Why I Do Not Believe in Animal Rights

Photo by author. These are Sandy and Kitty, sadly, Kitty passed away and Sandy was given away and I suspect he’s also gone by now. But they were so adorable at that age.

Animal rights is one of the issues of our time. I love animals. I am, in fact, the kind of person who will call snakes and spiders cute. (Yellowjackets, however, can do their business a long way away from me, just saying).

I am the kind of person who asks to pet other people’s dogs. I ride horses. I appreciate wildlife and if I had a yard I would have a pollinator garden.

I love animals and I deeply care about their welfare.

I do not believe in animal rights.

Animal Rights versus Animal Welfare

So, let’s start by getting the definitions out of the way.

Animal welfare — care and concern for the welfare, health, and treatment of non-human animals.

Animal rights — the belief that non-human animals deserve at least the same protection, rights, and legal status as humans.

The difference, phrased like that, is stark. Now, many animal rights activists would argue that they also care about animal welfare. Or that you can’t actually care about animals without believing in their rights.

Now, I do believe non-human animals do deserve certain “rights.” They are:

1. The right to species-appropriate food.