological fieldwork and using speciesism/postspeciesism distinction, we aimed to explain the main causes of small animal practitioners' work-related stress and apply humanistic knowledge to recommend ways to alleviate the negative effects of the work environment. The explanatory model of disease, illness, and sickness, the example of the concept of family, and the circumstances of the feminization of the veterinary profession are discussed to illustrate the divergence between speciesist naturalistic veterinary knowledge and the postspeciesist cultural framework and its consequences. By failing to accommodate the changing values towards animals and by failing to challenge the anthropocentric hierarchy of values, the speciesist rationale of the veterinary profession contributes to many of the problems faced by practicing veterinarians. The incorporation of a modern moral-philosophical mindset towards animals may not even be possible because veterinary science is subject to a paradigm that is irreversibly tied to institutional discrimination against species and defies reflection on veterinary science itself. However, the veterinary profession has a privileged position in establishing an alternative ontological thinking and an alternative conception of "animal life." Anthropological knowledge was applied to anticipate further intervention of social and cultural sciences in the problems of small animal practitioners. Rather than further diversifying and increasing expectations towards veterinarians by expecting them to acquire additional skills, we propose another practitioner who can support, mediate, and enhance veterinary performance - the cultural anthropologist. With their deep knowledge of cultural differences and social dynamics, they can collaborate with veterinarians to act as a liaison between cultures, paradigms, and species.
在过去三十年里，兽医行业面临着一种向“后物种主义”的文化转变，这需要重新评估物种主义范式所宣称的人类与非人类动物之间现有区别的基础。物种主义范式代表了对物种的制度化歧视，只承认人类的主体性。基于人类学田野调查中的民族志观察，并运用物种主义/后物种主义的区分，我们旨在解释小动物从业者工作相关压力的主要原因，并运用人文知识推荐减轻工作环境负面影响的方法。文中讨论了疾病、病患和病症的解释模型、家庭概念的例子以及兽医行业女性化的情况，以说明物种主义自然主义兽医知识与后物种主义文化框架之间的差异及其后果。兽医行业的物种主义理论由于未能适应对动物不断变化的价值观，也未能挑战以人类为中心的价值等级制度，从而导致了执业兽医面临的许多问题。甚至可能无法纳入对动物的现代道德哲学思维方式，因为兽医学受制于一种与对物种的制度化歧视不可逆转地联系在一起的范式，并且无视对兽医学本身的反思。然而，兽医行业在建立一种替代性的本体论思维和“动物生命”的替代性概念方面具有特殊地位。运用人类学知识来预测社会和文化科学对小动物从业者问题的进一步干预。我们提议的不是通过期望兽医获得更多技能来进一步使对他们的期望多样化并增加，而是另一种能够支持、调解并提高兽医工作表现的从业者——文化人类学家。凭借他们对文化差异和社会动态的深入了解，他们可以与兽医合作，充当不同文化、范式和物种之间的联络人。
