- "Animal welfare is the well-being of non-human animals."
This subfield concerns respecting animal rights and treating animals with kindness and compassion.
Animal welfare: The belief in the humane treatment and well-being of animals.
Animal rights: The idea that animals have rights just as humans do.
Animal behavior: The study of how animals behave in different situations.
Speciesism: Discrimination based on species, often favoring humans over animals.
Factory farming: The industrialized mass production of animals for food.
Veganism: A lifestyle that avoids the use of animal products for ethical, environmental, or health reasons.
Wildlife conservation: The protection and preservation of natural habitats and animal populations.
Animal testing: The use of animals in scientific research and experimentation.
Pet ownership: Responsible ownership and care of companion animals.
Animal rescue and shelter work: The practice of rescuing and caring for animals in need.
Marine conservation: The protection and preservation of oceanic ecosystems and wildlife.
Hunting and trophy hunting: The controversial practice of killing animals for sport or recreation.
Animal communication: The study of how animals communicate with each other and with humans.
Animal exploitation: The use of animals for human purposes such as entertainment, clothing, and labor.
Legal protections for animals: Laws and regulations that protect animals from harm and mistreatment.
ethical/moral respect: Treating animals with kindness, avoiding harm, and recognizing their sentient nature.
cultural respect: Valuing the role of animals in different cultures, honoring their symbolism and traditions.
environmental respect: Preserving wildlife habitats and ecosystems for the benefit of animals and humans.
legal respect: Following laws that regulate the treatment of animals, such as animal welfare regulations or species protection laws.
scientific respect: Recognizing the importance of animals in scientific research, while also ensuring that experiments are conducted humanely.
spiritual respect: Acknowledging the spiritual and religious significance of animals, and their connection to the divine or natural world.
personal respect: Developing a personal bond and affection for individual animals, such as pets or animals in a sanctuary or rescue center.
- "Formal standards of animal welfare vary between contexts, but are debated mostly by animal welfare groups, legislators, and academics."
- "Animal welfare science uses measures such as longevity, disease, immunosuppression, behavior, physiology, and reproduction."
- "Respect for animal welfare is often based on the belief that nonhuman animals are sentient and that consideration should be given to their well-being or suffering."
- "These concerns can include how animals are slaughtered for food, how they are used in scientific research, how they are kept (as pets, in zoos, farms, circuses, etc.), and how human activities affect the welfare and survival of wild species."
- "There are two forms of criticism of the concept of animal welfare, coming from diametrically opposite positions."
- "One view... holds that humans have no duties of any kind to animals." "The other view is based on the animal rights position that animals should not be regarded as property and any use of animals by humans is unacceptable."
- "Some animal rights proponents argue that the perception of better animal welfare facilitates continued and increased exploitation of animals."
- "Some authorities therefore treat animal welfare and animal rights as two opposing positions."
- "The predominant view of modern neuroscientists, notwithstanding philosophical problems with the definition of consciousness even in humans, is that consciousness exists in nonhuman animals."
- "However, some still maintain that consciousness is a philosophical question that may never be scientifically resolved."
- "In this study conducted in rhesus monkeys, the researchers built experiments predicting completely opposite behavioral outcomes to consciously vs. non-consciously perceived stimuli."
- "Strikingly, the monkeys' behaviors displayed these exact opposite signatures, just like aware and unaware humans tested in the study."