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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Animal Studies

Journal

Animal Welfare

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Sentience In Decapods: Difficulties To Surmount, Michael L. Woodruff Jan 2022

Sentience In Decapods: Difficulties To Surmount, Michael L. Woodruff

Animal Sentience

In the target article Crump et al. present 8 criteria to assess whether decapods experience pain. Four of these -- sensory integration, motivational trade-offs, flexible self-protection, and associative learning -- could be used to assess sentience in general. In this commentary I discuss difficulties with using these criteria to provide evidence of sentience in decapods, particularly if this evidence is to change public opinion and policies. These difficulties are lack of evidence, the potential to eventually explain the neurobiological basis of the behaviors chosen as criteria, thereby eliminating any explanatory work for sentience, and the reluctance to bring animals that …


The State Of The Economy And Animal Welfare, Michael W. Fox Jan 1983

The State Of The Economy And Animal Welfare, Michael W. Fox

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The author discusses the impact of recessions on animal welfare and animal care.