Animal Rights: Licensing as a Way to Reduce Abuse

Paper Summary:

The paper contends that owning a pet is a responsibility that requires a commitment to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the animal throughout its lifetime. The paper discusses the rampant disregard for animal rights and suggests the requirement of licenses for all pet owners. The paper considers several difficult conceptual problems with this solution and concludes that, ultimately, when it comes to compassion and morality, education and moral cultural values will always be more important than enforcement through legislation and penal consequences.

From the Paper:

"Owning a pet is a responsibility that requires a commitment to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the animal throughout its lifetime. All too often, people buy pets on a whim, after seeing a cute dog in a pet store window, for example, or they receive one as an unexpected gift. Either way, many of them are unprepared to honor the moral obligation to provide a safe, comfortable environment for their animals. As a result, millions of unwanted dogs end up in shelters, where most of them are euthanized when they are not adopted within a short time, or immediately if they become ill, to prevent their illnesses from spreading throughout the shelter."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Coren, S. The Intelligence Of Dogs: A Guide To The Thoughts, Emotions, And Inner Lives Of Our Canine Companions. (1995) New York: Bantam
• Dodman, N.H. (2002) If Only They Could Speak: Stories about Pets and Their People. New York: W.W. Norton
• Moussaieff-Masson, J. (1995) When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals. New York: Bantam.
• Schmalleger, F. (1997) Criminal Justice Today. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
• Tangley, L. (10/30/2000) Animal Emotions: Do Animals Have Feelings?;U.S. News & World Report.

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