Overview
Sentience – the ability to feel, perceive and experience – is central to the animal welfare debate as it raises the question of whether animals experience suffering in life and death. This book explores and answers these questions in an objective way, based on the latest research and empirical evidence. Beginning with an introduction to sentience, the book investigates why we are so interested in sentience, when, as a species, humans became sentient and how it has changed over time. The book defines aspects of sentience such as consciousness, memory and emotions, and discusses brain complexity in detail. Looking at sentience from a developmental perspective, it analyses when in an individual’s growth sentience can be said to appear and uses evidence from a range of studies investigating embryos, foetuses and young animals to form an enlightening overview of the subject. With a full chapter covering ethical decisions such as animal protection and experimentation, this book is not only an invaluable resource for researchers and students of animal welfare and biology, but also an engaging and informative read for veterinarians and the general public.
Full Product Details
Author: Donald Broom (Cambridge University, UK) ,
D M Broom
Publisher: CABI Publishing
Imprint: CABI Publishing
Dimensions:
Width: 15.60cm
, Height: 1.20cm
, Length: 23.40cm
Weight: 0.390kg
ISBN: 9781780644042
ISBN 10: 1780644043
Pages: 200
Publication Date: 14 August 2014
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
Broom (veterinary medicine, Univ. of Cambridge, UK) takes readers on a short, clear, authoritative journey through animal sentience and what it means in terms of how humans value and treat animals. He quickly outlines what sentience and ethics are, followed by a little history of people's views of animals. He discusses the four bases for animal sentience--cognition, affect, awareness (which he equates to consciousness), and motivation. He draws on wide, up-to-date coverage of research on these areas across the phyla, including cephalopods, fish, and crustaceans. Having set a foundation, Broom then discusses how these apply to animal welfare, in many cases using domesticated animals as examples and evaluating how physiological and behavioral measures can be used to study areas such as pain and wellness, including evaluating what is important to an animal. There is an interesting assessment of sentience across the life-span and when human and nonhuman animals should be protected. Broom ends by pointing out that public attitudes, as examples in the Canadian seal hunt and genetically modified animals, can change practice and feels that public education is the ultimate answer to good animal welfare. Summing Up: Highly Recommended. --CHOICE
Author Information
Donald M. Broom, Emeritus Professor of Animal Welfare, Cambridge University, Department of Veterinary Medicine, has developed concepts and methods of scientific assessment of animal welfare and studied: cognitive abilities of animals, the welfare of animals in relation to housing and transport, behaviour problems, attitudes to animals, sustainable livestock production and ethics of animal usage. He has published over 300 refereed papers and books including: Stress and Animal Welfare (2000 Springer), The Evolution of Morality and Religion (2003 CUP), Domestic Animal Behaviour and Welfare, 5th edition (2015 CABI), and Sentience and Animal Welfare (2014 CABI).
