Species justice and harm to animals - Environmental Harm: An Eco-justice Perspective - page 111

Protecting one's investment in food farm animals has implications
for other animals as well. For example, the issue of animals used for
food and food production also has a bearing on those animals treated
as 'pests' or competitors with domesticated animals earmarked for food
processing. Accordingly, kangaroos, foxes, rabbits, gophers and wild dogs
may be targeted for shooting or poisoning since they threaten more
'valuable' animal stock.
The corporatisation of animal production, so evident in egg and
poultry production, piggeries and cattle production, and in aquaculture,
is rapidly changing the conditions under which animals are born, live
and die. For example, 'while Australia's “beef ” cows have traditionally
been raised by small town farmers on vast grasslands, almost one-third
now spend part of their lives confined in feedlots owned by large
corporations, where they can be efficiently fattened and prepared for
market' (Sharman, 2009: 39). Many are also being fed diets of genetically
modified grains, which likewise have health implications for both
animal and those who consume the animal (Smith, 2003).
The status of animals is not only reflected in how they are labelled
and treated in domestic circumstances pertaining to human needs and
wants. Status is also conferred on the basis of prevalence or number of
animals. For example, the notions of endangered and threatened species
essentially speak to the survival status of particular species. Some are
extinct (as with the thylacine, the dodo and the passenger pigeon), while
others hover on the brink of extinction (orangutan, polar bear). Human
intervention in the form of zoos or conservationist policies reflect
varying conceptions of animal rights and welfare, including differing
perspectives on which animals ought to be saved, the urgency of the
action needed and which species are prioritised over others when it
comes to activist campaigns. Saving the tiger is publicly popular, for
example; stopping the killing of sharks less so.
Indeed, when assessing 'value' on the basis of ecological criteria such
as biodiversity and the place of different species in the chain of being,
a different picture emerges to the usual anthropocentric and populist
ones. For example, animal companions such as cats and dogs are
highly valued in legal proceedings and in public discourse.Yet, from an
ecological point of view, species such as bees and bats are more valuable
for the crucial role they play in the wider ecosystems of the planet.
On the other hand, the decline and potential extinction of species
is put into the 'too hard' basket if the cause is not direct as in the case
of poaching of fish or rhino or elephant. Here the solution is apparent,
immediate and targeted (if not always successful). Specific culprits are