Controlling Companion Animal Mobilities at Airport Borderlands: Bordering Practices at Micro-Scale

In a multispecies world, nation-states have introduced border controls for companion animals moving with their human caregivers. These controls aim to prevent the mobility of sick, infected or hazardous animals (such as certain fighting dog breeds) into a national territory. This study provides a micro-scale view of the construction of borders through bordering practices for companion animals at international airports. The study explores how human-animal encounters and consequential bordering practices construct borders. The empirical data consists of ethnographic fieldwork at three international airports in Northern and Central Europe, where visits were conducted to customs and border controls. The empirical data was analyzed using thematic content analysis. The study scrutinizes how bordering practices at airport borderlands control the mobility of companion animals; produce spaces to separate animals from each other and from humans; organize interactions between customs officers, veterinarians, and animals; and limit officers’ and veterinarians’ emotions during their work at the border.