Definition Of Animal Cruelty

Imagine yourself locked outside your home during harsh winters with little to no food or water. Now imagine being forced to fight others until your flesh is split open or even imagine being beat and tortured without being able to say or do anything about it. These are just a few ways that dogs have been abused but dogs are not the only animals being abused. There are many different types of animal abuse from animal testing to farm animals being tortured in a slaughter house. Many people may not even be aware that they are participating in a form of animal abuse. Animals are forced to live in our human society whether they like it or not and be used for our own benefit. People fail to see that animals have feelings just like humans do. The American …show more content…
An act of cruelty may be different to a farmer than to a veterinarian. This is why in order to act against cruelty, the definition of animal cruelty must be defined. After some analysis to the parts of the definition of cruelty, Ph.D. Julie Tanner clearly defined animal cruelty as “knowingly causing unnecessary pain and/or suffering” (Clarifying the Concept of Cruelty. Tanner, 822). She explains that sometimes inflicting pain on an animal may be necessary. The example she used was about a veterinarian pulling out an infected tooth of a dog. In this case the pain is necessary and benefits the dog in the long run. The important part of her definition is the causing of unnecessary pain or suffering. As it has already been said, pain may sometimes be necessary but there are many ways one could be inflicting unnecessary pain or suffering. The types of animal cruelty can be put into two categories: passive or aggressive. “In the active form of cruelty, animals are intentionally tortured, while in the passive form, unintentional cruelty results from neglect of animals” (Types of Animal Cruelty. Nakate). The passive form of animal cruelty is basically the act of neglecting the animal by not feeding it or not properly taking care of it. There have been many cases where pets have been found nearly starving to death on the owner’s property, often times the owner has more than one pet that has been neglected. …show more content…
Many people question whether or not they should donate to this charity for many reasons. Everyone has seen their depressing commercials with Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel” playing while they show video footage of the poor animals that have been suffering. Many people have claimed that these commercials are just too sad and they just change the channel rather than trying to donate. Even Sarah McLachlan claims that she cannot watch her commercials. “I change the channel. I can’t take it,” McLachlan said. “I can’t even look at it. It’s just so depressing” (Huffington Post. Sarah McLachlan). These commercials have become too hard for people to watch and in result they are changing the channel and possibly making a joke about it in order to contrast the sad feelings. Those people that are strong enough to watch the commercials and become convinced to donate to the animals in need may not be aware where exactly their money is going. Although the ASPCA is a national organization, they are centered in New York City so therefore they help the animals in need in New York the most. So, if a woman in Texas watches the commercial and donates, she is essentially helping out animals in New York rather than her own town. “California’s State Humane Society wants to stop that practice calling the commercials misleading. They allege those commercials are unfair and deceptive and cause many people in