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Animal Privileges and its ethical implications

Animal Privileges and its ethical implications
Animal rights are a controversial topic all over the world, and animal abuse happens amidst man’s efforts to establish himself as a being with power over all other
animals while at the same time dealing with his conscience as regards to what is ethical. This forms the basis of animal abuse as some people maintains that animals
have no privileges, therefore; lack an opinion while others feel like animals are just like humans and feel pain thus they should be treated humanely. Domesticated and
wild animal abuse is an ongoing problem and is on the upsurge worldwide. The abuse of animals for food stated in the 1500s, and this was when the relationship that
concerned man and animals became increasingly commodified (Beirne 12). Animal abuse definitions vary hugely between nations and within a nation over time, but there is
near consensus on the constitution of animal cruelty as any act that is heartless or violent, which humans direct to the animals. It is worth mentioning that the
cruelty encompasses not only bodily abuse, but also negligence for that matter. This issue of whether animals have rights or not has ensued into a contentious argument
among animal rights advocates and others. Beckoff argues that animals just like human beings are a substantial portion of the clean environment, where cohabitation is
the controlling philosophy, which determines decisions regarding the treatment of animals. (33) It is a fact man has an advantage of rational cognition over other
animals, and this makes him more civilized than the other animals (Regan 17). However, it is saddening how instead of man using the advantage to care and safeguard the
animals he has, in turn, used it to exploit the animals for his selfish gains. The use of animals for recreational purposes, experimentation and testing, constitutes
an abuse of animal privileges, and thus man should use his dominion to care and protect the domesticated animals, and leave the wild ones in the wild.

Comparing the ancient times to the current times, man viewed animals in the past as more sacred than the way he views them now. In the contemporary society,
involvement of animals in the social enterprise has increasingly become elaborate and complex. Moreover, the increasing number and amplification of both parochial and
rigid norms, which are pertinent to animals and animal related human behavior has reached an unbelievable stage (Regan 18). Amidst all these, there is no such a
wonderful organization that represents the plight of animals in a better way than the People of Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). The establishment of PETA dates
back to the late 1980s in Virginia and has since grown to an international organization. The motto for the organization focuses on four areas of animal abuse, which
are the use of animals for food, clothing, experiments, sports and entertainment (Taylor 54). Entertainment part encompasses the exploitation animals have to endure in
circuses, menageries, motion pictures and other outdoor activities such as horse competition, bull and dog combat just to mention a few. Humans have a physical body,
which constitutes of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals all of which have to execute the function of organs through autonomic and primitive parts of the
body. This is an indication of how coordinated the constituents are and for that matter, the significance of each characteristic in the right function of the whole
person. In the same way is the animals system, which means that the standpoint of rational cognition as that, which separates man from animals, should not allow man to
escape from the prisons of the context of the outer surface, which are originality, the existing surroundings and the present-day times (Rowan 256).

Despite the fact that science demonstrates the existence of this significant interrelationship between man and animals, it is apparent that this moral and touching
relationship is less apparent in the contemporary world. The current world is fundamentally manmade, and this is in the way man views other animals as inferior beings,
thus have no rights. Beckoff (145) is of the opinion that different animals warrant different rights given their relative intellect. It is significant that this
ignores the interdependence that should prevail between man and animals, and this is like man signing his own extinction. It is only logical if man uses his
intelligence to accord moral equality, thus standing in the gap of addressing the matter of animal abuse through employment of animal ethics to reserve the world’s
abundance its natural beauty.

