Tag: human

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Why Should We Help Non-Human Animals? (Republished)

Short-eared owl Harriet 
Editor’s note: This post has originally been posted on 12th September 2018, and has now been updated and republished.

Before we look at possible answers, we should try to establish an ethical baseline we all can agree on and work with. Most but not all people will accept that it is wrong to intentionally inflict harm onto others with the exception of acting in self defence. Intentionally harming other people is morally seen not acceptable. Violence is generally not regarded as normal behaviour, as it obviously can cause harm. It seems natural to most of us to help others, who have been harmed or are about to be harmed. But what drives us to help? And where does empathy and compassion come from?

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The Thing About Violence

Carrion crow

Due to recent events, we feel that we should clarify a few things. There are a multitude of different kinds of people with varying intentions and opinions or ethical and moral values responding to the broad selection of topics we have tackled on our website and on Twitter, which is usually very refreshing and for which we are very grateful. Whilst we value the freedom of opinion, we have to distance ourselves from some of the comments and commenters, who seem to have at the very least misunderstood or misinterpreted, unintentionally or intentionally, certain topics, most likely to suit their own agenda.

We are all Earthlings
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Are Animals Able To Ask Humans For Help?

Jackdaw Altona

Before we look at some examples of animals seeking human help, it seems a good idea to address the often heard myth that we as humans must not anthropomorphise animal behaviour. Although this is still a widespread believe, even amongst otherwise renowned scientists, it is simply wrong, based on the ever increasing anecdotal and scientific evidence. I have chosen four short excerpts taken from Marc Bekoff’s book “The Emotional Lives of Animals – A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy – and Why They Matter”, who addresses this misconception in his usual precise, ethical and scientific manor.1

‘Careful and detailed behavioral studies have shown time and again that we can indeed differentiate and understand animal behavior, and how it differs in various social contexts.’

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  1. “The Emotional Lives of Animals – A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy – and Why They Matter”, New World Library, February 2007, Marc Bekoff (Author) and Jane Goodall (Foreword) [↩]
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Jackdaw Jacky – Thoughts About Sentience

Jacky is a western jackdaw (Coloeus monedula), also known as Eurasian jackdaw, European jackdaw, or simply jackdaw, and is a passerine bird belonging to the crow family. She is a seven year old imprinted bird, whose care we have taken over about one year ago. Jacky is unfortunately not releasable, as she has spent her whole life with humans. Jacky has been rescued as a fledgling by a well meaning person, who raised and unintentionally imprinted her. It did not take long for Jacky to conquer our hearts. Jacky lives with us, as she is not comfortable with other residential jackdaws, and is sadly not being tolerated by her own kind. Experiencing non-human animals like Jacky can be an eye opener for people, who never had this kind of close relationship with non-human animals like her. And as people, who have already opened their minds and hearts towards the plight of human as well as non-human animals, we are still again and again amazed by what we can learn from our non-human fellows. This insight makes it even more difficult to comprehend and live with the widely accepted normality and legality of discrimination and persecution of human and non-human animals.

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Why Should We Help Non-Human Animals?

Short-eared owl Harriet 
Editor's note: An updated and republished version of this blog post is available by following the link below.

How To Treat A Sentient Being With Respect (Republished)

Before we look at possible answers, we should try to establish an ethical baseline we all can agree on and work with. Most but not all people will accept that it is wrong to intentionally inflict harm onto others with the exception of acting in self defence. Intentionally harming other people is morally seen not acceptable. Violence is generally not regarded as normal behaviour, as it obviously can cause harm. It seems natural to most of us to help others, who have been harmed or are about to be harmed. But what drives us to help? And where does empathy and compassion come from?

Continue reading “Why Should We Help Non-Human Animals?”