Blood Relations: Animals, Humans, and Politics

Patrick Colgan is the former executive director of the Canadian Museum
of Nature.

Written by a Toronto-based journalist, this book focuses on individuals,
organizations, and events (particularly Canadian) that constitute the
history of militant animal rights. The motives and deeds of individuals
are interwoven with unapologetic accounts of raids on animal
laboratories, anti–bear-hunting actions, and terrorist mailings.
Montgomery correctly explains why humane societies, such as Grey-Bruce
and Toronto, have often been battlegrounds over the past decade.

The research community, both academic and the notorious Health Canada
monkey colony, receive extensive attention. The resulting evaluation of
the Canadian Council on Animal Care is quite balanced. Agricultural
practices are scrutinized starkly (practices such as slaughtering are
graphically described). Montgomery especially draws attention to the
recent development of game ranches and their killing operations. The
impact of humans on wildlife, from the hunts on seals and snow geese to
circuses and marine parks, is well reviewed, while the accounts of
cruelty to pets is sickening. The sharp criticism of the Calgary
Stampede is part of an unheeded chorus. A highlight of the book is the
fascinating presentation of the world of animal terrorists, including
legal aspects and the roles of the Web and media. For some reason, raids
on mink farms are profiled at great length. The views of theorists, such
as Donald Griffin and Peter Singer, provide a good backdrop for the
action.

Montgomery adopts a chatty style and an attitude that ranges from
sympathy to well-justified scepticism. Who talked with Montgomery, and
who did not, is detailed. Good points are made, such as parallels with
racial and sexual discrimination, and the selective manner in which
activists on the Left pick issues. Related topics such as comparisons
with other nations, xenotransplantation, and suffering are appropriately
included as the text proceeds. There are a few minor flaws (e.g., Dolly
was not “the first successfully cloned mammal”). Recommended.