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Octopuses can use tools too - veined octopuses carry coconut shells around with them to use as a shelter if they are threatened.
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They are also capable of using tools - boxer crabs hold tiny anemones in their claws which protect the crab from danger due to their stinging tentacles. We believe that decapod crustaceans (such as crabs and lobsters) and cephalopods (like octopuses and squid) are sentient too, as they show lots of abilities and behaviours which would be accepted as evidence of sentience in other animals.Ĭrabs, for example, show responses consistent with conscious pain perception, and quickly learn to avoid potentially painful experiences. Most people agree that all vertebrates (animals with backbones, including mammals, reptiles, birds and fish) are sentient, but there is debate about many invertebrates such as insects. It's widely agreed that an animal is likely to be sentient if they have specific qualities, including a nervous system, some kind of brain, and behaviours that suggest they're experiencing feelings. These are subjective feelings that matter to a sentient animal. We define sentience as the capacity to have positive and negative experiences such as pleasure, pain and distress. What is sentience and which animals does this cover? Here we delve into what sentience means, and how this new legislation should work in order to protect animals. But since we left the EU, we've not had such legislation in place - until now. They will be able to issue reports on how well government decisions have taken account of the welfare of sentient animals with Ministers needing to respond to Parliament.A joint blog from our Head of Campaigns and Public Affairs, David Bowles, and our Head of Animals in Science, Penny Hawkins.Īnimal lovers and pet owners will agree that the animals we share our lives with are capable of experiencing feelings and emotions, and under EU sentience legislation, they were deemed as such. The Bill, when it becomes law, will establish an Animal Sentience Committee made up of experts from within the field. The science is now clear that crustaceans and molluscs can feel pain and therefore it is only right they are covered by this vital piece of legislation. The Animal Welfare Sentience Bill provides a crucial assurance that animal wellbeing is rightly considered when developing new laws. The UK has always led the way on animal welfare and our Action Plan for Animal Welfare goes even further by setting out our plans to bring in some of the strongest protections in the world for pets, livestock and wild animals. Instead, it is designed to ensure animal welfare is well considered in future decision-making.Īnimal Welfare Minister Lord Zac Goldsmith said:
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There will be no direct impact on the shellfish catching or restaurant industry. Today’s announcement will not affect any existing legislation or industry practices such as fishing. However, unlike some other invertebrates (animals without a backbone ), decapod crustaceans and cephalopods have complex central nervous systems, one of the key hallmarks of sentience. The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill already recognises all animals with a backbone (vertebrates) as sentient beings. The move follows the findings of a government-commissioned independent review by the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) which concluded there is strong scientific evidence decapod crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs are sentient. The scope of the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill has today been extended to recognise lobsters, octopus and crabs and all other decapod crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs as sentient beings.