Animal Welfare

This course explores animals within the context of the functional relationships that sociologists call “institutions.” We first examine the use of animals in laboratory science. We then examine the controversial transformation of animals into “livestock” and "meat." We also explore the perspectives of people committed to rejecting the construction [...]

This course explores how animals and people are situated within the web of structures and connections known as “society.” Module 1 considers some of the key symbolic roles that animals play in society by investigating the practice of “thinking with animals.” We investigate how people construct different meanings of [...]

In this course, we explore how mainstream understandings of animals and human-animal relationships have changed in recent years. Module 1 focuses on the roles of animals in human physical health and psychological well being. Module 2 explores animal selfhood, particularly in light of their inability to use spoken [...]

This course explains the general principles of chicken behaviour and welfare, and the behavioural and physiological indicators that can be used to assess welfare in chickens kept in hobby flocks through to commercial farms. The focus is primarily on laying hens and meat chickens (broilers) although many of the [...]

Animal welfare has been described as a complex, multi-faceted public policy issue which includes important scientific, ethical, and other dimensions. Improving our understanding of animal welfare, involves the fascinating study of animal behavior as well as the challenge of accessing the emotions of animals. [...]

Learn how to interpret food labels so you can make informed food choices and buy food that supports your health and wellbeing. Get the facts you need to put your trust in the food system. Huge amounts of information are provided on food product labels, but surveys have shown [...]

Le bien-être des animaux est une préoccupation sociétale désormais majeure. Mais de quoi parle-t-on quand on fait référence au bien-être animal? Qu’est-ce qu’est réellement le bien-être animal ? Est-il le même pour tous les animaux ? De quoi dépend-il ? Le bien-être d'un animal en plein air est-il forcément [...]