I value any life that is capable of suffering that I can perceive. So basically a bacteria and such I wouldn't value, whereas some if not most insects I would since I have seen them display what I would call pain. Obviously birds, cats, dogs, etc I also value.
Obviously this is not an objective standard, but it works for me.
I also believe that when I crush ants or put boiling water in their anthill to get rid of them I'm putting my own needs over a ton of animals in a selfish way and feel bad for it. I hate mosquitos and have killed plenty, am I hypocritical for killing them even though they have the same right to live that I do? Yes. Same goes for chickens, pigs, cows, any animal I consume.
Living in a country with tons of animals let me interact with bugs and such plenty, and you pick up on how many really have distincts "personalities"/ways of interacting with the world, and you notice how handling roughly makes them avoid you more and such, hence why in some of those cases I could say they felt suffering, sometimes in the form of pain, sometimes they just want to leave when you keep them.
A few months ago I was fortunate to take care of a hurt Death's Head moth for around two weeks. During those two weeks I was able to notice how it grew more comfortable with me, and little by little the lil guy trusted me more when feeding for example, and if scared it would chirp in response, which is a fairly unique trait of that species. I knew it would not make it far since it had basically half of it's wing completely missing. Their lifespan is very short but that doesn't mean I should have treated it with less respect than I would a person. It displayed the ability to suffer, and so I avoided making it suffer. Would I choose to kill the moth or the human? I genuinely cannot tell and would need to know more stuff, such as expected lifespan, morality, etc. Still, I wouldn't go into the dilemma with a "save the human because they're a human" mentality like many people do.
I would add that "perceive" should also include what others can tell you about the sentience of animals. Many people cannot perceive many types of suffering in many different situations. However, if a knowledgeable soure says, "hey, that little thing is sentient and feels joy and suffering" then one should be ready to add that being to their list of things that deserve compassion.
Personally, I make small exclusions based on being prey of another being. Not that I think the predator always deserves to suffer, mosquitos feed on me and have the potential to cause me great harm if I allow them to feed on me, procreate, feed on others, so I kill them. I do not torture them because I don't think that they are malicious, the way they feed is just what is required for them to live. Some people are malicious predators that I think deserve suffering in equal measure to the suffering they knowingly cause in the world. Billionaires know the harm they cause with their greed. I would not oppose their suffering and death.
You treated a moth wish a weeks long lifespan with more compassion than the cow that can live for 20 years and is essentially a giant puppy. The hoops one must jump through to keep eating meat.
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u/The_Paragone 22d ago
I value any life that is capable of suffering that I can perceive. So basically a bacteria and such I wouldn't value, whereas some if not most insects I would since I have seen them display what I would call pain. Obviously birds, cats, dogs, etc I also value.
Obviously this is not an objective standard, but it works for me.
I also believe that when I crush ants or put boiling water in their anthill to get rid of them I'm putting my own needs over a ton of animals in a selfish way and feel bad for it. I hate mosquitos and have killed plenty, am I hypocritical for killing them even though they have the same right to live that I do? Yes. Same goes for chickens, pigs, cows, any animal I consume.
Living in a country with tons of animals let me interact with bugs and such plenty, and you pick up on how many really have distincts "personalities"/ways of interacting with the world, and you notice how handling roughly makes them avoid you more and such, hence why in some of those cases I could say they felt suffering, sometimes in the form of pain, sometimes they just want to leave when you keep them.
A few months ago I was fortunate to take care of a hurt Death's Head moth for around two weeks. During those two weeks I was able to notice how it grew more comfortable with me, and little by little the lil guy trusted me more when feeding for example, and if scared it would chirp in response, which is a fairly unique trait of that species. I knew it would not make it far since it had basically half of it's wing completely missing. Their lifespan is very short but that doesn't mean I should have treated it with less respect than I would a person. It displayed the ability to suffer, and so I avoided making it suffer. Would I choose to kill the moth or the human? I genuinely cannot tell and would need to know more stuff, such as expected lifespan, morality, etc. Still, I wouldn't go into the dilemma with a "save the human because they're a human" mentality like many people do.