Rights not welfare: Celebrating International Animal Rights Day

Rights versus welfare: The key differences 

Animal welfare broadly refers to the feelings and physical wellbeing of an individual animal. Measuring these can indicate how well that individual is coping with their environment. On farms, for example, a sow who is confined to a farrowing crate may have poorer welfare than a sow who is able to nurse her babies and stretch her legs. However, regardless of good or bad welfare, both individuals have been reduced to the status of a product or resource – which is where animal rights come in. 

Animal rights argue that the problem with animal exploitation is not how we use animals, but that we use them at all. It acknowledges that the sow in our example above, even if not confined to a farrowing crate or harmed in other ways, has been stripped of her value as an individual. This value exists regardless of how ‘useful’ or ‘profitable’ she is to humans – it also exists regardless of how cute, friendly, intelligent or interesting an animal is. 

Animal rights in action 

In practice, improving animal welfare may look like giving animals more space, better food or “nicer” deaths but animal rights seek a future where no animal is harmed or exploited in the first place. Sometimes this is straightforward, such as our campaign to ban snares, but for farmed animals, total liberation can only be achieved by people making the switch to a vegan diet. 

In other areas of our work where change simply won’t happen overnight, we take a pragmatic approach and campaign for changes that will reduce animal suffering in the meantime. Horse racing, for example, will one day be a thing of the past but while we work towards this goal, we are also campaigning for a ban on jump racing and a ban on whips. 

Take action for animal rights 

While opinions vary greatly on ‘acceptable’ uses of animals – using them to test human medicine, for example – and unacceptable uses such as wearing fur, Animal Aid will always campaign for a complete end to any animal exploitation and are proud to be one of the longest-running animal rights groups in the world!  

We’ve been championing the ‘rights not welfare’ message since 1977 but we can only do this thanks to your support. Here’s a few ways to get involved in animal rights and support our work: 

1. Keep an eye on our Take Action page. This is where we regularly update our latest campaign actions, such as writing to your MP and signing petitions.
2. Become an Animal Aid member. From as little as £2 a month, become a member to receive our quarterly magazine and enjoy 10% off in our Shop!
3. Become a school speaker. Being a volunteer school speaker is such a rewarding experience! We run workshops to train our speakers and provide all the resources you’ll need. Find out more. 
4. Make the switch to a kinder, plant-based diet. Going vegan is the single biggest step we can all take to help animals. Why not download our FREE resources to help you get started? 

• Guide to Going Vegan
• Plant-based Cooking on a Budget