How Animal Welfare affects Us
Alongside a human and ecological health crisis, we are confronted with an animal health crisis.
Approximately 80 billion animals are farmed for food worldwide every year (60% of all mammals on Earth), the majority reared in industrial livestock production systems.
The majority of us don’t think much about this at all, but we should, because our health now and into the future depends on it.
How are farm animal welfare, human health, and ecological well-being all connected?
COVID-19, SARS, MERS, Ebola, BSE and HIV – what do all these diseases have in common?
They originated from a dysfunctional relationship between humans, animals, and nature. For years, scientists all over the world have warned us that the way in which we treat animals is a serious risk factor in the outbreak of zoonotic diseases, which we know can have the potential of becoming pandemics. COVID-19 is a dangerous symptom of an unjust and cruel relationship with animals. If we don’t tackle the root causes of the problem, it is a question of when, not if, the next pandemic will arise. That is why it is imperative that governments make animal welfare a global priority.
Photo Credit: Leah Kelley
They Suffer, We Suffer
FourPaws Campaign:
We ask that all governments support the transition to food and agricultural systems that are more animal and environmentally friendly. They must also commit to banning high-risk practices, including the commercial wildlife trade, the dog and cat meat trade and fur farming.
Hundreds of thousands of people have died as a result of COVID 19. This is not only a wake-up call to change the system, but also an opportunity to create a world where animals, the environment and humans are treated better.
Click here to see our calls to governments.
Some more resources and articles on this topic:
”Britain’s rivers are suffocating to death” by the Guardian.
https://www.wellbeingintlstudiesrepository.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1035&context=acwp_faafp
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6524158/