The domestic, the wild and its interstices: what can a dog do in Tierra del Fuego

Luisa Amador Fanaro

doi:10.1590/1809-43412020v17a353

Abstract

Abstract This study examines dogs that pull sledges in tourist activities in Ushuaia (capital of Tierra del Fuego province) and their relations with their breeders (the mushers) and with the tourists they both work for. Nevertheless, during my field research I also came across other dogs in other contexts, among them the numerous companion dogs abandoned in the city and the so-called “wild dogs”, who live in rural areas and are thus seen by Fuegians as “harmful animals” and an “invasive alien species” - that is, a problem to be solved. In this paper I consider sled dogs and wild dogs, and the different statuses that dogs can assume in these different contexts in which animals and humans relate, considering that in Tierra del Fuego canine work operates as a domesticity regime.

Highlights

This study examines dogs that pull sledges in tourist activities in Ushuaia and their relations with their breeders and with the tourists they both work for
This paper presents a multispecific ethnography with dogs that pull sleds for tourist activities in Ushuaia, the capital of Tierra del Fuego province in Argentina, based on research completed in 2019.1 The discussions focus on the relationships of these animals with their breeders and with tourists, for whom both work2
During my first weeks in the field, in addition to sled dogs, I unexpectedly encountered a myriad of other dogs, including companion dogs abandoned on city streets and so-called wild dogs3, which constitute, according to farmers and much of the Fuegian population, “jaurías4 dañinas”5 [dangerous packs] that are economically harmful to the province

Summary

Introduction

This study examines dogs that pull sledges in tourist activities in Ushuaia (capital of Tierra del Fuego province) and their relations with their breeders (the mushers) and with the tourists they both work for. I suggest that the lines dividing sled dogs and feral dogs in Tierra del Fuego concern animal work – and the practices and techniques involved in the assemblage of mushing.

Results

Conclusion