Archive-name: Bestial/consent.txt
Archive-author: Nevyn
Archive-title: Nevyn, on Consent

 
        There is a question I am often attacked with regarding my 
'Zoo' activities.  The question is usually some variation of:- 
"You say you will only have sex with a consenting animal;  How 
can you know if an animal is consenting to sex?"
        I'm always willing to challenge my own convictions,  to 
test if what I believe stands up under close scrutiny.  So I 
devised a test to see if I could demonstrate an animal 
consenting to sexual activity with me.
        To help understand the test,  I would like to briefly 
review the theory behind training a dog to perform some task; 
for example 'Sit', 'Stay', 'Heel'.  Training a dog is a 
relatively simple process.  It is merely a matter of rewarding 
for correct behaviour and depriving reward (or punishing) for 
incorrect behaviour.  The repetition of the training enforces 
the pleasure of doing what is correct, and the pain of doing 
what is incorrect.
        Take the command 'Sit' for example.  Firstly the trainer 
will say the word 'Sit' in a clear, commanding voice.  Then he 
will push downward on the dogs rear while he pulls back on the 
dogs lead.  The dog will be forced to sit,  and the trainer 
will praise and reward the dog.  After several repetitions,  
the dog will associate the reward with sitting after hearing 
the sound 'Sit',  and should willingly perform the action 
without the trainer having to force the dogs rear down.  Later,  
if the command 'Sit' is said,  and the dog doesn't comply, the 
trainer will say the word 'No' in a threatening voice or some 
other form of punishment for the incorrect behaviour.  So the 
dog has two associations with the sound 'Sit'.  Pleasure 
(reward) at the correct action of sitting,  and pain 
(punishment) for the incorrect action.
        I don't believe it is possible to train a dog if the dog 
is punished for correct action and rewarded for incorrect 
action.  The reason I stress this is because it is rather 
fundamental to the theory behind the test I set up.
 
        I'll be the first to admit that I didn't follow any 
'Scientific Methodology' or use correct control groups,  so you 
are free to disregard my results and conclusions.
        I have two male Great Dane dogs.  After feeding them in 
the evenings,  I encouraged one of my dogs to jump up and place 
his front paws on the roof of his kennel.  The only action I 
took if he complied with my command was to masturbate him to 
orgasm while he leaned against the kennel.  I didn't even say 
'Good Dog' when he complied.  The action I took if he didn't 
comply, was just to carry on with the evening routine.  I 
didn't ignore him,  I just didn't reward him.
        After five evenings,  the dog I was training would finish 
his dinner,  and then practically leap onto his kennel without 
any encouragement from me at all.  He would look back at me 
over his shoulder, wagging his tail.  This didn't really 
surprise me.  But what DID surprise me was that a few days 
after that,  my other male dog also began to jump up against 
the kennel after dinner without any training from me.  I assume 
he just observed the attention the other dog was receiving,  
and wanted the same attention.  I rewarded him in the same way.
        This was sufficient to convince me that my dogs enjoyed 
being masturbated.
 
        Further to the question of consent is whether a dog is 
consenting to having it's stomach scratched if it rolls over.  
I would like to step back a little here and examine first how a 
dog consents to having his head scratched.  How do you know 
whether a dog wants you to scratch its head, or whether it is 
just tolerating it, and humouring you?  I can offer consistency 
of the dogs reaction as one method of explanation.
        Take the scratching head example.  I am certain one of my 
dogs likes to have his head scratched by his reaction when I 
stop.  If I put my hand in my pocket,  he will force his nose 
between my arm and my hip,  and flick his head sideways to pull 
my hand out of my pocket.  Then he will position his head 
underneath my hand so all I have to do is flex my fingers and I 
am scratching his head again.
        A similar situation occurs when I scratch his stomach.  
While I'm scratching him,  he gives little obvious reaction,  
but if I stop,  he will practically crawl under my arm and roll 
over so I carry on.  EXACTLY the same occurs if I scratch his 
balls instead of his stomach.  The only difference,  therefore,  
is the social stigma attached.  It is socially acceptable to 
scratch a dogs stomach,  it isn't socially acceptable to 
scratch a dogs balls.
        Similar occurs when I extend our playing to masturbating 
him.  If I stop,  he will walk and stand in whatever position 
is the most convenient for me to carry on.  Often it appears to 
me to be less a case of him consenting to sex,  more a case of 
him asking, and me consenting.
        As one final example I would like to illustrate what 
sometimes occurs in the evenings as we are going to sleep.  My 
Danes sleep in my bedroom with me.  One in particular likes to 
sleep on the bed with me.  Occasionally, if I am tired,  I'll 
try to make him sleep on the sheepskins on the floor with the 
other dogs.  Normally he is the quietest dog,  but when I won't 
let him onto the bed he'll wait until I'm dozing off,  and then 
he'll start making a noise that sounds similar to him talking 
to himself.  The sound is a little hard to describe;  neither a 
bark nor a growl,  just a quiet vocal sound.  Then he'll stand 
and stare intently at me and the spot on the bed where he would 
like to be and snort.  If I relent and let him on the bed,  he 
will settle down quietly and sleep.
        The reason I mention the above example is because he will 
display exactly the same behaviour under one other 
circumstance.  That is: when he is horny (demonstrated by 
trying to mount the other male dog,  and myself) and I won't 
even jerk him off, but rather turn off the light and try to 
sleep,  he will make the same vocal sounds even if he is on the 
bed.  He will often go further and swat me with one of his 
front paws until I relent.
 
        There are other possible explanation for all the 
behaviour listed above;  Pack leadership challenges,  power 
shifts and obsequiousness.   These results can't be tested in 
Laboratories,  because they don't occur in laboratories.  The 
only way to experience these events is to live with large dogs 
and act with them with no 'human' social constraints.
 
        One final word on consent,  before I close.  The question 
of whether animals can consent to interspecies sex is not easy 
to answer.  It is possible that the animals are consenting,  
they are certainly receiving pleasure from it.  However,  it is 
socially condemned.  
        But animals are exploited quite openly by humans;  hens 
kept in small cages to lay eggs commercially,  cows forced to 
breed, be milked, and then slaughtered for meat,  every case 
where animals are used for human benefit.   I am certain that 
without exception none of the animals involved consented to the 
treatment they are receiving.  And almost certainly they are 
getting no pleasure out of it.  Yet it is quite socially 
acceptable to exploit them.
        So,  I won't accept condemnation of my sexual activities 
with animals as valid unless the person I am receiving it from 
can prove the animal is being forced or is not willing to 
participate,  and the person accusing me has no involvement 
with exploiting animals in any way themselves (including, but 
not limited to consuming dairy products, eggs, meat, any 
vegetables grown in any area where animals have been forced to 
leave their natural habitats,  wearing any woollen or leather 
clothing,  drinking water from a catchment that has caused any 
animal to be re-located or killed without it's consent,  
walking on woollen carpets.  Also using any product from any 
company whose employees did any of the above.)
 
Nevyn.
        
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