Boiled Alive

(NOAA Photo Library)

The next time you stroll past a supermarket lobster tank, think about this: scientists are beginning to suspect that these boiled-alive victims have been sentient right along.

Animal consciousness has been even tougher to define than human consciousness.  Some say that animal sentience denotes “an ability to have subjective experiences,” even to the point of self-awareness.

Mirror tests have long been used to determine whether a creature exhibits some sense of self.  If an animal shows signs of recognizing its own reflection, then it likely possesses a degree of self-awareness.  Amazingly, tiny wrasse fish have been known to pass such tests.

Additional research has indicated that zebrafish act curious, cuttlefish remember particular sights and smells, and crayfish feel anxiety.  Such results have led British law to classify octopuses, lobsters and crabs as sentient beings.  Our own State of Oregon declared years ago that animals are “capable of feeling pain, stress and fear.”

Professor Jonathan Birch of the London School of Economics has been heavily involved with the Foundations of Animal Sentience project.  He is therefore a proponent of “humane slaughter” techniques.  This seems a step up from being boiled alive, but not nearly as kind as vegetarianism could be.

Resources

https://www.yahoo.com/news/scientists-push-paradigm-animal-consciousness-151744245.html