[Animals] What do animals feel?

[#Wittels-]

Numerous studies show that they are beings capable of experiencing positive and negative emotions, a fact that is now also recognized by our civil codeDogs in an animal shelter in Spain waiting to be adopted.

 

Our country in 2021 has taken a very important step in the recognition of animal rights by approving, last October, a reform of the civil code that stops considering them "objects or goods" that can be included in inheritances, embargoes or divorces, to recognize them as "living beings endowed with sensitivity."

 

This is a great advance, according to Pilar Badía, professor of Language at IES Conde Aranda de Alagón, former journalist and author of the book 'The voice of animals'. A work in which, with clear and simple language, it invites adolescents to reflect on how we treat animals in our society and what many of our daily acts have on them and on the places where they live.

The change in the legal regime of animals, from "things" to "sentient beings" is a "symbolic recognition" of our laws that corroborates what science has been saying for a long time. There are numerous studies that demonstrate the sensitivity of animals, that "they are capable of experiencing both positive and negative emotions, well-being or suffering," says Badía, and in which "we can often recognize feelings such as sadness, joy, fear , etc. ».

The book on animal ethics by teacher Pilar Badía and Diego J. Hernández, 'The voice of animals', aimed at an adolescent audience.

 

What happens, says the teacher, is that "we more easily recognize these feelings in the animals we live with, and it is more difficult for us to perceive and understand them in those with whom we do not live and are further away from us."

Objects, clothing or gifts
Animals and humans, "we are also animals", we have a complicated relationship today. "In our society, animals are often seen as objects of entertainment, for example in circuses or zoos, or even as clothing," Badía recalls. An example, now that Christmas is approaching, is the impulsive purchase or adoption of pets as if they were just another gift, whims that shoot up the numbers of animal abandonment after the holidays. In fact, in countries like Germany the adoption of pets is prohibited during this time of year.

 

In addition, according to the teacher, sometimes we forget that the deterioration of the environment also has negative effects on animals, “after all, the forests, the seas, the oceans, etc. they are the home where they live. It occurs with fires, which "have an impact on plant species but those who are most affected are the animals that live in these areas, as they are left without food, shelter and homeless," says Badía, who recalls the images of koalas and kangaroos in Australia, or horses in Galicia, fleeing the flames.

Two tigers from a circus, animal entertainment show, inside a cage.

 

Therefore, the activist invites us to become aware of the implications that our actions have on the rest of the animal kingdom, and understand that, as sentient beings, "just as we can harm them, we can also benefit them."

Expand our 'circle of empathy'
According to the teacher, there is the concept of a 'circle of empathy' that we use, for example, when we talk about feminism or the fight against racism, of being tolerant and understanding of all human beings regardless of their race, religion or gender. "This circle can also be extended to other species beyond ours," he says. Speciesism, as Badía defines it, is "discrimination due to the species that implies that with other animals, because they do not belong to our species, we commit all kinds of atrocities, such as locking them in captivity, isolating them, etc.".

 

The teacher is optimistic because "steps are being taken" and there is more and more "awareness". "There are studies that show that children between 5 and 9 years old have a much greater empathy towards animals than adults, although this empathy decreases due to different factors as we grow older", he points out. That is why he believes that it is very important to raise awareness among adolescents, a stage in which "we question the world around us and reflect on different causes of social justice," he says.

An orangutan hangs from a rope at an orangutan sanctuary in Indonesia.

 

Link: https://www.elperiodicodearagon.com/el-estudiante/2021/12/14/sienten-animales-60504163.html