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Cephalopods and Decapods are declared Sentient Beings.

Cephalopods and Decapods are declared Sentient Beings.

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Cephalopods and Decapods

Cephalopods and Decapods are declared Sentient Beings.

Cephalopods and Decapods known as Crabs, lobsters, and octopuses are recognized as sentient beings by the British government and should not be cooked or dismembered alive, scientists warn.

Sentience is the ability to have feelings such as pain, pleasure, hunger, thirst, warmth, joy, comfort, and emotion. With this concept in mind, a group of researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) carried out an analysis, at the request of the UK government, on the sentience of some marine species.

After studying over 300 research and scientific articles, they concluded that cephalopods like octopuses and decapods like crabs, lobsters, and crayfish have feelings.

With the recognition of the sentience of these species, they should be included in the bill on Animal Welfare, which was presented by the government in May, but which is yet to be voted on in Parliament.

The text already mentioned the ability of vertebrate animals to feel pain, suffering, or happiness, but now it will also include invertebrates (animals without backbones) such as crustaceans and decapod cephalopods, which scientists have proven to have complex central nervous systems, one of the main characteristics of sentience.

“The bill ensures that animal welfare is properly considered when developing new laws. Science is now certain that decapods and cephalopods can feel pain and therefore it is only fair that they are covered by this vital piece of legislation,” says Zach Goldsmith, Minister of Animal Welfare.

Several international studies have already reported how octopuses are extraordinary beings. A survey carried out by Brazilian scientists, for example, proved that they have two stages of sleep, in a very similar way to human beings. And the most intriguing thing is that in one of them, these animals change color. Another study conducted by a neurobiologist at San Francisco State University, in the United States, had revealed that octopuses experience not only physical pain but “cognitive and spontaneous behaviors indicative of the experience of affective pain.

The British government has stressed that recognition of the sentience of octopus, crabs, and lobsters will not affect current legislation or industry practices such as fishing or restaurants. However, the discovery will be taken into account in future decision-making.

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However, in the report “Review of the Evidence of Sentience in Cephalopod Mollusks and Decapod Crustaceans”, prepared by the London School of Economics and Political Sciences, scientists already recommend that the following methods of slaughter be prohibited: boiling or any form of dismemberment with the animal still alive and immersion in freshwater (osmotic shock).

As early as 2018, Switzerland banned the cooking of live lobsters. That year, the government determined that they must be killed, quickly, before being placed in boiling water. The decision was part of a change in animal protection legislation to prevent suffering and cruelty. Yes, they have feelings like humans, say British scientists.

Article syndicated from Conexaoplaneta

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