Large Animal
What was the primary ethical dilemma for the pig farmer in the video we watched (The Great Meat Debate)?
$ profit vs animal welfare
Two examples of "hard pollution" affecting marine life are
Plastic and fishing nets
In the US, this example of passive abuse is the number one companion animal welfare issue
Animal Hoarding
Henry Bergh stopped a carriage driver from beating his horse, this prompted the birth of this organization, that to this day is committed to preventing the abuse of animals
The SPCA - Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Failure to provide preventive or timely veterinary care means a client is not supporting this freedom -
Freedom from pain, injury, and disease
Euthanasia of the cow by close range gun shot vs euthanasia of the piglets via C02 poisoning ensured the cow's final moments allowed for this freedom -
Freedom from fear and distress, freedom from pain, injury and disease.
Ship traffic and underwater construction are examples of this, which has been known to cause illness and death of marine life -
Noise pollution
These facilities (which are legal in Canada) are run with a primary focus on money, and no regard for the welfare of the animals housed within.
Puppy Mills
We are required to provide 24/7 options for veterinary care to our clients. They are deemed to be "our" clients because of an established VCPR - what does this stand for?
Veterinary-Client-Patient Relationship
Inadequate shelter does not provide pets with this freedom
Freedom from discomfort
Self mutilation like feather picking and tail biting are mainly due to this in factory/commercial farms
Boredom
Confinement of whales, dolphins, and other marine species in theme parks and many aquariums guarantees we are not supporting these freedoms (others are possibly not supported either).
Freedom to express normal behaviours, freedom from fear and distress
Just like there is a link between abuse of animals and domestic abuse, there is a link between animal hoarding and this -
Mental illness
If a client wants to lodge a complaint against a vet, their first stop is typically with the clinic, followed by this organization
The NSVMA/provincial body overseeing veterinarians.
Keeping a pet confined indoors, away from others of their species, not providing cats with scratching posts or chinchillas with dust baths are all examples of not providing them with this freedom
Freedom to express natural/normal behaviours
A common welfare issue facing farm animals is the underutilization of NSAIDs - what are NSAIDs and what are they used for?
Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs, used to treat pain.
We now recognize that many marine species like dolphins can think and feel, the term given to this is
Sentient
Moms and newborns are often separated so that researchers can study the effects of this...
Stress (they know it is stressful but do it anyway)
Releasing client information to an outside party (not including police, public health, etc.) without consent from the owner is a breach of this -
Confidentiality
Using positive punishment as a training method means a client is not providing this freedom
Freedom from fear and distress
Animal welfare is a great reason to rethink our consumption of farm animals. Another, very real and growing reason is...
The earth's steadily increasing population and decreasing natural resources (water, land to grow/graze, etc.). We need to look to non-animal proteins to sustain life.
Something that is not native to an eco-system and is often unknowingly introduced to a new system via tourism is called this -
An invasive species
Why does the label "not tested on animals" not guarantee that animal testing was not involved?
It only shows that the final product wasn't tested, but does not mean that aspects/components weren't. The company may have gathered materials that were all independently tested to make the final product...
We have the right to refuse service to a client so long as...
doing so does not pose an immediate threat to the health of the pet.
This statement from The Brambell Report was expanded to create the Five Freedoms-
Animals must be able to "...stand up, lie down, turn around, groom themselves, and stretch their limbs."