Animals, welfare, people, ethics and legislation are inextricably intertwined. In its 90th Anniversary year the SPCA Hong Kong in conjunction with the Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education (Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, UK) is delighted to present a seminar by Dr James Yeates and Professor Mike Radford focusing on animal ethics and animal welfare legislation.
Companion Animal Ethics "Pethics" – Dr James Yeates
How we treat animals in our care is an area that has received increasing amounts of investigation within bioethics, and this research has had significant impact on policies in many countries. Within this field, companion animal ethics has received relatively little research. Yet companion animals spend most of their time in close proximity and personal relationships with humans and their lives are greatly affected by those humans, through breeding, care, animal-human relationships, veterinary treatment and euthanasia.
Dr Yeates will give an overview of the history of animal ethics before focusing on some of the features specific to companion animal ethics
The Need for Animal Welfare Legislation – Mike Radford
Animal welfare is a relatively recent area of study but recognition of the need to protect animals and the requirement for an underlying legislative mechanism has existed since the early 19th century. Over time, increased scientific knowledge and ethical debate has caused the focus of animal welfare legislation to extend beyond simply deterring or punishing cruel treatment to imposing a positive obligation on those responsible for animals to have regard to their welfare and ensure a reasonable quality of life for the animals in their care.
Mike Radford will, using the experience of the United Kingdom and the animal protection movement, argue the need for animal welfare legislation and expand on the duty of care concept that is now being used in several jurisdictions around the world.
| Date: | Sunday 27th November 2011 | |
| Time: | 2:30 pm - 4:30pm (Registration from 2:00pm) |
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| Venue:
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Lecture Theatre (LT02), IVE Morrison No.6 Oi Kwan Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong Map |
Limited seats, reservations/enquiries please contact olive.lau@spca.org.hk
or call 2232 5574
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Dr James Yeates qualified with a Bachelors of Veterinary Science in 2004,and has a Bachelors in bioethics, a Certificate and Diploma in animal welfare science, ethics and law and a PhD in veterinary ethics. He has worked as a vet in charity and private practices. James is Head of the Companion Animals Department at the RSPCA, having joined in May 2011.
Dr Yeates is currently Honorary Lecturer at the University of Bristol, Chair of the BVA Ethics and Welfare Group and Honorary Secretary for the Society of Practising Veterinary Surgeons. He is also on the Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law Veterinary Association Committee, the BSAVA Scientific Committee and is a Fellow of Centre for Animal Ethics. James edits the AWSELVA Journal of Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law and is writing a book for the UFAW animal welfare series on Achieving Animal Welfare in Veterinary Practice.Published work includes papers on treatment choices, quality-of-life assessment, euthanasia, animal welfare values, positive animal welfare, stem cells, overtreatment and medical authority and responsibility.
Biographies:
Mike Radford is Reader in Public Law and Animal Welfare Law in the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. He established the first animal welfare law course in a European law school in 1992, since when he has worked extensively with ministers, public officials, NGOs, and veterinarians in the UK, Europe, and beyond on issues of law, policy and administration. He was deeply involved with the enactment of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006, for which he was appointed OBE in 2008 for services to animal welfare law. Mike is a member of the UK's Independent Advisory Council on Dog Breeding; Companion Animal Welfare Council; the Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law Board of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons; and a trustee of Dogs Trust, the PDSA (People's Dispensary for Sick Animals), and is presently Chair of both UFAW (Universities Federation for Animal Welfare) and the Humane Slaughter Association.