| Nowadays, Animal welfare has been legalized in more than100countries, including both developed and developing countries. From Europe to Asia, and even in Africa, animal welfare has become an issue which people focus increasingly. However, the debates over the issue are also complex and some debates are even drastic. The situation on the problem is a chaos. This essay will try to find out the philosophical essence through understanding all the debates from all walks of people. In this essay, I will also try to discuss about the strategies of farming animal cultivation, the protection policy of companion animal and medicine animal. Through this essay, I will try to put forward the animal welfare developing in China scientifically, permanently and with Chinese characteristics.Philosophical base of each animal welfare proposal differs. Among them are human centralism, which is subdivided into strong (traditional) one and weak one; deontology, which includes direct one and indirect one; animal ethics, which is composed of animal liberation and animal right. Representatives of traditional human centralism are Aristotle, Descartes, Aquinas. Their theory claims that human is the center and has strong control over the nature. Animals are machines like clock or car which has no sense and sensibility. Weak human centralists include Laurence Becker, Carl Kane, Mary Warren. They emphasize on the harmony between people and nature and people should selectively and moderately make use of the natural source. People and animals share equal rights in some aspects which should not be obliterated. When the rights of people contradict with the rights of animals, those of animals should be deprived. Indirect deontology is represented by Kant, who holds that the difference between moral subject and object has determined that people moral subject should be given direct obligation and the object the indirect one. Sympathy on animals is based on people’s self interests. The represent of animal liberation is Peter Singer. His thought deprives from the utilitarianism of Bentham and hold that animal has its preferential interests. The satisfaction of the interests has its real value which can’t be replaced or deprived. Animal right theory of Tom Regan points out that animal has its inherent value which not only includes its preferential interests but also its born value. All beings have its moral rights which, as well as the inherent value, are universal and do not differ from each other.Those philosophical thoughts can fully reflect the recognition on animal welfare of all walks of people. Through analyzing, combining the theory and practice, the essay will make a clear view for people to analyze reasoningly the domestic situation of animal welfare and also some advice about the measures and policies. |