Animals in recreational activities

At some point in the 1980s, man’s bravery allowed him to yield to his conscience, and this is when he started considering the subject of animal brutality. This
reflects the incorporation of American zoological gardens and aquarium relationship to devise an endurance strategy for species, and this brought stakeholders together
who had a common idea abdicating animal abuse. However, not everyone was set for the shift, and the fight still continues. Many people still go to zoological gardens
to have a worthy time at the outlay of animals, and this is unacceptable, for such entertainment does not afford animals justice, for they stay in captivity just for
man to come for recreation (Armstrong 4). Worth noting is that animals in zoos, laboratories and others, which man use for entertainment purposes go experience the
worst treatments to stage some activities, for example horse racing and dog fighting. Many believe modern zoos to be places where animals enjoy considerable welfare;
most of the zoos around the world violate this aspect. A significant number of them are under poor management as well as deprived infrastructure that violated animal
rights in its entirety (Taylor 123). This has always led to stressed animals whose freedom is under a compromise, for they have to live in confined spaces against
their natural instincts of foraging and roaming. For example, people in zoos can manipulate a pit bull puppy to become brutal towards people, but this is usually
contrary to their Mother Nature and, therefore; not a modest accomplishment for them. This is in so many ways violates the dog’s rights because he will not once have a
chance to come close to people, yet naturally such dogs are human friendly (Rowan 222). More welfare issues than not arise in confines man create for their individual
self-centered advances, and special focus goes to the rodeo events. The most vital aspect of learning is to comprehend the issues being addressed in a particular work.
The skills required mostly in this respect are analytical and interpretation skills. I have come to learn that synthesis of ideas in any work requires detailed
consideration of facts that surround what is being discussed (Cooper et al. 137). This can be achieved through creative and critical thinking that entails in-depth
evaluation and assessment of the given source, its ideas and the relevance to a given problem. These skills can be acquired through research on past works, study and
frequent practice on analytical concepts and logical procedures of evaluating ideas.

In these events, man goes to the extremes of using electric prods or even sharp sticks or spars to when inducing animals to react in certain ways (Armstrong 489). All
these paraphernalia are for the benefit of man so that the animals make occasions thrilling for the viewers, humans. God created animals to live their own existence
far away from human intrusion, and it is saddening that even after man deciding to domesticate some of them that was not enough until he decided to start coaching them
for his own gains. There should be a valuation of animal rights on the basis that even when these animals take part in sports, entertainment and experimentation, there
is likelihood that some die. This may be due to sporadic accidents for those used in sports and death for those used in testing like a scientist injecting a rabbit
with poison to experiment the duration the poison takes to kill, this is absurd. Additionally, these animals often turn on man, and this is when the animals attack
their trainers, sure evidence that subjecting animals to such treatment is unnatural thus cruel and dangerous

According to Dunton, there are millions of animals like mice, rats, rabbits just to mention a few that man has sheltered away in sterile cages in research laboratories
(1). It is apparent that these animals writhe from pain, isolation and certainly, many of them long to wander free just like their equivalents. However, it is
saddening that all they have to do is to take a pew and wait for the frightening and excruciating procedures scientists will perform on them. Use of animals in
experimentation is indeed evil, and situations in which these test animals experience are somewhat cruel. It is time man devises other methods of experimentation that
innocent animals, which do not have an opinion. Meanwhile, man’s use of animals for food is unethical given the rights of the animals they hold, and also because of
the effect it has on the environment. Some animals face isolation for long enough time just for a man to cut their lives short and make a meal out of them. Similarly,
man gets to trap some and skin them for the sake of fashion and industry. For example, the Panthera padus is a victim to this fashion industry, and this stems from the
valuation of its fur in the manufacture of shoes, belts and leather coats. What a man does not seem to recognize is the reality that the processing of this skin to
finished product produces toxins that can find their way to waters thus threatening human life (Herald 12). This is an indication that use of animal products does not
only affect the rights of the animals involved, but affects human’s life in a negative way too. The food industry has taken advantage of advanced growth hormones to
maximize food production for the masses. Macdonalds is one of the many companies which have taken advantage of the steroids to make junk food for much of the world at
a cheap price.

Likewise, when man uses animal products for food, he does not only cause pain to the animals involved, but the food becomes a source of many ailments in man such as
cancer and heart disease. Man should opt for other food sources rather than animals, for apart from saving animals from pain, it will also enable a sustainable
environment. According to Armstrong if man relies on animals for food it means that he will require more land than before to produce meat, and this will deplete carbon
sinks (10). This is an indication that animal food is not only infringement of human rights, but also a threat to the environment. It is time for animal abuse to stop,
and this should be now. However, this seems to be an uphill task, for the recognition of cruelty towards animals is under the complication of cultural factors For
instance, in both the Us and Latin America, the people viewed cockfighting as an authentic sport even in those areas where it is unlawful (Regan 14). These countries
have enormous food demands and because of this have multinational food corporations, which produce steroid injected beef, pork and chicken.

