Share this
Physiology and Behaviour of Animal Suffering by Neville G. Gregory is a 2004 release from Blackwell Publishing and is the second book in the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare Series (UFAW). Professor Gregory is an animal physiologist with 31 years experience in research and six years in teaching. Gregory has worked extensively on the physiology of stress in animals under many circumstances — especially in the agricultural field, ranging from the prevention and control of disease, trauma in farm animals, to the stunning and slaughtering of livestock and the metabolic physiology on meat quality. He has served on many committees regarding animal welfare and ethics and was appointed a chair in Animal Welfare Physiology in 2003 jointly with the Royal Veterinary College and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
The book is organized into 16 broad chapters of suffering with associated subcategories of agents or scenarios that could instigate that suffering. It is well thought-out with a detailed reference list and index concluding the book for the reader’s specific questions or interest. Gregory points out in an excellent preface that suffering cannot be quantified scientifically but must be assessed from observation and subjectivity of one’s own unpleasant experiences. Physiologic parameters can be measured, such as cortisol response and heart rate, to stress or injury; and these can be compared and contrasted to what is found in human physiologic responses to similar situations. The book is written from an objective viewpoint, simply that these are the physiologic responses which are seen and measured for various stresses and injuries, and the reader is left to assess the degree of suffering associated with each.
An excellent chapter that clarifies some of the various behavior responses in animals is Chapter 10: “Pain.” Gregory points out the benefit of pain under certain circumstances and also those under which pain is just intolerable suffering without value, such as a debilitating or fatal disease. Some animals show distinctive behavior patterns when in discomfort or pain, while other animals show limited behavior changes; thus some might mistakenly think that those animals were not suffering or in pain. Some comprehension of pain that these animals feel must be anthropomorphized from people in similar situations. Excellent diagrams and tables accompany this and other chapters to further aid in comprehension of the subject material.
Using historical data and scientific experiments, Gregory outlines a multitude of reasons for animal suffering, whether due to disease, agricultural practices, trauma, anxiety, or fear, and many others. The measurable parameters outline some expected physiologic responses, but attention must be paid to subtle behavior differences and changes as well. Not all animals, much like people, respond similarly to pain or stress; it takes a trained individual to observe subtle changes in behavior patterns. Details of gruesome or horrid experiments have been left out, and as Gregory himself points out, should never be repeated, though a few graphic color photos are included to illustrate specific points in the chapters. Physiology and Behaviour of Animal Suffering is a well-organized interesting book for the scientific community as well as the general public since understanding potential causes for suffering in animals will hopefully assist in its management and prevention.
Gregory, Neville. Physiology and Behaviour of Animal Suffering. Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, Blackwell Publishing, 2004.
Sandra L. Jex is a veterinarian and consultant.