Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy
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How much of a pain would a crustacean “common currency” really be?
No full textWe should be suspicious of the idea that experiencing pain could enable animals to trade off different motivations in a common currency. It is not even clear that humans have a common motivational currency reflected in evaluative experience. Instead, pain may capture attention, inhibiting attention to competing motivations and needs, thereby making genuine trade-offs harder. Our criteria for pain in invertebrates should be part of a more subtle theory of the relationship between pain and decision-making
Animal sentience in Indian culture: Colonial and post-colonial changes
No full textThe Indian tradition has respected animal sentience and non-injury toward all life. It is repeated consistently in Sanskrit literature and the later literature of the Jains and the Buddhists. Change came with the advent of Islamic rule followed by the British, who built slaughterhouses. The hunting of wildlife increased and several wild predator species were wiped out. The result was the series of legislations for animals which were initially proposed by the SPCAs and later by NGOs. In 1976, the Constitution of India was amended to make the protection of wildlife and compassion for living creatures a fundamental duty. However, in spite of the importance of the non-killing of animals, the meat industry for both domestic consumption and export has been growing. It is an ongoing struggle between activists, governments and the business class
Extending the null hypothesis to invertebrate pain sentience
No full textIn 1985 Macphail proposed his Null Hypothesis that there were no qualitative differences in intelligence across vertebrate species. A recent review of the literature has found overwhelming support for his view. Studies also suggest that, with respect to cognition and the neural mechanisms that support it, the Null Hypothesis should be extended to invertebrates. We suggest, on the same premise, that the Null Hypothesis should be extended to pain sentience in invertebrates. Although few studies have been conducted, behavioural and neural evidence for pain sentience has been found in various representative invertebrate species
Decapods as food, companions and research animals: Legal impact of ascribing sentience
No full textThis commentary provides an overview of the practical implications of attributing sentience to protect decapods as food, companion and research animals in the UK context. Recognising their capacity to suffer has implications for humane slaughter in farming and fishing sectors. It should also place a greater duty of care on owners of captive decapods, considering their needs and avoiding unnecessary suffering. The recognition of decapod sentience should also have an impact on their protection as research animals, although research with a potential to cause suffering may be needed to better understand decapods’ capacity to suffer
Vaccinations, Vegans and the Problem of Moral Consistency
No full texthttps://www.wellbeingintlstudiesrepository.org/hw_diet For people who give up the consumption of all animal products for ethical reasons, the decision to get COVID vaccinations can be complicated. The numbers of animals used for COVID research are shrouded in secrecy by the pharmaceutical companies, but it is clear that thousands of nonhuman animals—primarily mice and monkeys—are being used in the search for vaccines capable of combating the parade of new COVID variants
What You Didn’t Know About Having a Pandemic Pet
No full textSurveys show that most pet owners are convinced that living with companion animals improves their mental health and psychological well-being. However, many research reports have found that the mental health of pet owners is not measurably better than that of people without a pet. The isolation and stress associated with COVID lockdowns afforded investigators an opportunity to test this pet effect paradox. Contrary to conventional wisdom, a large majority of studies found pets have little or no impact on human mental health during pandemics
Free will and animal suicide
No full textDavid Peña-Guzmán presents two arguments against the view that because only humans have free will only humans can commit suicide: (1) nonhuman animals may possess free will, and (2) the libertarian notion of free will is incompatible with scientific explanation. The free will objection to animal suicide is indeed mistaken, but Peña-Guzmán’s criticism of the libertarian notion of free will seems misplaced. His target should instead be the assumption that free choices must be made consciously or self-reflectively or the assumption that freedom cannot come in degrees
The United Nations, Animal Welfare and the Environment
No full textA sustainable global future requires the world to address the well-being of not only people but animals and the environment. This view is also the founding premise for WellBeing International (WBI). A one-minute video produced by WBI includes the following message. “A responsible caretaker of our world must safeguard people, animals, and the environment for each element is tightly connected and depends on the well-being of the others.”
WBI is encouraged by the recent resolution on the nexus between the well-being of people, animals, and the environment passed at the fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5). However, considerable effort will still be needed to ensure that the requested report on the nexus between animal welfare-environment-sustainable development is comprehensive. Furthermore, the report’s findings should influence and be integrated with the UnitedNations Environment Programme (UNEP) work plan and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Wild animal welfare
No full textRowan et al’s article provides an overview of developments in the science of animal sentience and its links to animal welfare policy, especially regarding farm animals. But changing ideas of animal sentience and welfare are also important for managing wild and other free-living animals. We ask how the welfare of these animals differs from that of farmed animals, especially how the ability to make autonomous choices may matter. We suggest that more research into wild animal welfare is needed to make informed policy decisions, for example, about using animals in rewilding projects and choosing between policies of culling and fertility control
Sentience in decapods: an open question
No full textCrump et al.’s framework is a powerful tool designed to assist decisions on the ethical treatment of decapod crustaceans. However, the question of whether decapods are sentient (i.e., whether they feel), remains open, perhaps indefinitely. More optimistically, we might design experiments that distinguish among different levels of awareness, sometimes viewed as components of sentience. We should strike a balance between assuming that all organisms are sentient and making unnecessary anatomical assumptions about sentience. Refining current experiments may provide concrete insights about awareness in Decapoda and other taxa