Animal Emotions

Do animals think and feel?

Marc Bekoff is Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. See full bio

October 29, 2009

Grief in animals: It's arrogant to think we're the only animals who mourn

There is no doubt that many animals experience rich and deep emotions. It's not a matter of if emotions have evolved in animals but why they have evolved as they have. We must never forget that our emotions are the gifts of our ancestors, our animal kin. We have feelings and so do other animals. Among the different emotions that animals display clearly and unambiguously is grief Read More

October 20, 2009

Morality in Tooth and Claw

Animals are "in." This might well be called the decade of the animal. Research on animal behavior has never been more vibrant and more revealing of the amazing cognitive, emotional, and moral capacities of a broad range of animals. It's becoming clear that animals have both emotional and moral intelligences. Read More

October 16, 2009

Just who do we think we are, and what do the animals think about us?

We surely can do better in our interactions with other individuals of species who care about what happens to them. Read More

September 24, 2009

Animal Emotions, Animal Sentience, Animal Welfare, and Animal Rights

Labeling an individual an animal "welfarist" or "rightist" connotes important messages about their views on animal exploitation and animal protection. Animals truly care if they're confronting a welfarist or a rightist for their very lives are in the hands of the people who can do anything they want to them. Read More

September 23, 2009

Animals and Inmates: Science Behind Bars

For ten years I've been teaching animal behavior and conservation biology at the Boulder (Colorado) County Jail as part if Jane Goodall's Roots & Shoots program. Everyone is pleasantly surprised at how science and humane education connect the inmates to various aspects of nature and that many find it easier to connect with animals than with people. Science and humane education have helped the inmates connect with values that they otherwise wouldn't have done. Science opens the door to understanding, trust, cooperation, community, and hope. The picture of Fifi (one of Jane Goodalll's favorite chimpanzees) accompanying this essay was drawn by Jeff, one of my students. Read More

September 15, 2009

Factory Farming Without Animal Suffering Isn't Okay

Even if animals don't feel pain that's no reason to keep them on factory farms or even to eat them. Read More

September 13, 2009

Animals Feelings and Fur: Who (Not What) We Wear is An Ethical Choice

If one doubts that animals have deep feelings consider what they endure as they become unnecessary clothing. It's easy to say that animals used for fur (and leather) don't like how they're treated. As sentient mammals they have deep and enduring feelings just like our favorite companion animals, dogs and cats. And we would never subject our companions to the reprehensible treatment to which fur-farmed animals are subjected. Read More

September 3, 2009

Going To The Dogs Is A Good Idea: It's Not A Dog Eat Dog World

Animals are "in" these days. Read about the latest and the greatest research about how smart our best friends are. Read More

August 24, 2009

Individual Animals Count: Speciesism Doesn't Work

Spare the chimps, boil the shrimps, shock the mice, kill the lice, eat the hogs, pith the frogs, blind the rabbits, what drives these habits? Much animal use is driven by the similarities rather than the differences between humans and other animals. Philosopher Lynne Sharpe points out that how we explore and ponder the similarities and differences among animals depends on how we define ourselves. Read More

August 17, 2009

Deciding where, what, and with whom to eat: We can learn a lot from birds

When I'm hungry I often ask myself where, what, and with whom shall I eat? And, is there any place or anyone I want to avoid? Many animals also ask these questions and make complex choices by simultaneously evaluating a number of different variables. They're pretty smart. Birds also spend time making decisions about where, what, and with whom to eat. Saying someone's a bird brain isn't an insult at all. Read More

Books by Marc Bekoff

Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals

The Emotional Lives of Animals: A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy - and Why They Matter

Animals Matter: A Biologist Explains Why We Should Treat Animals with Compassion and Respect

Animals at Play: Rules of the Game

Encyclopedia of Human-Animal Relationships: A Global Exploration of Our Connections with Animals, Volume 1: A-Con

Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior (3 Vol. Set)

Encyclopedia of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare

The Animal Manifesto: Six Reasons for Expanding Our Compassion Footprint

Animal Behavior Basics

Pets are among life's greatest joys; they can also be our greatest teachers. The study of animal behavior is a cornerstone of experimental psychology, shedding light on complex human emotions. And pets have a unique therapaeutic hold over humans, especially people who are socially isolated or who are coping with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum.

Go to the Animal Behavior Basics page for more on Animal Behavior including:

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