- Title:
- Regulating and representing vagrant curs and purebred dogs in Toronto,1867-1910
- Creator:
- Sauermann, Amanda Anne Margaret
- Date Created:
- 2010
- Degree Awarded:
- Master of Arts
- Subjects:
- dogs municipal government breeding modernity
- Geographical Focus:
- Canada Toronto
- Supporting Materials:
- n/a
- Description:
- This thesis examines parallel canine narratives, the story of the city cur and the story of the purebred dog, to argue that the dog was entangled in a broader discourse of governmentality and modernity in the city. In the City of Toronto, between 1867 and 1910, the unruly dog came to be conceived of as dangerous, destructive and diseased, and was gradually eliminated by a series of regulations requiring the identification and control of the dog by the owner, and the incarceration and adoption or extermination of the stray. Simultaneously, Toronto businessmen began to selectively breed the improved pet — the purebred dog — which was represented by the breeders as being everything the city cur was not: clean, obedient, civilized and economically valuable. While the city cur became invisible, hidden behind the walls of the dog pound, the purebred dog became a consumer product and a spectacle, placed on display at the Toronto Dog Show, alongside other marvels of modern society.
Source
- Preferred Citation:
- Sauermann, Amanda Anne Margaret. 2010. "Regulating and representing vagrant curs and purebred dogs in Toronto,1867-1910", Department of History, Carleton University
- Link to this page:
- https://cuhistory.github.io/grads/items/hist_114.html
Rights
- Rights:
- Copyright the author, all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.