What is Animal Welfare?

This debate is largely influenced by the fact that animals are individuals who exhibit variability within their species (Dawkins, 2021). Therefore, a broad definition that embodies individuality and subjective experiences can be challenging. For this article, we will use Donald Broom's 1986 definition of animal welfare as "the state of an animal in relation to its ability to cope with its environment" ( Broom,1986). The term "state" refers to the animal's affective state, in simpler terms, the experience of feeling (Russell & Barrett, 1999). Affective states can differ in valence (positive vs negative), duration (emotion vs mood), and arousal (high vs low).

Recognizing and understanding affective states in animals is an important component of animal welfare (Figure 1). This article will explore the difference between animal welfare and animal rights, and discuss the frameworks that scientists use to measure the welfare of an animal.

The History of Animal Welfare and Animal Rights

Dogs were among the first domesticated species, occurring 10,000 to 30,000 years ago. However, concern about how humans cared for their animals was documented by philosophers in the 1500s. Jeremy Bentham, an English philosopher, shed light on the concept of animals as sentient beings that can experience suffering, referring to his famous quote. "The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?" (Bentham, 1789). While these concepts were present among intellectuals, most individuals perceived animals to lack sentience for hundreds of years.

By the early 1800s, the first animal protection laws were passed in the United Kingdom, and animal protection organizations began growing in the UK and the USA. The establishment of the middle class in the USA led to urbanization across the agricultural landscape, starting in the 1950s. This urbanization movement, with larger farm sizes and fewer farms, sparked the beginning of future generations being removed from agriculture. The first animal advocacy organization, the Humane Society of the United States, was established around this time. This was concurrent with the first environmental movement, which was partially attributed to "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson (Carson, 2009). She focused on pesticide runoff and the effects of industrialized agriculture, on wildlife, food safety, and the water supply, sparking concern among people about the safety of their food. Not surprisingly, the animal welfare movement was quick to follow, with books such as "Animal Machines" written by Ruth Harrison in 1964. The animal rights movement started a decade later, focusing on the autonomy of animals. "Animal Liberation" was written by Peter Singer in 1975, and animal rights organizations advocating for animal autonomy such as PETA, were established in 1980. In 1986, Donald Broom became the first professor of animal welfare, bringing together animal welfare and science. Since then, animal welfare scientists have emerged worldwide to research best practices to improve the lives of all animals.

What is the Difference Between Animal Welfare and Animal Rights?

Although many believe that animal welfare and animal rights are the same, they are quite different. Animal rights, as defined by Britannica, are moral or legal entitlements attributed to non-human animals (Wise, 2024). Specifically, animal rights activists believe that animals should not be considered as property and should have the autonomy to make their own decisions and retain their intrinsic rights. Therefore, they believe humans should not use animals for food, clothing, entertainment, or experimentation. On the other hand, animal welfare refers to the humane and ethical treatment of animals within their specific environment. Animal welfare scientists do not necessarily oppose the use of animals but aim to ensure a "life worth living" for animals raised and housed under human care.

What is the Framework for Animal Welfare?

Several animal welfare frameworks have been created to help assess the welfare of animals. One of the first frameworks, derived from The Report of Brambell, is commonly known as the "Five Freedoms" (Brambell, 1965). This framework focuses on the absence, or freedom from negative experiences.

The Five Freedoms:

• Freedom from hunger and thirst
• Freedom from discomfort
• Freedom from pain, injury, or disease
• Freedom to express normal behavior.
• Freedom from fear and distress

However, a disadvantage of this framework is the lack of recognition that negative experiences and states are impossible to avoid completely. Instead, they should be minimized, and the promotion of positive experiences should be emphasized (Mellor, 2016). Over time, the Five Freedoms Framework developed into the "Five Domains, " encompassing positive and negative affective states.

The Five Domains:

• Nutrition
• Physical environment
• Health
• Behavioral interactions
• Mental state

The three circles model refined the Five Freedoms into three important concepts of animal welfare: animal health and biological functioning, the ability to perform natural behaviors, and the animal's feelings or affective state (Fraser et al., 1997). To effectively measure animal welfare, it is important to consider all three concepts. In large-scale animal production systems, maximizing health and biological functioning is often considered equivalent to optimal welfare.

However, it is crucial to remember that health is just one component in assessing an animal's welfare. Affective states, or an animal's feelings, also play a significant role and can be measured by assessing the valence, duration, and arousal related to their mental state within their environment. For example, a judgment bias test can determine whether an animal perceives the glass as half full or half empty based on ambiguous outcomes.

Furthermore, Natural living encompasses the animal's ability to express behaviors they are highly motivated to perform. Scientists can identify these behaviors by testing an animal's motivation to access specific rewards (Dunkin, 1993).

Assessing animal welfare requires consideration of all three concepts of the three circles. While scientists and professionals in the animal industry may specialize in different areas, it is important to expand our knowledge, and education, and work collaboratively as a team to ensure that the animals under our care receive the optimal welfare they deserve.

In summary, animal welfare science is a relatively new field. Scientists in this field focus on measuring how well animals can adapt to their environment and how they respond to different environmental conditions. The animal rights movement, on the other hand, is a relatively recent movement that argues for the intrinsic value of animals and opposes their use for human purposes. When it comes to measuring animal welfare, there are three commonly used frameworks. The three circles framework considers the interaction between an animal's ability to perform natural behaviors, their overall emotional state, and their optimal biological functioning. Therefore, assessments of animal welfare should consider all three concepts.

References

Dawkins, M. S. (2021). The science of animal welfare: Understanding what animals want. Oxford University Press, USA.

Broom, D. M. (1986). Indicators of poor welfare. British Veterinary Journal, 142(6), 524-526.

Barrett, L. F., & Russell, J. A. (1999). The structure of current affect: Controversies and emerging consensus. Current directions in psychological science, 8(1), 10-14.

Russell, J. A., & Barrett, L. F. (1999). Core affect, prototypical emotional episodes, and other things called emotion: dissecting the elephant. Journal of personality and social psychology, 76(5), 805.

Kim, E., & Klinger, R. (2018). A survey on sentiment and emotion analysis for computational literary studies. arXiv preprint arXiv:1808.03137.

Bentham, J. (1970). An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (1789), ed. by J. H Burns and HLA Hart, London.

Carson, R. (2009). Silent Spring. 1962.

Wise, S. M. (2024, January 9). Animal Rights. Encyclopedia Britannica.

Brambell, R. (1965). Report of the technical committee to enquire into the welfare of animals kept under intensive livestock husbandry systems. London: Her Majesty's Stationary Office.

Mellor, D. J. (2016). Moving beyond the "five freedoms" by updating the "five provisions" and introducing aligned "animal welfare aims". Animals, 6(10), 59.

Fraser, D., Weary, D. M., Pajor, E. A., & Milligan, B. N. (1997). A scientific conception of animal welfare that reflects ethical concerns. Animal welfare, 6(3), 187-205.

Duncan, I. J. (1993). Welfare is to do with what animals feel.

Duranton, C., & Horowitz, A. (2019). Let me sniff! Nosework induces positive judgment bias in pet dogs. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 211, 61-66.