Bonus: Veterinary Ethics and Animal Welfare with Sean Wensley

The Animal Turn

Using his book Through a Vet’s Eyes as a backdrop, Claudia talks to Sean Wensley about veterinary ethics and animal welfare. They discuss some of Sean’s experiences as a vet as well as some of the challenges vets face in representing animals’ interests.

Date Recorded: 20 February 2024

Sean Wensley is Senior Veterinarian for Animal Welfare and Professional Engagement at the UK veterinary charity, the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA). He was President of the British Veterinary Association (BVA) and chaired the Animal Welfare Working Group of the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE), which represents veterinary organisations from 40 European countries. Sean has contributed to animal welfare and conservation projects around the world and in 2017 he received the inaugural World Veterinary Association (WVA) Global Animal Welfare Award for Europe. In 2023 he received the J.A. Wight Memorial Award from the British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) for his outstanding contribution to pet welfare. His first book Through A Vet’s Eyes: How to care for animals and treat them better was selected as one of the Financial Times’ Best Summer Books of 2022.

Featured:

• Through a Vet’s Eyes by Sean Wensley.
• Here for the Animals by Claudia Hirtenfelder.
• The ethics of referral by Barnard Rollin.
• Abolition with Gary Francione on The Animal Turn.
• Every Twelve Seconds by Timothy Pachirat.
• Community Led Conservation with Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka on The Animal Turn.
• Learning Animals by Nadine Dolby.

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1. Introduction (00:00:00)

2. What is a vet? (00:02:28)

3. Vets and Slaughterhouses (00:09:40)

4. Challenges in Representing Animals' