Gary Varner, Texas A&M U.
Gary Comstock, Iowa State U.
Ethical Attitudes to Animals
1. Animal Use
"Animals were put here
for our use by (Nature,
God). Their primary
purpose is to serve us.
They are our property;
we are their masters."
Approved practices
Philosophical basis
Scientific beliefs
Cockfighting, bullfighting
Injuring animals for movies
Cosmetic testing
Confined exotic animal hunting
Sport hunting
Circuses, rodeo
Consciousness necessary
to suffer. Language and
reason necessary for
consciousness.
R. Descartes,
P. Carruthers
Animals lack
reason, language,
& consciousness.
Have only "nonconscious"
experiences.
Consciousness necessary
to suffer. Trade-off costs
against benefits. Benefits
to humans of using animals
often outweigh the costs
to the animals.
P. Singer, R. G. Frey
Animals possess
consciousness.
Have interests,
can suffer pain.
But these pains &
pleasures are on a
comparatively
low level.
Consciousness necessary
to suffer. Do not tradeoff costs against benefits.
Animal interests are
typically equivalent to
identical human interests
T. Regan, E. Pluhar
Animals possess
interests. Some
can reason about
their immediate
future. Some live
in social groups, and
have projects that
matter to them.
2. Animal Welfare
"We are stewards of
animals created by
(Nature, God). They
are our companions;
we should care for
them. We may use
them considerately."
Raising food animals humanely
Slaughter with minimal pain
Pets and animal ownership
Subsistence hunting
Some, not all, rodeo events
Killing animals for clothes
Some, not all, zoo animals
3. Animal Rights
"Animals have their
own interests, desires,
and social lives. We
should respect their
interests because they
are subjects of a life,
just as we are."
Vegetarianism, or veganism.
Conserve wildlife habitat.
Rightists may condone some
illegal activities to save
especially intelligent animals,
such as great apes.
Opposed to much animal research
Many opposed to leather, milk
Questions:
All three positions assume that animals must be capable of being conscious if they are to be capable of suffering.
1.
For those in the Animal Use position: What is the scientific basis for denying that animals are
conscious?
2.
For those in the Animal Welfare and Animal Rights positions: What is the moral status of an animal
not capable of being conscious?
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Three case studies in animal agriculture
1. Beef slaughter
Approximately 30 million cattle are slaughtered yearly in the United States. When it comes to.the slaughter
procedure itself, the large-scale, state-of-the-art facilities capable of slaughtering as many as 400 or 600 animals per
hour are, perhaps contrary to popular belief, the most humane. The races approaching the stunning chute can be
designed to look just like those through which cattle have traveled previously for routine veterinary care,
experienced handlers can move animals along without prodding, cattle do not "smell blood in the chutes," and
"stunning" is a misnomer for what happens in the kill chute, since a properly placed shot with a "stun gun"
obliterates the animal's brain, making it impossible to regain consciousness.
Question: Should this method of slaughter be legally required?
Use the form on the next page to answer the question from the perspective of three different
theoretical positions in animal ethics.
2. Milk cows
On average, milking cows spend between three and four years in production, after which they are slaughtered for
relatively low-grade beef. Dairy farmers maintain high productivity by breeding cows to calve about yearly. The
calves are removed from their mothers immediately or within days, with most of the female calves becoming
replacement milk cows and almost all of the male calves being raised for veal. Statistics indicate that about one
seventh of the cattle slaughtered yearly are from dairy herds.
Question:
Is this method of milking morally permissible?
Use the form on the next page to answer the question from the perspective of three different
theoretical positions in animal ethics.
3. Laying hens
Today over 90% of laying hens in the United States live caged in intensive egg production facilities, which have
increased the average yield per hen from 70 in 1933 to 275 today. In these facilities, birds cannot forage, flap their
wings, dust-bathe, nest, establish dominance hierarchies, or even preen themselves in natural ways; culling of
injured birds is economically inefficient, and the entire population of a battery operation is slaughtered and replaced
periodically (every 12-15 months on state of the art operations).
Poultry are still exempt from federal humane slaughter legislation and by comparison to state of the art cattle
slaughter facilities, poultry slaughter is still a relatively indelicate affair; fully conscious birds are hung from their
legs on conveyor belts before being stunned and beheaded.
Question:
Is this method of obtaining eggs morally permissible?
Use the form on the next page to answer the question from the perspective of three different
theoretical positions in animal ethics.
Reference and acknowledgement
Gary Comstock prepared the first draft of the chart, basing it on an online lecture by Gary Varner of the Philosophy
Department, Texas A & M University, “Lecture on animal rights and animal welfare.” Varner wrote the three cases,
which appeared originally in The Ag Bioethics Forum 8 (December 1996): 4, 6, 9. They are based on information
in Bernard Rollin's Farm Animal Welfare: Social, Bioethical, and Research Issues (Iowa State University Press,
1995), and in Gary E. Varner, "What's Wrong with Animal By-Products?" Journal of Agricultural and
Environmental Ethics 7 (1994): 7-17. Comstock devised the student exercise on p. 3.
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Three case studies in animal agriculture
Explain how each ethical theory assesses each way of treating animals .
1. On each line, write "J," "NJ," or "D"
J = Ethically justified
NJ = Not ethically justified
D = Depends
2.
In complete sentences, explain each of your answers.
Beef slaughter
Milk cows
Laying hens
Animal use :
___________
___________
_________
Animal welfare :
___________
___________
__________
Animal rights :
___________
____________
____________
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