How Can We Say An Animal Is Better Off Dead? Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Dr Jacqui Wilmshurst. She is a speaker at the Annual Oxford Animal Ethics Summer School and founder of Nala’s Nook Squirrel & Corvid Sanctuary. Dr Jacqui Wilmshurst will share her own experiences of rescuing and grappling with this question. She will do so through the lens of her own disabilities. It’s estimated that over a quarter of a million animals are rescued each year in the UK. These animals are often saved…
Why Infantilising Animals Can Lead Cruelty And Abuse
Why Infantilising Animals Can Lead Cruelty And Abuse. Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Taylor Waters from the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. Taylor will be exploring why infantilising animals can lead to cruelty and abuse. We tend to infantilise animals, drawn to their babies and choosing pets with baby-like looks. We tend to prefer social media posts featuring baby animals over adult ones. However, when we frame animals as babies—cute, harmless, and dependent—we start to feel entitled to their bodies and attention. The “aww” gives us a…
Animal Welfare Issues Are Key To Labour And Conservatives
Animal Welfare Issues Are Key To Labour And Conservatives. Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from David Holroyd from the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. David will be exploring why we need Conservative, not Labour, animal advocates – regardless of the results of the next General Election. Few pundits expect a victory for Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives in the upcoming 2024 General Election. We need to wait until party manifestos are released, but many animal advocates hope that a more left-wing government will support bolder laws to protect animals in…
Safeguarding Humanity Via Legal Safeguards For Animals
Safeguarding Humanity Via Legal Safeguards For Animals. Hello everyone. I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Kimberley Moore, Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics and author of The Case for the Legal Protection of Animals, Humanity’s Shared Destiny with the Animal Kingdom. She will explore why humanity’s destiny depends on the legal protection of animals and what the law needs to do to protect that shared destiny. In 2022, the United Nations adopted a Resolution affirming that the health and welfare of animals are connected to the health and…
The Psychological Effects Of Witnessing Cruelty To Animals On Social Media
The Psychological Effects Of Witnessing Cruelty To Animals On Social Media. Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Dustin Kieschnick and Katie Lawlor from the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, exploring the psychological effects of witnessing cruelty to animals on Social Media. Social Media seems to be full of animals, and often, those depictions are about cruelty. We are horrified when we see a post about a fox ripped apart by hounds or someone who has dumped a bag of kittens in a river or beaten their dog. And…
Hello Kitty? Why Are Celebrated Cats So Un Cat-Like?
Hello Kitty? Why Are Celebrated Cats So Un Cat-Like? Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Dr Rebecca Rose Stanton, Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. She will explore the media’s vilification and celebration of cats and why so many cats are very un-cat-like. If you were asked to name a famous cat, there are many examples: Top Cat, Garfield, Hello Kitty, and the Pink Panther. But who would you pick if asked to name a famous cat that wasn’t anthropomorphised? Despite the prevalence of cats in…
