Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY

Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

Lesson title: Introduction to Animal Welfare Concepts Materials:

- Pen and paper
Lesson Objectives: -Computer, Tablet, Smart
Phone with internet access
At the end of this period, the students are expected to:
Reference:
1. explain which animal we are concerned about (looking World Society for Animal
at sentience, suffering and anthropomorphism) Protection (2013). Concepts
2. tell the relationship between death and animal welfare. in Animal Welfare Syllabus
(3rd edition). University of
1. Bristol

Productivity Tip:
Open your mind and heart to be able to see rightly.

A. LESSON PREVIEW/REVIEW

1) Introduction (2 mins)

Animal Welfare is an emotive subject where every person has independent perceptions on
animal use and animal suffering. Human use of animals can take a variety of forms. The
largest numbers of animals cared by human are likely those used in food production. This
is attributed to the increase in demand for food in view of the global increase in human
population. The intensification of animal agriculture towards producing more and cheaper
food to feed a growing human population, has likewise resulted in many unsustainable and
deleterious environmental, social, human health and animal welfare issues.

For thousands of years, humans around the world have been concerned that animals are
suffering. Is this just anthropomorphism? The answer is no! Animals are sentient and have
rights to be respected. If we are to achieve higher standards of animal welfare, we need to
go beyond the emotional arguments relating to animal cruelty and well-being. We need to
utilize scientifically validated evidence and empower credible professionals to help persuade
those with competing agendas that animal welfare matters, not just to animals but also for
human wellbeing.

This introductory session will explore important concepts that form foundation in the
succeeding lessons and likewise know whose welfare veterinarians are concerned about.
Finally, we will describe how death of an animal relates to welfare.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

2) Activity 1: What I Know Chart, part 1 (3 mins)

Consider the questions on the table below. On the first column briefly write in bullet points
what you know about the question. Meanwhile, leave the third column at this time until you
are asked to do so.

What I Know Questions: What I Learned (Activity 4)

1. Which animals are we
concerned of their welfare
and why?

2. Within the context of animal

welfare, contrast quantity of
life from quality of life.

3. Comment on the statement

“welfare ends when the
animal dies.”

B. MAIN LESSON

1) Activity 2: Content Notes (13 mins)

Main source for the contents in this session is the Concepts in Animal Welfare syllabus, a resource
originally developed by Bristol University and World Animal Protection (formerly World Animal Society
for the Protection of Animals). You are further directed to visit the supplemental resources.

Sentience

The general description of Sentience is: the capacity to have feelings and to experience
suffering and pleasure.” Animal sentience is the fact that animals can feel pain and suffer
but also experience many positive emotions, such as joy and pleasure. It implies a level of
conscious awareness. Studies have shown many animals can experience complex emotions
which are often thought to be unique to humans, such as grief and empathy. The acceptance
of animal sentience is based on decades of scientific evidence from the fields of
neuroscience, behavioral sciences and cognitive ethology. Animal sentience is further
recognized in legislation around the world (e.g. RA 8485 / RA 10631 Otherwise known as
the Animal Welfare Act of 1998)

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

Sentience is more than local sensation. “A sentient being is one that has some ability to
evaluate the actions of others in relation to itself and third parties, to remember some of
its own actions and their consequences, to assess risk, to have some feelings and to have
some degree of awareness” (Broom, 2006). These feelings matter to the individual
(Webster, 2011) and the organism is conscious of feeling something pleasant or unpleasant.
Knowing that many species of animal are sentient means we know that they can suffer.

There is clear scientific evidence proving all vertebrate animals and some molluscs and
crustaceans (i.e prawns) are sentient even with the inclusion of “some degree of
awareness.” Researches into invertebrate sentience are continually advancing and our
understanding of sentience is still developing; many species we now think are not sentient
may actually be sentient, and therefore able to suffer.

Supplemental Resources on Sentience:

1. Read the following articles: (pdf copy will be shared in google classroom)
a. “Animal Sentience: Where are We and Where are We Heading?”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4494284/
b. “What beings are conscious” https://www.animal-ethics.org/what-beings-are-
conscious/#:~:text=Vertebrates%20and%20many%20invertebrates%20are,s
atisfy%20the%20criteria%20for%20sentience
c. “Invertebrate sentience: A review of the neuroscientific literature”
https://www.animal-ethics.org/invertebrate-sentience-a-review-of-the-
neuroscientific-literature/
2. Watch the following video” (Links will be shared in google classroom)
a. “Why Animal Sentience Matters”: https://vimeo.com/44925786 (4.11)
b. “A Veterinary Perspective on Animal Sentience”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykTdrqG75OA (10:07)

Suffering

There is growing evidence from neurobiology and behavioural studies that animals can also
experience pleasant sensory input that produces positive emotions such as satisfaction.
Knowing this will also inform how we care for animals.

