The question of animal rights is, nowadays, one of the most acute and controversial. Some people believe that it is our right to eat our four-legged friends and make clothes from their skin in order to survive. Others believe that there are a lot of alternatives, with the help of which we can prevent animals from being hurt. Thus, there are a lot of people, who become vegetarians, join animal protection societies, and speak out against systematic killing of homeless animals.
They are often not taken seriously. The first reason for this is that eating meat is very important for the body, and if we do not consume food rich in iron and protein, we can face some health problems, like paradontosis, hair loss or even problems with fertility. The second reason is that some animals are the carriers of dangerous diseases, and it is better and cheaper to kill them than to heal people, who were bitten by an infected animal. Of course, there is a grain of truth in these points of view.
On the other hand, there are a lot of products made from killed animals, but we can easily do without them. For example, I strongly believe that we do not need to buy so many fur coats, attend circuses, where the animals are forced to perform physically uncomfortable tricks for them, and use beauty creams that were tested on these poor creatures. In my opinion, if people knew how the fur coats are made, how the shows are prepared, and what the scientists do to learn about the skin reaction to some sorts of substances, some of them would abandon these sorts of goods right away and would never set their foot in such shows again as well. People should be aware of the fact that the animals are skinned alive, and in order to make wild creatures manageable, the circus trainers use whips, tight collars, muzzles, electric shock prods or even drugs.
They are also ready to kill them in case of any danger. The travel conditions are always unacceptable: small cages, shackles, poor treatment, lack of food and water. Such confinement and improper conditions lead to physical and psychological diseases and unnatural behavior, such as rocking back and forth, pulling out their own fur, spinning in circles, and even biting themselves, their blood pressure is constantly very high because of the intension as well. They live in constant fear, withdrawing from everyone who is approaching them. The experiments conducted on animals are very cruel and painful. These tests force defenseless animals to consume toxic substances, pesticides, and endure the pain from corrosive chemicals dripped into their eyes. And still the results are not very reliable, because the human and animal skin reactions can differ dramatically. It means that we make animals suffer for nothing and have to stop it as soon as possible.
I can see the solution of this problem in forbidding any kind of activities that can make animals be scared, endure the pain, and feel trapped and lonely. We will definitely not stop eating meat, but we can do our best to encourage pharmaceutical companies not to test their products on animals, avoid attending shows that involve animal submission, opt for faux-fur coat instead of a real one. If we want to make our world a better place, the first thing that should be done is to stop abuse, negligence and cruelty to any living being, because the animals are also the God’s creatures, who feel pain, fear, loneliness, frustration and even are able to love. They are left at the mercy of us, and we have to prove our humanity by taking care of them. Only then can we claim to be a humane society.