Cruelty
When people think of cruelty, they often think of a person starving or beating an animal. In other words, they think of actions that are against the law. They may also think of things done by other nations, such as whale hunting, bear farming, bull fighting, or clubbing seal pups.Certainly all of these actions are cruel, but animals also suffer much closer to home. Mostly people don't think about everyday suffering in Australia, for example, animals killed for food, battery hens, laboratory animals, animals that are trapped, poisoned, or hunted for sport. These actions aren't illegal, but they cause suffering to more individuals than people who starve or beat their animals.
So what is cruelty? In what ways do animals suffer?
- Pain. All animals with backbones (vertebrates) feel pain like we do. Hooking fish, fire branding cattle, catching animals in steel-jaw traps, cutting tails off lambs and beaks off hens, all cause pain.
- Stress and Fear. Vertebrate animals feel anxiety like we do. Transport is very stressful for animals, especially live export overseas. Being pulled out of the water and left to suffocate causes great stress to fish. Dairy calves taken from their mother after 1 day and trucked to slaughter at 1 week of age suffer greatly.
- Frustration. Animals need more than food and water for their well-being - they also need to be able to carry out the behaviour that is natural to their species. Otherwise they become frustrated and may develop abnormal behaviour, just like a mentally disturbed person. Signs of frustration can be seen in battery hens, pigs in tiny stalls, rabbits in laboratory cages, foxes and mink on fur farms, and some zoo and circus animals.
Animals on Farms
Includes laying hens, meat chickens, pigs, sheep, dairy and beef cattle, live export of animals, fish farming and commercial fishing.
Animals in Laboratories
Includes cosmetic and drug testing, safety testing in general (for skin and eye irritation, toxicity, cancer and birth defects), alternatives to animals in research, the law covering laboratory animals, the ethics of animal experiments, dissection, animals in tertiary education, numbers and species used in Australia.
Animals in Sport and Entertainment
Includes duck shooting, fishing, circuses, zoos, rodeos, and jump racing.
Wild Animals
Includes fur trapping and farming, whales and dolphins, control of feral animals, and exploitation of native wildlife, such as kangaroos, possums, crocodiles, emus, parrots and muttonbirds.