Ethical Analysis of the Use of Animals for Sport

摘要

In recent years, there has been increasing public and media interest in the welfare of sporting animals before, during and after their competition careers. Regulatory bodies have responded by introducing rules that have undoubtedly improved the lifetime welfare of sporting animals. However, improvements in welfare do not suffice to address the fundamental underlying ethical issue of whether we are at all justified in using animals for sporting purposes, given that there is no absolute need for man todo so and that there are invariably associated risks of stress, morbidity and mortality for the animals. If we do accept that the use of such animals can be ethically justified, should that acceptance be unconstrained, or should we set limits on sporting use? Associated questions of professional ethics for veterinarians treating competition animals relate to the core issue of whether a veterinarian's responsibility is primarily to the animal or to the owner/trainer/team presenting that animal. This paper suggests a hybrid ethical view, which argues in favour of both the continued use of animals for sport and limitations for that use based on respect for telos and physiological norms. It concludes that the pre-eminent current ethical question about sporting animals is: 'Just because the animal is prepared to do as we ask, should we ask it?'