Zooerasty, sodomy, and zooerastia are other terms closely related to the subject but are less synonymous with the former terms, and are seldom used. People with zoophilia are known as 'zoophiles', though also sometimes as 'zoosexuals', or even very simply 'zoos'.

Furthermore, some zoophiles report they have never had sexual contact with an animal. Some studies have found a preference for animals is rare among people who engage in sexual contact with animals. Some researchers distinguish between zoophilia (as a persistent sexual interest in animals) and bestiality (as sexual acts with animals), because bestiality is often not driven by a sexual preference for animals. Three key terms commonly used in regards to the subject- zoophilia, bestiality, and zoosexuality-are often used somewhat interchangeably. depicting a zoophilic act Terminology General Roman oil lamp dating from 1st–3rd century A.D. In many parts of the world, bestiality is illegal under animal abuse laws or laws dealing with sodomy or crimes against nature.Ī kylix depicting Silenus having sex with a fawn, dated after 500 BC. The historical perspective on zoophilia and bestiality varies greatly, from the prehistoric era, where depictions of bestiality appear in European rock art, to the Middle Ages, where bestiality was met with execution.