Positive Welfare For Captive Fishes
A Fishes Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM Faunalytics
August 2019

This article looks at the concept of positive welfare and how it can be applied to improve the lives of captive fishes including those exploited for food.... Positive welfare, put simply, is the idea that the absence of harm only guarantees a neutral welfare state, and animals must have the ability to perform certain behaviors that are beneficial for their mental and physical well-being for their lives to truly be considered "good.”

Photo by yang-miao-551683-unsplash

Fish are often left out of animal welfare considerations, and many people fail to see them for the thinking, feeling beings that they are. Despite lacking facial expressions that we can decipher, or vocalizations that humans can easily understand, “fish” are incredibly complex range of species, with the ability to feel pain, fear, and stress. Not only are they able to feel these negative emotions, but they can likely feel joy, happiness, and playfulness as well. These positive emotions are often left out of animal welfare guidelines, which usually focus more on the absence of harm than the presence of pleasure.

In this study, researchers from New York University give an overview of the history behind positive welfare theory and expand on how it could be applied to captive fishes. Positive welfare, put simply, is the idea that the absence of harm only guarantees a neutral welfare state, and animals must have the ability to perform certain behaviors that are beneficial for their mental and physical well-being for their lives to truly be considered “good.” The freedom to play, socialize, and explore is essential to most animals’ welfare, including humans. Human psychology has recognized this for many years, but animal welfare guidelines still primarily focus on alleviating suffering and reducing physical signs of stress.

Read more at Positive Welfare For Fishes.

Return to Fishes