A recent report on sheep behavior dispels many of the common cultural myths that have clouded our understanding of this species for centuries.
Farm Animal Intelligence
New Research Shines Light on the Complex Social World and Individuality of Sheep
Are Pigs as Smart as Dogs and Does It Really Matter?
Some people claim that supposedly smarter animals suffer more than supposedly dumber animals and that it’s okay to use the dumber individuals in all sorts of invasive and abusive ways. READ ON
Why Fish Can No Longer Escape Our Conscience
Pescetarians—those who eschew eating all animals with the notable exceptional of fish—are commonly viewed as having fashioned diets that are more ethically focused than opportunistic omnivores. But could it be READ ON
The Sheep Who Jumps for Joy: On the Will to Live in All Animals
Like the will to live, the ability to experience pleasure is also not unique to humans. Animals exploited for food also seek pleasure, from chickens who purr, to sheep who READ ON
How the Intelligent Hen Study Fails Chickens
There’s a lot of buzz in the animal protection movement about a new chicken intelligence study that, once again, maintains that chickens are even more intelligent than we once thought. READ ON
A Universal Declaration on Animal Sentience: No Pretending
This past weekend during a series of lectures I presented in Germany a number of people asked questions of the sort, “Isn’t it about time we accept that animals are READ ON
Did You Know that Chickens Purr When They’re Content?
Among the many fascinating discoveries I’ve made in the process of raising a flock of adopted hens is the lovely and soothing sound of a chicken purr. Yes, you heard READ ON
Moving Beyond the False Stereotypes of Turkeys
To understand the complex suffering of turkeys raised for “food,” it helps to know that in nature, young turkey siblings stay close to their mother for four or five months READ ON
Doris the Hen and the 50-Million-Year-Old Legacy of Motherhood
Lovely and elegant Doris pictured here is one of four adopted hens. She had major surgery over a year ago to save her life. The surgery consisted of removing her READ ON
Seeing through the Speciesist Bias in the Field of Animal Behavior
It seems both silly and unscientific to believe that humans are unique in our capacity to feel and think, as if we didn’t evolve, along with other mammals, to have READ ON
Dutch Study: Dairy Cows Have Individual Personalities
While human behavior studies are generally conducted with the intention of improving human health and well being, van Reenan’s study of dairy cow temperament sets out to understand the specific READ ON
Beyond the Struggle to Survive: The Study of Pleasure in Animals
“Happy, healthy animals are beautiful to behold. They make us smile, and there’s value in that. But pleasure has deeper meaning and significant implications for humankind’s relationship with other animals. READ ON
Non-Human and Human Animals: More Similarities Than Differences
Would it matter if we perceived other species as fundamentally like us instead of fundamentally different, recognizing clear distinctions between our capacities to modify our environment, communicate and learn through READ ON
Animal, Vegetable, Science, Ethics: Interview with Jonathan Balcombe
Author, ethologist and biologist Dr. Jonathan Balcombe is breaking new ground in our understanding of and appreciation for animals. For many, Second Nature, his last book, was their first introduction READ ON
Paradise Lost: The Holocaust of the Birds
When I see the transit cars on the freight trains that haul live chickens packed in hundreds of small crates, stacked several stories high and side by side, I think READ ON
The Moral Lives of Animals: Exclusive Interview with Author Dale Peterson
In the study of animal behavior and intelligence, Jane Goodall may be the first name that comes to mind, but author and researcher Dale Peterson is no less important in READ ON
New Scientific Discoveries of Fish Raise Looming Ethical Questions
It’s worth mentioning that the study of animal neurobiology, cognition and behavior is in its infancy. That means much of what we based our understanding of animal intelligence on up READ ON
Sheep Much More Intelligent Than Assumed
Researchers at the University of Cambridge put Welsh mountain sheep through a battery of tests and concluded that the animals — generally not believed to be very smart — are READ ON
New Discoveries in Animal Intelligence are Revealed in Jonathan Balcombe’s Book Second Nature
“There is an enormous disconnect between what we now know of animals’ experiences of their lives, and how we treat them as a whole (most notably as in factory farms READ ON