At the most basic level, animal rights are just a simple idea, and it is that faunas have a privilege to respected treatment. The intuition behind this point is that
showing the rightful treatment towards animals does not mean that faunas merit equivalent respects as humans. Man should be mindful of the fact that the infliction of
pain animals go through does not count less, and that is if a man could get the same infliction on moral grounds. This then translates to the fact that, just as humans
feel pain so are the animals they mistreat. This should drive man’s conscience towards treating animals in some humane manner that overrules abuse. Physiological
processes of animals are in close relation to animals’ except for minor differences, and the man should view what he does to animals in a man’s light to be capable of
founding the authenticity of the problem. Beirne (78) augments this point by asserting that there is no person who has the privilege to perpetrate such greater
suffering to other animals than he can be willing or equipped to bear reluctantly for identical trial objective. Therefore, humans should treat faunas in a similar way
they would wish to receive the same treatment from those he mistreats.

When man deviates the nature of animals created to forage and roam, this is stressful for animals, and it infringes into their rights. For that matter, animals have
the entitlement to sufficient sustenance, accommodation and water and off course constant visits to the pet that is they are under domestication in order to free them
from pain associated with diseases and parasites. Man should not tether animals for long, moreover, man should not use tricks on animals to intimidate them behave in a
certain manner for them to achieve outcomes for the benefit of amusement, experimentation or other financial gains. This should stop man’s aim of wanting the best for
him of all the other animals and adopt the laissez faire intuition (Armstrong 2). This is where man should attend to and help the animals he domesticates like cows and
chickens and leave the wild ones alone like the elephants. This would ensure a society that respects each part of nature for every component has a role to play in the
entire nature thus boosting coexistence. Use of animals in the developments of new medicines or testing of safety of significant products for human consumption is an
infringement of human rights.

It is evident that an animal cruelty is on the all-time high, and it is time for man to reconsider his ways and stop animal cruelty. Use of animals for recreation not
only violates animal rights in its rightful sense, but also is a threat to human’s safety when such animals turn on their trainers. The innocent animals go through
pain as humans exploit them for their selfish gains. The same applies to animals that man use in experimentation and fashion industry and those that he uses as food.
The bottom line here is the problem man’s happiness, and this is where man has succeeded using advantageous position of rational cognition to abuse other animals.
However behind this issue of animal abuse, environmental sustainability hangs in the balance too, and it only wise if man stops animal rights violation for peaceful
coexistence.

The increasing debate on the extinction of some species of animals rings no bell to man. It is high time man realized that nature is complete due to the diversity of
flora and fauna in which the animals play a critical role. The relationship that each animal species have with our environment is almost invaluable and the attempts to
satisfy personal greed for money and other nice things through elimination of animals are a great disservice to humanity. Take the case of poaching which targets a
piece of the animals’ organs or body but end up killing it. This is not only illegal according to the legal structures of many societies but equally brutal and a
violation to the order of nature. While man champions for a better life including recreational sites mostly inhabited by animals, he violates the rule of nature by
increasingly encroaching into the same ecological niche where the animals need to fend for itself (Rowan 217). Harsh experience of some people by animals like stray
elephants, lions, tigers and even hippopotamus are out of man’s on creation of trespassing on the habitat. The challenge is that the Man still feels offended and
retaliate through killing or maiming the animals in the name of defending themselves. It makes little sense to realize that man as much as he has conscience and
ability to think more than animals, can still behave like beasts against the very animals on which they are bequeathed stewardship.

There is a need for man to reconsider the position of animals in nature and the society at large. This concept requires individual initiative to lead by example in
leading the campaign for environmental care in favor of animals and spirited fight for respect of ecosystem. This is because animals do not only protect people but
also offer alternative for companions. Notably, animals keep many people company as evidenced by news reporting’s. Many rich people in the contemporary world value
their animals in a high degree. This is to extent that they include them in the wills for allocation of property. Therefore, there is need to conduct more research and
studies on animal freterinity to establish various ethical considerations and requirements. This will significantly help in closing the gap between animals and people.
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