A warm welcome to the Forum elajos! 
It is interesting to have a different viewpoint presented. And I respect that.
I feel that we can go down a bit of a misleading track when we anthropomorphise animals. They are not humans. They are very different to humans.
And yet I (for one) have had my own experiences which have broadened my previous viewpoint tremendously and those experiences have shown me they possess 'Consciousness' in their own right (although on a different plane of perception usually to the human consciousness levels.)
Therefore my own opinion is that -as possessors of 'consciousness' (feelings, emotions, thoughts, ability to experience love and pain etc) -then surely in this world, they have a right to some legal standing and/or support for their protection?
'Personhood' is an odd and perhaps not very apt phrase for what they are. I always thought so. But maybe that is the best word we can come up with at present...
It is interesting to have a different viewpoint presented. And I respect that.
I feel that we can go down a bit of a misleading track when we anthropomorphise animals. They are not humans. They are very different to humans.
And yet I (for one) have had my own experiences which have broadened my previous viewpoint tremendously and those experiences have shown me they possess 'Consciousness' in their own right (although on a different plane of perception usually to the human consciousness levels.)
Therefore my own opinion is that -as possessors of 'consciousness' (feelings, emotions, thoughts, ability to experience love and pain etc) -then surely in this world, they have a right to some legal standing and/or support for their protection?
'Personhood' is an odd and perhaps not very apt phrase for what they are. I always thought so. But maybe that is the best word we can come up with at present...
