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Animal Culture and Animal Welfare

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 May 2022

Simon Fitzpatrick*
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, USA
Kristin Andrews*
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
*
*Corresponding author. Emails: sfitzpatrick@jcu.edu; andrewsk@yorku.ca
*Corresponding author. Emails: sfitzpatrick@jcu.edu; andrewsk@yorku.ca

Abstract

Following recent arguments that cultural practices in wild animal populations have important conservation implications, we argue that recognizing captive animals as cultural has important welfare implications. Having a culture is of deep importance for cultural animals, wherever they live. Without understanding the cultural capacities of captive animals, we will be left with a deeply impoverished view of what they need to flourish. Best practices for welfare should therefore require concern for animals’ cultural needs, but the relationship between culture and welfare is also extremely complex, requiring us to rethink standard assumptions about what constitutes and contributes to welfare.

Type
Symposia Paper
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Philosophy of Science Association

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