What if it Were You: Animal Rights
Humans have cultivated and reaped the products of animals for centuries: texts as old as the Bible mention man having reign over his furry friends. We owe much of our technology and medicine to those animals that have dutifully served us in the pursuit of science. Often, such animals have sacrificed their well-being to enrich our lives. Many laws exist to prevent cruelty and the extinction of animals, but no law has been made which gives animals rights. Humans have utilized animals in an attempt to entertain, to learn, and to consume. The quest for advancement within the human race has lead to many advances in their favour; however, it has also resulted in the abuse and neglect of those animals that cannot keep up with this trend.
The use of animals for entertainment goes beyond the household pet; circuses, animal-themed amusement parks, and zoos all use animals to make a quick buck. There are a few organizations out to protect the animals in this industry, but even fewer laws, even in developed countries. The Ringling Bros. circus, for example, practices such harsh disciplinary techniques that if ever it was a human in the animals place; they would surely be sent to prison. “In medieval prisons, inmates were punished with a vile device called a 'cat-o '-nine-tails ' — a whip made of …show more content…
Once upon a time, we humans respected those willing to die for our survival; however, gross amounts of factory farming have eliminated that possibility. Cows, used for a variety of goods from meat to milk, are abused daily. For a cow to produce milks, “cows must be impregnated yearly – resulting in mastitis” (Brooks 12). Mastitis is a very serious infection found in dairy cows which causes pain and swelling of the udder. A cow’s very existence in factory farming is an abomination of nature. Their bodies are not meant, nor built to withstand such treatment; and all factory farm animals suffer from
Humans have cultivated and reaped the products of animals for centuries: texts as old as the Bible mention man having reign over his furry friends. We owe much of our technology and medicine to those animals that have dutifully served us in the pursuit of science. Often, such animals have sacrificed their well-being to enrich our lives. Many laws exist to prevent cruelty and the extinction of animals, but no law has been made which gives animals rights. Humans have utilized animals in an attempt to entertain, to learn, and to consume. The quest for advancement within the human race has lead to many advances in their favour; however, it has also resulted in the abuse and neglect of those animals that cannot keep up with this trend.
The use of animals for entertainment goes beyond the household pet; circuses, animal-themed amusement parks, and zoos all use animals to make a quick buck. There are a few organizations out to protect the animals in this industry, but even fewer laws, even in developed countries. The Ringling Bros. circus, for example, practices such harsh disciplinary techniques that if ever it was a human in the animals place; they would surely be sent to prison. “In medieval prisons, inmates were punished with a vile device called a 'cat-o '-nine-tails ' — a whip made of …show more content…
Once upon a time, we humans respected those willing to die for our survival; however, gross amounts of factory farming have eliminated that possibility. Cows, used for a variety of goods from meat to milk, are abused daily. For a cow to produce milks, “cows must be impregnated yearly – resulting in mastitis” (Brooks 12). Mastitis is a very serious infection found in dairy cows which causes pain and swelling of the udder. A cow’s very existence in factory farming is an abomination of nature. Their bodies are not meant, nor built to withstand such treatment; and all factory farm animals suffer from