Animal Rights and Animal Welfare

Animal rights and animal welfare cover many ideas and beliefs. The animal rights point of view is that humans do not have the right to use animals for their own gain at all, whether in the laboratory, on the farm, in entertainment or in the wild. The animal welfare's point of view advocates for limiting or preventing cruel treatment of animals.

According to the animal welfare perspective, human use of animals is acceptable if animal suffering is preventable. Some of the information and action ideas DoSomething.org are from the animal welfare perspective. Other information and action ideas are closer to animal rights. Read about the issues and figure out how you personally feel on this topic at http://www.dosomething.org/whatsyourthing/Animal+Welfare.

A few of the many topics under the umbrella of animal rights and welfare are animal cruelty, animal homelessness, animal testing, endangered species, factory farms, and puppy mills. Videos like the one below show just how wrong stereo types about animals are. Every animal has their own personality, just as we do.

The House of Representatives changed the world of viral videos yesterday. Senate approval pending, it will soon be a crime to sell or distribute videos that violate bans on animal cruelty. This mainly consists of content that shows animals being burned, drowned, suffocated or impaled. "Crush videos," which depict women, often barefoot or wearing high heels, stomping small animals to death, are the main target.

Every state has bans on animal cruelty, but it has been hard to apply those laws to crush videos because they often do not show faces, dates or locations. The legislation just approved makes exceptions for films depicting hunting, trapping and fishing. This is an important step in the effort to wipe out animal cruelty. Still, there is work to be done, from product testings on animals to poor conditions in captivity. Animals face abuse and neglect every day.

What can you do to help? Contact the ASPCA when you witness cruelty in your neighborhoods. Also, if you have an idea on how to help animals, money is available to help make it happen.

For more information, go to http://www.dosomething.org/whatsyourthing/Animal+Welfare.

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Animals Matter to Me!

Animal cruelty is a worldwide problem and we need a worldwide solution. Something that would inspire political leaders, organizations and individuals to treat animals better and will have a real, long-term impact on the welfare of billions of animals worldwide. Signing a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare, or a UDAW, is one way that this is possible.

A flooded cattle pen after heavy rainfall caused heavy flooding in Trinidad, Bolivia.

Poor animal welfare occurs everywhere and it affects many animals. There are nearly 1 billion stray cats and dogs in the world. Wild animals are illegally and inhumanly killed for their skin, fur, bones, and other body parts. They are also treated badly in an entertainment setting. There are hardly any laws that protect the well-being of horses and other working animals. Animals are also affected by natural and human-caused disasters, which most people don't consider.

Please go to www.animalsmatter.org and add your name to help STOP animal abuse!

If you want to print out a form for your friends and family to sign, go to Animals Matter To Me Declaration and then send to the address listed after it is full.

To learn more, go to Animals Matter To Me.

Categories of Animal Cruelty

The two categories of animal cruelty are active (comission) and passive (omission).

Active cruelty, or acts of comission, starts with malicious intent. Malicious intent is sometimes referred to as NAI, Non-Accidental Injury. It means that a person has intentionally caused harm to an animal. Acts of intentional cruelty are very disturbing and they should be considered as signs of very serious psychological problems. A person who partakes in acts of commission may often present sociopathic behavior. People that present this type of behavior should be taken very seriously.

Animal abuse is closely associated with child abuse. Both can take many forms and can occur for many reasons. That is the scary part about abuse. Many times, a parent or someone who is abusive, may kill, or threaten to kill, the household pets to intimidate family members. They may do this to scare someone, such as a child, into sexual abuse, to make them remain silent about previous or current abuse, or simply to psychologically torture the victims by holding their "power" over their victims head.

Passive cruelty are acts of omission. These are cases of neglect. Neglect is a lack of action rather than the action itself. Severe animal neglect on the other hand can cause incredible pain and suffering to an animal.
Neglect may be starvation, dehydration, parasite infestations, allowing a collar to grow into an animal's skin, inadequate shelter in extreme weather conditions, and failure to seek veterinary care when an animal needs medical attention.

 I believe that animal cruelty is a big issue, just like child abuse. They are both big issues and no one knows just how big of an issue it is. Both areas need help.

Read more: Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Cruelty http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/animal_cruelty.php#ixzz14EIwEiM9

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.