By Gordon S. Grice, OAA, FRAIC

January 2025

This issue of The Right Angle Journal examines an aspect of “animal architecture” not frequently discussed.

“Animal architecture” may be defined in several ways. It is most often taken to mean “architecture by animals,” a topic much discussed and studied over the years by eminent zoologists and various other scholars, including Richard Dawkins, Janine Benyus, Karl von Frisch, and others. Many books on this important topic are available. A second meaning of the phrase is architecture for animals (barns, kennels, etc.), which is often considered not to be architecture at all. They’re only animals, after all. A third meaning, of more interest to designers of theme parks and roadside attractions, is architecture about animals. This is a fascinating subject, but less about animals than about human perception and misperception of them.

In the following articles, we discuss architecture with animals, in other words, how the buildings and spaces we design for ourselves make accommodation for the animals with whom we cohabit.

The importance of this topic becomes apparent when we look at some recent statistics: In many cities, including Toronto, there are more pets than children.[1] And while the pet population continues to grow, the number of children seems to be levelling off. We design our environment to accommodate children, but only recently have we begun to consider how to better share our living spaces with our domestic animals.

Let’s stop right there. I can hear some of you saying: Seriously? These are animals. They don’t vote; they don’t pay the bills; they don’t contribute to society. In fact, some of them are a public nuisance. If I see one more primped cockadoodle or yorkipoo with plastic boots and an owner dressed in a matching sweater, I’m going to choke myself with a poopy-bag.

I hear you, and I appreciate your point of view. But there’s something you should bear in mind. In the last century, a good deal of time and money has been devoted to the study of animal behaviour: animal cognition, animal psychology, animal sociology, etc. There are growing numbers of dog whisperers, pet psychologists, animal rights activists, dog tutors, specialized animal clinics, etc. There are dog schools, doggie day-camps, dog hotels, and people hotels that welcome “any pet that will fit through the door” (at no extra charge). Dog walkers, pet sitters and veterinary bills (especially) constitute a large line item in many household budgets.

If, as architects, we claim to make this a more habitable world, we are obliged to keep up with the times and acknowledge—as other fields of study have—that not all of the world’s precious inhabitants are human.                                                                                                             

NOTES:

1.   https://torontolife.com/deep-dives/inside-torontos-explosion-of-bad-dogs-and-worse-owners/

See also, among others: https://www.reddit.com/r/sanfrancisco/comments/16s8lda/did_you_know_there_are_more_dogs_than_children_in/?rdt=57721