On February 19th, 2014, a couple dozen Torontonians gathered inside a dark theatre underneath Palmerston Public library to discuss current affairs in animal law. Camille Labchuk, a recent graduate of U of T law, explained that legally an animal is property, with essentially the same rights as an Ikea table. Although cruelty to animals is covered by the Criminal Code, courts have interpreted the phrase “willfully causing unnecessary pain” to mean deliberately causing pain without any objective. Pain that is inflicted with some human objective in mind, however frivolous, is not considered unnecessary (as long as a person is not overly sadistic about it). Case in point, it’s perfectly legal to inflict pain on a horse to get her to buck to provide entertainment at a rodeo. It’s also perfectly legal to take a blow torch to a dog to create injuries for the sake of research. There is an objective, and so the pain is not considered unnecessary. Of course raising animals for food is a common objective, with roughly 700 million animals slaughtered in Canada every year. Compared to countries like New Zealand and Australia, Canada permits gross abuse in its animal farms. Animals live entirely unnatural lives in intensive confinement, raked by stress, pain, isolation and a variety of surgical mutilations. Archaic and draconian are appropriate words to describe current farming practices, legislation, and the approach of courts.
After Camille, writer Sonia Faruqi took the stage and shared how she stepped away from Wall Street to travel across the world investigating animal farms. She described how the scream of a pig sounds just like that of a human. Thousands of screams are heard daily in pig farms across the country. Why are they screaming? Pigs are social animals, like we are. Yet they are alone their entire lives, in cages so small they can’t even turn around. Sonia said those days were the darkest of her life.
Not a pretty picture, but I include it to make a point: Animal rights is not an area of law for those faint of heart. It’s difficult to confront the sheer magnitude of atrocities human beings are inflicting on animals. It is also demoralizing at times to see so few take an interest. But it is an area of law that is gaining momentum, and is filled with some of the most driven, compassionate human beings on the planet. Change is slow, because of human greed and ignorance, but every drop in the bucket counts.
Who are the players on the field? The OSPCA is a creature of statute that has been granted some powers, including the right to investigate and seize animals in certain situations. However, it receives very little funding from the government and it limits its work to companion animals such as dogs and cats. The battle is fought mostly by organizations like the WSPA and PETA and independent activists: investigators, bloggers, organic farmers, and animal rights lawyers. Some of the challenges lawyers are facing in animal rights: deciding which cases are the most fruitful to pursue, getting standing in courts to fight on behalf of animals, and getting paid for what they do (basically, they don’t get paid).
The good news is this: anyone and everyone has the ability to make a change for the better. We can reduce or eliminate animal products from our diet, or choose to buy animal products from alternative, humane sources. This would not only benefit our health, but also the environment. We can adopt animals from shelters, instead of supporting pet stores, and encourage people to get their animals spayed or neutered. As law students we can have an even greater impact by getting involved in some of the legal work done by Animal Justice Canada, Mercy for Animals, or Zoocheck. We can sign petitions or drop a line to our local MPs. We can educate ourselves and others. We can donate.
The tide is still pushing against those who stand for the humane treatment of animals. It is a battle and each of us is standing on one side of the line. Whether by conscious choice or not. As more people step over the line and join forces for those who can’t speak for themselves, things will inevitably change for the better, for everyone.
