A long road ahead to get rid of cruelty to animals

In modern democracies, some forms of cruelty to animals are now considered illegal and there is an increasing awareness worldwide that animal protection has wider implications both for the future of our planet and for the welfare of its inhabitants.

Dogfights and cock fighting have become illegal in most countries, while certain forms of hunting are now banned. Some segments of the entertainment industry take the issue of animal rights very seriously.

In the American film industry, animal protection goes as far back as 1925, the silent film era, when the American Humane Association’s Film Unit was set up to investigate abuses of animal actors.

Animals, especially pets, are getting recognized by humans not only as our companions. Apart from providing companionship to elderly people without adequate social interaction, pet therapy utilizes these animals (dogs in particular) to achieve specific social, cognitive and emotional goals with patients. Pets are also well-known for their ability to relieve stress.

But the fight against animal neglect is far from over. Even the concept of animal rights is contested by certain schools of thought. Speciesism opposes moral value on the basis of species membership.

Also, the Hunting Act 2004, which bans the hunting of all wild mammals with dogs in England and Wales, might still be repealed by the UK Parliament.

Factory farming, a special form of industrial animal agriculture, is a contentious issue in Australia. Although it is wrapped in professional jargon such as concentrated animal feeding operations, confined animal feeding operations or intensive livestock operations, these terms cannot hide the fact that animals are often under stress from being kept in confined spaces. As a result, they will attack each other.

As for space available for animals in man-made environments, can we say that zoos or even aquaria are always ideal or at least livable places for an animal?

Nor can we turn a blind eye to the fact that behind the hilarious, idyllic atmosphere of a circus act looms the harsh and often cruel treatment of circus animals – all this under the auspices of entertainment.

Even goodwill can lead to questionable results. Internet hunting, now banned in 40 U.S. states, is the practice of hunting via remotely controlled firearms that can be aimed and shot using online webcams. Paradoxically, it was not invented for the entertainment of the wealthy but to provide an authentic hunting experience for the disabled.

Our attitude to animals is at best ambivalent. Besides the issue of morality versus necessity, another important question mark remains to be removed: where does necessary suffering or a legitimate sacrifice of interests end and where does cruelty begin?