Animal Bioethics

"Nowadays there are widespread ethical concerns about animal production and our treatment of animals. This book is the first to specifically examine these issues from an educational perspective. With 19 chapters written by 31 authors experienced in this field and coming from 11 European countries, this book will be of great value to veterinary, agronomy and science students and teachers. It will also be of use for everyone interested in developing moral reasoning and communication skills relative to ethics, whether animal centred or in a broader sense. The first part of the book is devoted to in-depth analyses of historical, philosophical, religious and cultural perspectives as well as of the driving forces in action. This enables readers to develop a good understanding of the ethical principles related to human-animal relationships, and their dynamics. In the second part, teaching objectives, strategies and methods are analysed, resulting in a conceptual framework for education in this area. Concrete suggestions are given to be applied in teaching, training and communication. This provides a basis for curricula development, including appropriate principles, content and examples. A detailed syllabus is proposed in the case of animal welfare, including its rationale and extensive sources of information. The methods proposed, in their varying degrees of complexity involve active processes, mainly founded on case studies and problem-based learning. This will contribute to a necessary sharing of experience and the spreading of good practice."

An interdisciplinary in-depth analysis of the ethical issues raised by using animals in research and the related regulatory issues.

Animal Bioethics is an important reference work for students of biomedicine and related fields, scientific researchers, and members of organizations for the protection of animal rights and welfare. The philosophical background of monistic and dualistic concepts of the human-animal relationship is considered in detail. Experimental models in drug development and pain testing are analyzed, and the translational aspect of in vivo experiments discussed. One chapter is dedicated to neuroethics, taking into account the importance of animal experiments for examining brain function. Finally, an overview of modern legislation related to animal experiments is given, the ethical basis of the principles of Good Laboratory Practice is assessed, and the importance of animal bioethics for writing scientific projects is shown.

This volume is the first to present a framework of general principles for animal research ethics together with an analysis of the principles' meaning and moral requirements. This new framework of six moral principles constitutes a more suitable set of moral guidelines than any currently available, including the influential framework presented in the Principles of Humane Experimental Technique published in 1959 by zoologist and psychologist William M. S. Russell and microbiologist Rex L. Burch. While other accounts have presented specific directives to guide the use of animals in research, Tom L. Beauchamp and David DeGrazia here offer a set of general moral principles that are adequate to the task of evaluating biomedical and behavioral research involving animals today. Their comprehensive framework addresses ethical requirements pertaining to societal benefit-a critical consideration in justifying the harming of animals in research-and features a thorough program of animal welfare protection. In doing so, their principles bridge the gap between the concerns of the research community and the animal-protection community. The book is distinctive in featuring commentaries on the framework of principles by eminent figures in animal research ethics from an array of relevant disciplines: veterinary medicine, biomedical research, biology, zoology, comparative psychology, primatology, law, and bioethics. The seven commentators-Larry Carbone, Frans de Waal, Rebecca Dresser, Joseph Garner, Brian Hare, Margaret Landi, and Julian Savulescu-scrutinize Beauchamp and DeGrazia's principles in terms of both their theoretical cogency and practical implications, evaluating their relevance to the medical and scientific professions. The range of ethical issues encompassed in Principles of Animal Research Ethics will be useful to professionals in the biomedical and behavioral sciences and will also appeal to individuals and scholars interested in bioethics, animal ethics, and applied ethics generally.

A balanced, accessible discussion of whether and on what grounds animal research can be ethically justified. An estimated 100 million nonhuman vertebrates worldwide—including primates, dogs, cats, rabbits, hamsters, birds, rats, and mice—are bred, captured, or otherwise acquired every year for research purposes. Much of this research is seriously detrimental to the welfare of these animals, causing pain, distress, injury, or death. This book explores the ethical controversies that have arisen over animal research, examining closely the complex scientific, philosophical, moral, and legal issues involved. Defenders of animal research face a twofold challenge: they must make a compelling case for the unique benefits offered by animal research; and they must provide a rationale for why these benefits justify treating animal subjects in ways that would be unacceptable for human subjects. This challenge is at the heart of the book. Some contributors argue that it can be met fairly easily; others argue that it can never be met; still others argue that it can sometimes be met, although not necessarily easily. Their essays consider how moral theory can be brought to bear on the practical ethical questions raised by animal research, examine the new challenges raised by the emerging possibilities of biotechnology, and consider how to achieve a more productive dialogue on this polarizing subject. The book's careful blending of theoretical and practical considerations and its balanced arguments make it valuable for instructors as well as for scholars and practitioners.

This volume of case studies on animal ethics deals with important social controversies involving the human use of animals and analyzes the moral issues involved. An introduction to ethical theory provides a framework to the 16 original case studies, which include the use of animals in research, testing and education, as food, as companion animals, and in religious rites.; The book is intended for bioethics courses and animal career staff.

This volume is a collection of chapters all contributed by individuals who have presented their ideas at conferences and who take moderate stands with the use of animals in research. Specifically the chapters bear of the issues of: notions of the moral standings of animals, history of the methods of argumentation, knowledge of the animal mind, nature and value of regulatory structures, how respect for animals can be converted from theory to action in the laboratory. The chapters have been tempered by open discussion with individuals with different opinions and not audiences of true believers. It is the hope of all, that careful consideration of the positions in these chapters will leave reader with a deepened understanding--not necessarily a hardened position.

Bringing Life to Ethics continues in the tradition of Michael W. Fox's lifelong inquiry into values, social and personal relationships, and the treatment of animals, the environment, and each other. Fox, the popular nationally syndicated columnist of "Ask the Animal Doctor", uses the compass of global bioethics in this book—humility, responsibility, interdisciplinary and intercultural competence, and compassion—to counter technological, ecological, and value threats by pointing in the direction of a humane and sustainable society. Not intended to further the scholarly debate over what constitutes ethics, Fox brings ethics into our personal and professional lives. He shows how bioethics has immediate relevance and applicability to a wide range of public and private enterprises.