Do animals have consciousness?

Question

I believe they are conscious in a primitive way, like a baby human. I eat meat all the time, even though I know that it is just as painfull physically and emotionally for them when they die as it would be for me. I don't have any guilt about it. Does that mean I am an evil person? Why or why not?

Answer 1

Conscious or not they sure are tasty.

Answer 2

The concept of consciousness is a can of worms! There are cognitive psychologist who state that consciousness is but an "emergent property" of neuronal activity. Some deny animals are conscious and even deny that human babies are conscious until the age of 18 months to 2 years old! It is "common sense" knowledge that animal pets are conscious. To deny this is to incur the wrath of the pet owner.

My personal belief is like yours that they may be conscious in a primitive way. For example, they have no word knowledge so they can't think with a language so if they think it must be in terms of images, smells, sounds and feelings etc. This means human babies who have not learned to talk and thus think in a language are likewise primitively conscious. Both animals and babies younger than 18-24 months do not have words to use in memories so their memories of neccesity must be of sounds, images, smells etc. From experience trying I can not bring up such a memory so maybe the cognitive psychologists are right?

I eat meat too, and like it but some people who are raised vegetarian like an Indian Brahman I knew once, when forced by neccesity to eat meat get physically sick and vomit it up! It is not evil I think because the modern concept of evil is subject to philosophical debate as well; some holding that there is no such thing as an absolute good or evil; it is a relative thing. To the Brahmin it was evil to eat meat and so evil it made him physically sick.

Answer 3

Firstly, conscious can be different depending on who you talk to. On a general level, all animals have a form of consciousness. They are aware of their surroundings, they actively seek out 'food', avoid danger, adapt to their environment. Even plant-life by that definition can be considered to have conscious.

If we are talking about higher levels, then you need to get specific. Above the basic driving factors (food, danger, etc) you then have self-preservation. Somewhat different to Danger, it deals with more intelligent forms of maintaining health. Lizards living in hot conditions will alternate their feet (first these two then those two) to avoid burning them. They are also aware enough to be able to decide if their current hiddy hole is good enough. Crocodiles and Alligators alternate periods of being in the sun and water to keep their blood temperature constant. They also plan the taking of 'food' with strategic care. These can be considered instinctual preservation techniques.

Beyond that, you have the lower form of emotional consciousness. Family bonding, long term mating. Paternal and Maternal instincts. Birds, cattle, and the larger four legged kingdoms.

Then there are the high forms of consciousness which include the various levels of problem solving and creative thinking, and communication. Here you find primates, whales, dolphins and man. Man usually takes an even higher level due to our natural prejudice. In scientific terms, there isn't really much separating us. We just technological first.

As for being evil, then so would the bulk of the human race. We are carnivorous by design. Our bodies are designed to digest such food and our teeth are described as being carnivorous. You, like me and averyone else, are carnivorous. The difference between us and most of the animal kingdom is that we can consciously choose to go against our design, deny our instincts and go against temptation. That is the highest form of consciousness that we know of, the ability to break our 'coding' if you like. To redefine our lives.

If you want to stop eating meat, then that is your choice and your right. If you do, then you are simply obeying the natural laws of your kind, nothing else.

Evil is to do with intentions, not actions.

Answer 4

I think they have coscious in a primitive way too,but i think that eating meat is very normal given that the animal is treated well when it is killed to reduce the pain as possible.

Answer 5

Of course they do.
Every animal tries to avoid being killed.
And, no that does not make you a evil person.
It is just the natural order of things.
What would make you an evil person is if you took pleasure in the suffering of animals.

Answer 6

you will get your share anyway. that is programmed in the law of mother nature. and everone else, too. the question is not, how good and bad you are and what guilt you feel about anything. the question is, what reaction will follow to the action you perform. if you cause pain, you will receive pain back. same with pleasure. understand?

Answer 7

no,you are not an evil person, because we are predators, and they are prey. we must eat to live, and we eat animals. It is sad, but true. we cant help but eat, and therefore kill, but if we didnt, animals would get over populated. aniamls do have a consciousness of sorts, but they aren't as highly intelligent as humans. To me, we eat to live, and therefore there is nothing evil in killing for food. It is, however, evil to kill humans or animals who did nothing wrong to you and you have no need to kill them save your own greed.

Answer 8

Like this one time or whatever like my cat Lucy and stuff like looked in the mirror and like I think she had like a moment of like self awareness or whatever, ya know??

Answer 9

well you are not evil...you are just a survivor...you got to do what you got to do to live....you can always say a prayer for them before you bash their little brains in....I don't think about what it is when i bite into my rare juicy bloody stake...its all bloody but its so good!!! m00000

Answer 10

I doubt it. Animals seem to live on instinct.