Mostly people don't think about everyday suffering in Australia, for example, animals killed for food, battery hens, laboratory animals, animals that are trapped, poisoned, or hunted for sport. These actions aren't illegal, but they cause suffering to more individuals than people who starve or beat their animals. Hooking fish, fire branding cattle, catching animals in steel-jaw traps, cutting tails off lambs and beaks off hens, all cause pain. Stress and Fear. Vertebrate animals feel anxiety like we do.
Transport is very stressful for animals, especially live export overseas.
Being pulled out of the water and left to suffocate causes great stress to fish. Dairy calves taken from their mother after 1 day and trucked to slaughter at 1 week of age suffer greatly. Otherwise they become frustrated and may develop abnormal behaviour, just like a mentally disturbed person. Signs of frustration can be seen in battery hens, pigs in tiny stalls, rabbits in laboratory cages, foxes and mink on fur farms, and some zoo and circus animals. For more information, click on one of the four sections below.