The Five Freedoms

Today's topic is the Five Freedoms, as drafted by the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.  I think these are the minimum standards of care for domesticated animals.  We must strive to provide all domesticated animals with good welfare, and this is a great way to spell out what that means.

The Five Freedoms are:
1.  Freedom from hunger and thirst.
2.  Freedom from pain, injury and disease.
3.  Freedom from distress.
4.  Freedom from discomfort.
5.  Freedom to express behaviours that promote well-being.

I think most people would agree on the first four;  but often people don't think about the final one.  Freedom to express behaviours that promote well-being is not as obvious, but it is as crucial to good welfare as all the others.

I always say things like, "Cows should be able to be cows."  By this, I mean that cattle should be kept under conditions that allow them to achieve this fifth freedom.  And it applies to every animal -- they should all be allowed to be themselves.  If they are a foraging type of animal, they should be kept in a way that allows them to forage.  If they need company to have good psychological welfare, then they should be kept with others of their kind or acceptable substitutes.  These are only two examples, but I think my point is clear.  Animals should be able to do the things that come naturally to their species, and as the humans in the equation, we are obliged to make sure they are able to do so.

This is not to say that dogs should be allowed to bark uncontrollably, or cats should be able to scratch your leather couch, et cetera.  What it means is that dogs naturally bark, and they should be able to bark sometimes.  We can teach them to bark once or twice, then to be quiet.  Cats naturally need to scratch, so we must provide them with acceptable opportunities to do so.  Part of this requires us to research our animals' physical and behavioural needs, so that we can ensure that we are providing them with appropriate ways to fulfill those needs.

We should also strive to provide these five freedoms for all animals that we have care and control of.  Whether it is wild animals in a place like the BC Wildlife Park or zoos, or exotic animals in sanctuaries, these Five Freedoms should be the benchmark for care.