Jonathan Balcombe, Ph.D., on Pleasurable Kingdom
 In laboratories, animals are treated essentially like medical
supplies. They are shipped in, studied, and disposed of. But increasingly,
scientists are coming to understand the complexities of animals’ psychological
and social lives. PCRM ethologist Jonathan Balcombe, Ph.D., has
been on tour discussing his new book Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals
and the Nature of Feeling Good, which explores animals’ capacity
for happiness.
Pleasurable Kingdom focuses on an aspect
of animals that science has neglected: pleasure. Dr. Balcombe provides
rigorous evidence, along with detailed anecdotes, of different
species showing a wide array of emotions and behaviors.
Dr. Balcombe
introduces his readers to the dichotomy between evolution and experience.
Science tends to look at animals through an evolutionary lens,
he says, but needs also to recognize their experiences.
“There
may be evolutionary reasons why a dog wants to play, but the animal
isn’t thinking about genes or natural selection as he enjoys a game of
tug or fetch,” Dr. Balcombe says. “He is simply acting based on
his cognitive experience and taking pleasure in his activity.”
Dr. Balcombe
notes that pain in animals has become more widely recognized in
recent decades. Animals continue to suffer tremendously in laboratory
experiments and on factory farms. “I don’t
believe we are under the obligation to provide pleasure for animals,” Dr.
Balcombe says. “But we do have the obligation to not deprive
them of the ability to seek their own pleasure.”
When animals
in a laboratory or on a factory farm are denied social contact,
exercise, enjoyable food, or the ability to act on their natural
instincts, Dr. Balcombe explains, we have deprived them of basic
pleasures that are critical to their well-being.
Dr. Balcombe encourages
scientists to think more about animal emotions and is bringing
this issue to the scientific community. “I
hope that Pleasurable Kingdom makes people see animals
in a richer way,” Dr. Balcombe said. “And I hope it
also transforms our behavior toward other species.”
To find out more about Pleasurable Kingdom, visit www.PleasurableKingdom.com.
Order your own copy of Pleasurable Kingdom from the
online Marketplace at pcrm.safeshopper.com.
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