by Tony Ndakoh

Created on: December 22, 2009   Last Updated: December 23, 2009

Animals have over time come to occupy a really special place in man's heart and life. At home, in the farm, on the roads, sports tracks/entertainment venues, even on the tables, we cannot overlook man's inclination to  keep relations with animals at their very best. Unfortunately however, man has more often than not failed to understand animals, like almost every other living thing have basic rights.

We live in a diverse world, with different, and sometimes even controversial practices and customs, and such cross-border, or even tribal differences make the whole animal cruelty issue a relatively subjective one and overall, really difficult to generalize. Animal cruelty however remains what it is, irrespective of how, where, or when it is done. Some Western nations have enacted laws to protect animals. In the UK for example, there is the Protection of Animals Act, enacted since 1911, last amended in 2000; the Animals Welfare Act enacted in 1966, last amended in 2007 in the USA; Canadian Animal Welfare Act, Australian Animal Protection Act, and lots others. The EU is yet to settle for a more binding set of laws on the issue, and this just goes to show how controversial it remains when put in the cross-border or even global context. Several countries of the world however have at least one law or the other, or professional body, aimed at protecting animals. The explicitness of such laws, their provisions, and implementation remain hugely contrasting, as are the operations of the professional bodies. But where does the issue of animal cruelty come from?

Man keeps and nurtures animals for several reasons, among which are company, entertainment, transport, security, and food. In each and everyone of these categories, man's cruelty has been evident. But two of the biggest categories of cruelty, I think are: failing to provide adequate healthcare to the animals irrespective of their use; and torture, which may include such factors as living conditions, infliction of pain, and unfair exploitation, say for research purposes, clinical testing, transportation, or for agriculture. We sometimes overlook animal torture only to include pain infliction, but it all comes down to the basics: leaving animals in crowded, filthy, and poorly lit and ventilated cages or barns; making animals work long hours under poor conditions; not attending to the healthcare needs of animals; or even just forcing animals to do things or go places they don't want to, all constitute animal cruelty.

It is no crime to use animals in circuses and for other entertainment purposes, for transportation, and security, so long as the animals are well taken care of, with respect to their feeding, working hours, and overall living conditions. Confining animals to tight habitats and routines is an act of cruelty. Dogs and cats for example are entitled to a yard or garden where they can play or have fun, and even to a walk, at least twice in a day. Forcing animals to follow tight and sometimes very uncomfortable routines is really bad. Animals can be used for scientific research, but when that research culminates in pain infliction, it becomes a major worry. Even the slaying of animals must follow agreed and humane procedures. Inflicting pain on an animal prior to their slaying is cruel.

It therefore is worthwhile to say animal cruelty takes many forms. Legislation has tried hard to define all these forms of cruelty, but most have fallen short of answering the very basic question: can man live without animals? And if he can, on what basis: friends, or foes?

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