After the scientific era in the 17th century led to a break with the approximately 30,000-year history of animal representation, the image of animals is currently undergoing a radical transformation once again. On one hand, astonishing abilities are being discovered: thinking crows and playful octopuses. A central concept here is agency: Can an animal be a subject and actively intervene in human society? With this new image comes a growing need for emotional closeness. On the other hand, the claim of absolute human power over the lives of animals continues: animals are being cloned and synthetic biology is working on lab-grown animals. Bernd Hüppauf explores this schism between intervention in evolution and an attitude towards animals that posits subjectivity and demands animal rights, shedding light on the heterogeneous images of animals.