Knowing that many species of animal are sentient means we know that they can suffer.
Knowing that a species can suffer helps us to ask careful ethical and scientific questions
about how we can care for them in ways that prevent “one or more bad feelings continuing
for more than a short period” (Broom & Fraser, 2007).

Because we do not yet know much about positive emotions, most of animal welfare science
and most veterinary clinical work focuses on how to prevent animals from suffering.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

However, it is likely that during your professional career as veterinarian, there will be
practical developments in how to give animals a positive experience of their lives, not simply
a life that avoids suffering. Positive experiences are what make an animal’s life a life worth
living.

Supplemental Resources on Suffering:

Read the following articles: (pdf copy will be shared in google classroom)
1. “The capacity of animals to experience pain, distress and suffering”
https://www.nuffieldbioethics.org/wp-content/uploads/Animals-Chapter-4-The-
Capacity-of-Animals-to-Experience-Pain-Distress-and-Suffering.pdf
2. “Suffering in Non-Human Animals: Perspectives from Animal Welfare Science and
Animal Welfare Law” file:///C:/Users/ACER/Downloads/1587-97-7591-2-10-
20170905.pdf
3. “The Science of Animal Suffering”
http://courses.washington.edu/anmind/M%20Dawkins%20-
%20science%20of%20animal%20suffering%20-%20Ethol%202008.pdf

Anthropomorphism

The term Anthropomorphism was derived from the Greek words Anthropo (referring to
human) and Morp (to change, form). It is therefore the attribution of human traits,
emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. Experts considered that rendering human
characteristics to animals is an innate tendency of human psychology. Examples to this is
when we infer a deliberate human-like perceptive abilities such as guilt feelings by a pet
dog that does something wrong or has destroyed a property. Also, when we talk to the dog
having assumptions that the animal thinks and understands what we mean.

In another example, some people think that eagles and other birds of prey look angry just
because of the way their eyes are shaped. Birds don’t have the same facial expressions as
human beings, so it’s incorrect to look at an eagle’s eyes and conclude that the animal is
angry. Other form of anthropomorphism is when animals are presented like a human, or
literally shown as acting human. Example is depicted by cartoon animals wearing clothes,
singing and playing musical instruments and expressing human activities and emotions.
Many pet owners dress-up their pet or even project their own personality characteristics
onto their pet animal.

Science proves that animals share many mental faculties with humans. However, the
tendency to interpret animals based on human ways of thinking and behaving could lead to
an exaggeration of the similarities and thereby misunderstand animal behavior or ethology

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

Anthropomorphism is thereby generally seen as a bad thing by scientists. However, some

now acknowledge that we can use human needs as a starting point for considering what
animals may need in order to have a good life or, at least, to avoid suffering. This is called
‘critical anthropomorphism’. An example of this is pain: as humans, we find surgery very
painful, especially if no anaesthesia or analgesia is used. It is reasonable to expect the same
to be true of many animals.

Whose Welfare We Are Concerned About?

At present, the growing concerns over animal welfare is exacerbated by social media. As
more and more advocates share their views online, awareness continues to spread. In many
of his books(Broom, 1991a, 1991b, 1998, 2001, 2003; Fraser and Broom 1990; Broom and
Johnson, 1993; Broom and Fraser, 2015)., Broom have emphasized the importance of
feelings as biological mechanisms helping individuals to cope with their environment and
hence as being a key part of welfare. Sentient animals have characteristics that influence
concern for their welfare, with those species that are considered more intelligent being
afforded more concern.

Veterinarians should be concerned primarily with the welfare of domesticated and captive
wild species that humans keep as companions, for food, for research, or for entertainment.
On being concerned about animal suffering, veterinarians should be concerned about what
effect their treatment of animals has on the animal’s experience of their lives. The concerns
include:
• how those animals are cared for (including when neglect or cruelty may occur)
• how they are used, e.g. milking cows; shearing sheep and llamas; experimental
procedures in research animals; activities required of animals in sport (e.g. dressage,
rodeo) and entertainment (e.g. circuses, dog fighting)
• how they are handled and housed during transport and at sales
• how those animals are killed so that they do not suffer during the lead-up to their
death and during the killing process (e.g. the slaughter of farm animals for meat,
euthanasia because of illness, or killing for population control).

Broom stated further that many people consider sentience as criterion for deciding which
animals should be legally protected by laws. But enforcement of the law to protect the
welfare of all sentient animals pose many challenges. Example to consider is the elimination
of animals regarded as pests i.e. rats, cockroach, and other insects infesting crops and
animals.

