Ep37 John Webster on animal sentience, why veterinarians need animal welfare science, & The Cordelia Principle

John Webster is Professor Emeritus and former Head of the Veterinary School at Bristol University. He studied veterinary science as he wanted to help animals. He is also a founding member of the Farm Animal Welfare Council and first propounded the ‘Five Freedoms’ as a standard for defining the elements of good welfare in domestic animals.

John highlights the importance of animal welfare science for veterinarians and talks about the insights of the animals. He discusses how "sentient animals do not live only in the present” and how having emotions matters in addition to understanding the duty we have of looking at animals' minds.

Sabrina and John discuss the constant endeavour to act according to what is right, not simply that which is regulated, and what we perceive to be the right decision for the animals.

John explains to us the ethics and politics of animal welfare, and our moral duty to minimize any distress that comes from our actions while giving them a life worth living.

John dives into the topics of his books ‘Animal Welfare: A Cool Eye Towards Eden’, ‘Animal Welfare: Limping Towards Eden’, and his forthcoming book on animal sentience seen through a Buddhism lens. 

John talks about the meat and dairy crisis, the unsustainability of it, its impacts, and the need for reducing consumption. Sabrina shares the importance of applying this to zoos and aquariums for animal welfare and from an environmental sustainability perspective.

John discusses the Cordelia Principle, a rat is a rat and concludes with a story of Griselda, a neighbourhood chicken who came to visit.

Find John’s books HERE

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