Along with the anticipation of daily rodeos and nightly chuckwagon races, the annual countdown to the Calgary Stampede now includes a new tradition: protests about the care and treatment of animals.
That should be no surprise. Animals on farms, captive in zoos, used in performances and even as household pets are now all included in the significant and far-reaching debate about how animals should be used and ought to be treated. In Canada and around the globe, there is a passionate discussion underway about animal welfare and animal rights.
While stories about animal treatment may dominate the headlines, there is an ongoing methodical wave of change driven by commodity groups, corporations and other animal organizations that are responding to shifting public perceptions. At the forefront is a growing concern for the "emotional" wellbeing of the animals, which is increasingly considered to be as important as health or productivity.
In the area of food production, for instance, consumer concerns regarding animal welfare have grown to influence business and public policy. The treatment of egg-laying hens is a perfect example. Consumer groups, municipalities and large institutes have demanded change and now battery cages -small, un-enriched cages -are being phased out. Starting in 2012, they are banned in the European Union, by 2015 in California, and starting in 2018, new buildings in Manitoba will not have battery cages. In Alberta, producers are showing significant interest in enriched cages and other options. Hellman's Mayonnaise has voluntarily phased in cage-free eggs. More
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