Raising Dogs that Bite: How Pastoralists and Breeders Care for Tibetan Mastiffs

Tibetan pastoralists have long been using dogs as guards. Since the late 1980s, the same dogs, called Tibetan Mastiffs, have become valuable pets for Han Chinese consumers. This paper discusses how commodification transforms the value of these dogs, and the care relationship between humans and dogs. Tibetan pastoralists and dogs participate in a reciprocal yet distanced care relationship through raising and guarding, which is not confined to a pursuit of dogs' ferocity. In contrast, a taste for ferocity prevails in the Tibetan Mastiff market, and breeders care for dogs in a more dedicated, and yet more unilateral and dangerous, way. The unintended consequence of breeders' care is that they raise dogs that sometimes bite; this is explained based on a process of value transformation in dogs' guarding abilities, from ethical virtue to commercial price.

Automated summary

This paper discusses the commodification of Tibetan Mastiffs and the care relationship between humans and dogs. Tibetan pastoralists and dogs have a reciprocal yet distanced care relationship, while breeders of Tibetan Mastiffs focus on their ferociousness, resulting in a more dedicated but unilateral and dangerous care approach. The unintended consequence of breeders' care is that they raise dogs that sometimes bite, due to the transformation of dogs' guarding abilities from ethical virtue to commercial value.