Animals and the Harm of Death - Killing Happy Animals: Explorations in Utilitarian Ethics - page 45

To sum up, the Time-Relative Interest Account proposes a modifica-
tion of the foreclosure view. It discounts the harm of death (defined
as the loss of what would have been valuable for the being) for lack of
psychological connectedness between the being at the time of death
and the being's future self at the time the value would have occurred to
it. This modification of the foreclosure view is controversial. Even if one
accepts the Time-Relative Interest Account, this does still imply that at
least mammals and birds and at least some species of fish are harmed to
a certain extent by death.
5 Conclusion
Competing views on the harm of death that are compatible with utili-
tarianism have different implications about how much death harms
animals. However, all views imply that pigs, cattle, chicken and some
sorts of fish are harmed by death at least to some extent. This is
because these animals cannot only be deprived of welfare, they also
have been shown to have memories and intentions and at least some
future-directed desires.
Furthermore, let me note again here that quite apart from what the
harm of death is for the animals, the deaths of animals that could
otherwise have continued pleasant lives present a welfare loss. All else
being equal, killing an animal that could have continued a pleasant life
constitutes a loss of welfare. For proponents of the Impersonal View
on the evaluation of outcomes, this explains why killing animals that
would have had a pleasant future is problematic. For proponents of the
Person-Affecting View on the evaluation of outcomes, killing an animal
is morally problematic in so far as this causes harm to sentient beings,
whoever they are.
In the following chapter, we will therefore explore the Replaceability
Argument that has been brought forward within utilitarianism. This
argument is supposed to show a way of compensating for the welfare
loss that is caused by killing an animal that would otherwise have had
a pleasant future.