What rights do animal rights advocates believe animals have?
First of all, when we speak of animal rights we are not saying that squirrles should have the right to vote. All we are saying is that animals, like humans, clearly suffer from physical pain and even, to at least some degree, from psychological and/or emotional torment. The fundamental principle of the AR movement is that nonhuman animals deserve to live according to their own natures, free from harm, abuse, and exploitation. This goes further than just saying that we should treat animals well while we exploit them, or before we kill and eat them. It says animals have the RIGHT to be free from human cruelty and exploitation, just as humans possess this right. Animal rights activists attempt to extend the human circle of compassion beyond our species to include other animals, who are also capable of feeling pain, fear, hunger, thirst, loneliness, and kinship. When we feel compassion towards other creatures, it’s easy to reach the conclusion that we can no longer support factory farming,
