We all know animal abuse happens, and we've all read and heard stories, maybe some of us seeing it first hand. What we also see is the law treating animals as a lesser being, and the punishment for abusing your pet, or killing it, is usually just a fine. I recently read an article about a man who moved out of the house he was renting, and left his dog in its cage. There was no food or water in the cage, and the dog died.
The article says the man "may face charges". MAY face charges? That indicates he could essentially get away with it. That guy needs to be jailed immediately! He left that poor dog to die! This is what frustrates me. These pets, whether it be a dog, cat, bird, etc are living, breathing creatures, not to mention family. How can you simply charge someone with a fine for abusing an animal? If you abuse a person you sure as hell get jail time for it.
Why are animals seen as lesser? Because they can't talk? Because they don't work? Vote? I don't get it. I really think the laws/punishments regarding animal abuse and animal cruelty need to be revisited and made stiffer.
I agree, they feel pain too and they don't get as much credit for their intelligence as they deserve. It's basically saying Child Abuse is different to Animal Abuse, is it really acceptable to abuse animals? No. Punishment should definitely be harsher.
Hmmm, what the government sees is that dogs / animals are just animals. What they fail to see is that we actually coexist with animals and they need us to survive. Such ignorance is brought by blindness to the importance of animals - companions. I agree that punishments must be harsher.
Yes. Those people are trying to make it so animals are lesser than human beings. In that situation, I'd go with my pet every time unless it's obvious my pet won't make it either way.
Yes. Those people are trying to make it so animals are lesser than human beings. In that situation, I'd go with my pet every time unless it's obvious my pet won't make it either way.
If you extend such rights to animals then that opens up a whole can of worms. You cannot treat them as equals - that doesn't mean you don't treat them well, but you cannot treat them as equals. If we treat them as equals, then what do we do when animals kill other animals? Are you going to put them on trial, have a jury decide a verdict for some fish or gallah, a judge passing a sentence and imprisoning them in some jail? Or what about meat? Are we not able to kill animals anymore? If you are going to claim that pigs or molluscs are different to dogs, then that is no different to saying "humans" are different to "animals". You can't have it both ways. If you don't get it, then you need to reconsider what your ideal world is - it ain't going to happen. Again, I am not saying we should just treat them as described, but you must objectively look at the situation.
That would be one argument. Another argument is evolution. We didn't get here by treating all animals as equals - in fact, there would be no ecosystem if that were the case. We would have a great abundance of plankton, the earth's temperatures would rise beyond what modern day humans could comfortably survive and many species would cease to exist. The food web exists so that species can exist. This has been fine for millions of years, but now you are wanting to change the ecosystem so that we extend our rights as an advanced mammal to others in our kingdom? There's only so far you can go before your suggestions sound ridiculous and all animal rights are rejected. Unless you are vegetarian, didn't the pig or cow or chicken that you ate have feelings? Is leaving a dog in a cage any different to leaving a chicken in a cage?
At some point, you can easily find a person in a situation where they and a pet are in a burning building and only one can be saved in time. What should be the one to be saved if they are equals? In reality, we know when our hand is forced that we side with people over animals because deep down we know we are not their equal though we pretend to be their equal when the cost isn't high but when it is high is when we really show what the truth really is.
It doesn't justify abusing them however as not being our equals is no justification for abusing them. You don't need to make them our equals to come to that conclusion however.
I kinda wish you hadn't reminded me of that case, because it makes my blood boil. You DISSECT an animal that YOU killed, feed it to other animals, do it live, AND CALL IT EDUCATIONAL? "Here kids, we will be dissecting an INNOCENT animal that we killed because we felt it wouldn't be suitable for reproduction. Yes Jimmy, that's right, if animals can't be proper breeding material we treat them like trash and kill them."
Animals need to be protected from brainless humans, and yes I agree that harsher punishments to offenders may be a measure that can help minimise this awful behaviour.
However, the problem needs to be tackled at various levels, and not just this one.
They certainly need to punish animal experimentation - and that's not illegal. Other things coming to mind, similarly, are factory farms, dog-fighting/cock fighting (some places not illegal).
puppy mills are now being regulated as they should be and in some states are illegal. I love animals but we cant have punishment on the same level as hurting killing a human sorry but I dont see that as the punishment fitting the crime. My experience tells me that all that is accomplished by long jail time is people avoiding animals altogether as pets and a large influx of animals in shelters. I think that if you hiot them hard enough in the pocketbook that would deter a lot of abuse
It depends on where you live. There is nothing like animal abuse in my country no matter what you do with your pet, some tribes eats dogs and cats. Except on occasion where the abuse is very serious such person could be arrested. The only animal abuse I think can send you to jail in my country is bestiality.