Animals legally protected in our law is defined in Section 1 of Republic Act No. 8485
(otherwise known as Animal Welfare Act of 1998) as amended by RA 10631 which now

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

reads, … “It is the purpose of this Act to protect and promote the welfare of all terrestrial,
aquatic and marine animals in the Philippines by supervising and regulating the
establishment and operation of all facilities utilized for breeding, maintaining, keeping,
treating or training of all animals either as objects of trade or as household pets. For the
purpose of this Act, pets shall include birds.”

Welfare and Death

Welfare concerns the quality of an animal’s life, not how long the life lasts (quantity).
Meanwhile, death affects the quantity of an animal’s life. Welfare ends when an animal dies.
Yeates (2010) said “It is commonly asserted that “death is not a welfare issue” and this has
been reflected in welfare legislation and policy in many countries. However, this creates a
conflict for many who consider animal welfare to be an appropriate basis for decision-
making in animal ethics but also consider that an animal’s death is ethically significant.”

People disagree about whether it is right for humans to kill animals. However, the state of
death is not a welfare issue in its own right because welfare concerns the quality of an
animal’s life (suffering, pleasure, etc), and when the animal is dead, the animal no longer
have experiences.

Humans usually want to have as long a life as possible and to avoid a poor quality of life.
However, with animals we are usually concerned with giving them a good quality of life, but
not in keeping them alive at all costs. Much of the time we end their lives for our own
purposes. Yeates (2010) discussed that “killing may be justified for disease control or public
health purposes, population control, biomedical research, or slaughter for food and/or fiber.
In other instances, keeping an animal alive that does not have a life worth living can be
justified (eg, research circumstances where it would be impractical to kill the animal or
when ensuring its survival would promote a greater good.” The manner in which the animal
dies is an important welfare issue. For example, the method of slaughter of food animals
should, ideally, cause instantaneous death.

Moreover, although being dead is not a welfare concern, a high death rate in a group of
animals is a welfare concern. This is because, if many animals are dying, this may indicate
poor husbandry or another problem under which many animals become diseased – and
therefore experience bad welfare.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

2) Activity 3: Skill-building Activities (18 mins + 2 mins checking)

Accomplish the following activities then check your answers against the Key to Corrections
found at the end of this SAS.

A. Encircle all animals that are NOT sentient.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

B. Is the animal in the picture suffering? Justify your

answer. Consider how suffering is described and
look closely on the stance of the dog in the picture.
Write your answer below:

3) Activity 4: What I Know Chart, part 2 (2 mins)

You are about to complete the module at this point. To refresh what you have learned,
review back the questions in the What I Know Chart from Activity 1 and write your answers
to the questions based on what you now know in the third column of the chart.

4) Activity 5: Check for Understanding (5 mins)

Place a check mark on the box corresponding to the chosen answer to the following
questions. Earn 10 points for answering all the items correctly. No point is awarded for
incomplete answer.

4.1 Death is not a welfare issue in its own right. Which one of the following is NOT true?
 the manner of death is a welfare issue.
 reduction in the quantity of life due to death may relate to poor welfare.
 since death concerns quantity rather than quality of life, it has an ethical value.
 to promote their welfare, dead companion animals must be provided last respects
and decent burial.
4.2 Suffering means when an animal is exposed to one or more bad feelings continuing
for more than a short period. Mark a check on the box corresponding to the statement
that is absolutely True.
 Animals always suffer when they are stressed.
 Dogs suffer when tied/chained or confined in a cage.
 Animals that are suffering may show abnormal behaviors.
 Animals during live transport suffer from overcrowded confinement.
 Animals suffer when they live in an environment that allows manifestations of
their natural behaviors of hunt and prey.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

4.3 Who is the author of the famous quote: “The question is not, Can they reason? nor
Can they talk? but Can they suffer?”
 James Burgh  Donald Broom
Jeremy Bentham  Descartes
4.4 Mark a check on the box before the statement that is NOT acceptable.
 Positive experiences are what make an animal’s life a life worth living.
 We are not concerned when animals are killed because they are pests.
 Veterinarians are legally concerned with the welfare of all sentient species.
 Animals can experience pleasant sensory input that produces positive emotions
such as satisfaction.
 Humans must be concerned with animals that they keep as companions, for food,
for research, or for entertainment.
4.5 Which of the following does NOT contribute to the definition of a sentient animal?
 have some feelings and have some degree of awareness.
 has ability to assess risk, have some feelings, and some degree of awareness.
 has some ability to evaluate the actions of others in relation to itself and third
parties.
 shares human feelings and remembers some of its own actions and their
consequences.

Check your answers under Key to Corrections found at the end of this SAS. Write your
score in the “My learning targets” section.

C. LESSON WRAP-UP

1) Activity 6: Thinking about Learning (5 mins)

You are done with this session! Let’s track your progress. Shade the session number you
have completed.
P1 P2 P3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐

2) My learning targets:
Complete the table below. Record your scores, learning experience for the session and
deliberately plan for the next session.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

Date Learning Target/Topic Scores Action Plan

What were
What contributed to the quality of your performance
What’s the What session# did you do? What were the your scores
today? What will you do next session to maintain
date today? learning targets? What activities did you do? in the
your performance or improve it?
activities?

