The Moral Imperative: Acknowledging Animal Pain

This is in response to one of your articles, “Do animals feel pain” from your book about philosophical ideas. I was reading your book and some of the themes you wrote about are ones that have crossed my mind many times but there is no true answer to any of these questions. “Do Animals Feel pain” caught my attention as I’m a very passionate animal enthusiast and am part of a couple of animal activist groups and feel very strongly against cruelty to animals.

Animals do not talk and converse like humans, hence it is almost impossible to find out what goes on in their mind. There have been very many controversies about whether it is moral or ethical to be using animals for scientific research, exterminating them as they are nuisances, or even the thousands of animals we use as food. Personally, I think animals do feel pain! Every bit as much as humans do, the only difference is that between other primitive beings and us there is a vast communication gap.

Get quality help now

Sweet V

Verified writer

Proficient in: Animals

4.9 (984)

“ Ok, let me say I’m extremely satisfy with the result while it was a last minute thing. I really enjoy the effort put in. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

If they were able to communicate with us I’m sure they would express their pain.

Humans are the leading species on planet Earth; therefore we have an unsaid authority over all other species. Pain is felt through nerve receptors in human beings as our nervous system is built in us so we can feel, through the same way animals to have a nervous system very similar to ours making humans and animals respond to stimuli in the same fashion.

Their genetic makeup is very similar to ours and every cell in their body contains 23 chromosomes, they can feel, see, hear, smell and taste the same way we can. Beings so similar to us, they undoubtedly feel pain.

When someone steps on my toe I recoil in pain and express it through facial distortions, verbally expressing it by screaming, yelping or moaning and attempts to avoid and get away from the source of pain as swiftly as possible, animals do the very same thing. Therefore humans have no right to subject animals to pain.

Moreover animals are important for us to go on leading our lives normally. They are a major source of food for human beings, are a mode of transport, give us companionship and make our lives a lot easier. Nevertheless humans cause each other pain as well; some humans even take pleasure in doing so, these revolting people get happiness out of other peoples pain and if they don’t feel guilty about causing other humans pain I highly doubt their going to mind causing animals pain. It is because of these unethical people some animals are treated so cruelly.

Animal welfare groups like PETA make sure animal cruelty does not take place but these organizations cannot be accountable for all the animal cruelty happening around the world. Nevertheless animals do definitely feel pain and that’s un-questionable.