It is our duty as humans to be kind to animals, everyone should be kind to all living beings. Animal welfare is one of the moral values and principles that stem from compassion and respect towards other creatures that share the planet with us. Animals have feelings, just like us, as scientific studies proved that animals have feelings, they can feel pain, joy, comfort, fear, and sickness. They have a complicated nervous system that allows them to experience feelings and senses similar to humans.
For many years, scientists refrained from accusing animals of anthropomorphism or wrongly attributing to animals any human characteristics, but now it has become clear to all that animals have feelings, this was mentioned in “Emotional Awareness: Overcoming the Obstacles to Psychological Balance and Compassion” book, the books is a conversation between the spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and Paul Ekman, an American psychologist and professor emeritus at the University of California. For example, a comprehensive scientific review published by the London School of Economics and Political Science in November 2021, summarised that some invertebrates, such as octopuses and crabs, are capable of feeling pain and suffering.
That’s why animal welfare requires treating them with kindness and respect, as well as providing them with an environment conducive to their well-being. Animal rights are an ethical concept that asserts that animals deserve protection, care and respect. These rights include an animal's right to life, liberty, justice and well-being, as endorsed by Animal Welfare UK.
Humans have to guarantee animal protection from harm or cruelty; animal welfare is considered as part of the environmental duty to preserve biodiversity and sustain ecosystems.
Biodiversity means the existence of multiple living species on Earth, and the interaction between them; starting from tiny organisms to trees and huge whales.
I remember a situation I witnessed myself, when I was spending a day with some friends in my village; at midnight, a dog showing signs of starvation settled next to a puddle of dirty water, and because he was thirsty, he drank from that water, then went on its way.
While leaving, a question kept repeating itself in my mind, who is responsible for this animal? What does it eat every day? And why is there no one providing it with care and clean food? I was so touched that I had to take a picture of such a painful scene.
It is safe to say that everything on this Earth has rights and duties, and one of the rights of animals is to protect and ensure that they are treated fairly and kindly; these rights stem from acknowledging that animals are capable of feeling and need to live comfortably and with dignity.
Animals should be provided with necessary requirements to live normally, wander freely and safely in their natural habitat, and not locking them in closed inappropriate places, providing them with proper health care. Animals must not be used in scientific experiments, looking for other safe and ethical means to test products and drugs.
One of the animal rights also is to raise awareness about this cause, people should learn about animals’ pain and suffering and the necessity to protect them. People can take part in protecting animal rights by taking simple measures such as supporting animal protection organisations and projects.
Aside from legal prohibitions and deterrent legislations, it is a human duty to protect animals, for they are God’s creations and have rights that humans must heed and not expose them to harm. I also support the idea of animal welfare, as it plays a major role in society and achieving environmental balance.