FAQs

1. What is the difference between the quality and quantity of life in respect to animal
welfare?
Welfare concerns the quality of an animal’s life and the manner of its death. Meanwhile,
death affects the quantity of life that an animal has, i.e. its lifespan, but may not be a
welfare concern on its own. The quality and quantity of an animal’s life may be the subject
of ethical concern by humans.

2. What is critical anthropomorphism?

Different types of animals have different behavioral needs, that should be treated
accordingly. In trying to assess welfare, it is often a useful starting point to think about the
animal’s needs in terms of human needs – i.e. putting ourselves in the animal’s place and
thinking about what we would need in a similar situation. However, we must modify this
according to their specific needs. Although we can use human needs as a starting point, we
need to think of them in terms of the animal – does the animal also require fulfilment of
these needs, or are there others that a human does not require? This concept is called
critical anthropomorphism.

3. Once an animal is dead, there are no longer welfare issues attached to it. However, in
what circumstances could death be relevant to welfare?
• The manner of death is relevant, e.g. method of slaughter is important in terms of
pain/distress.
• High death rates can indicate poor welfare conditions, e.g. poor husbandry, leading to
disease and death.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

KEY TO CORRECTIONS

A. The following animals are NOT sentient: (5 points)

Group of animals that are NOT Sentient:

➢ All Protozoans, Poriferans, Coelenterates,
Annelids (some members currently being
investigated), Helminths (Trematodes,
Nematodes, Cestodes), Echinoderms
➢ Some Mollusks (many members are still
under research investigation)

Group of animals that are Sentient

➢ All Vertebrates
➢ Many Arthropods (i.e. insects, arachnids,
crustaceans)
➢ Some Mollusks (i.e. select members of
cephalopods, gastropods, Pelecypods)

B. Suffering. (5 points)

The dog in the picture appears to display a positive

emotional state. The tail appears the dog has detected
something of interest (could be wagging sideways), ears
relaxed bended down forward, head high and mouth open
(showing a little tongue) and stance loose. These signals
communicate that he is now alert and paying attention but
relaxed and reasonably content. Temporary placing the
dog on lease temporarily for control does not cause
suffering provided the length of the lease allow optimum
movement of the dog.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH

 Course Code: VEM 003 ANIMAL WELFARE AND ETHOLOGY
Student Activity Sheet for Session #1

Name: _________________________________________________________________ Class number: _______

Section: ____________ Schedule: ________________________________________ Date: ________________

4. Activity 5 – Reward yourself 2 points for complete correct answer.

4.1 This statement is NOT true of death and welfare:
to promote their welfare, dead companion animals must be provided last respects
and decent burial.
Note: Welfare ends when the animal dies. When the animals dies, it can no longer
have feelings and cannot suffer. Disposal of the dead animal is a public
health concern.
4.2 These two statements are absolutely true:
Animals that are suffering may show abnormal behaviors.
Animals during live transport suffer from overcrowded confinement

Notes:
• Suffering from stress occurs when the intensity or complexity of stresses goes
beyond the capacity of an animal to cope or an animal is unable to take
constructive action to avoid them. Stress can be physiological (this will be
discussed in another session)
• Temporary confinement or leasing of dogs does not cause suffering provide
animal can have enough space and capacity to move
• Manifestation of natural behavior is essential. Modification of destructive
behaviors will be discussed in another session.
4.3 Jeremy Bentham is the author of the famous quote: “The question is not, Can they
reason? nor Can they talk? but Can they suffer?”
4.4 These statements are NOT acceptable.
We are not concerned when animals are killed because they are pests.
Other than some insects, many animals are considered pests that includes a range
of vertebrates whose population is uncontrolled and becomes nuisance causing
negative impact to humans and the environment. These pests are sentient species
and have the capacity to suffer thereby concerns on control tools used to reduce
their numbers is an ethical issue. Accepting that there is a welfare cost (i.e. animals
suffer) resulting from our pest management actions, it is incumbent upon all those
involved in controlling vertebrate pests to minimize the welfare cost (harm) and
maximize the benefits (i.e. achieve the pest management objectives).
Veterinarians are legally concerned with the welfare of all sentient species.
It is difficult to legally promote the welfare of all sentient animals. The animal
welfare Act only limited the scope to all terrestrial, aquatic and marine animals in
the Philippines.
4.4 This statement do NOT contribute to the definition of a sentient animal:
shares human feelings and remembers some of its own actions and their
consequences.
Animal feelings are not precisely same with human feelings.

FLM 1.0 Prepared by Daniel C. Ventura, Jr., DVM, PhD., DipVPH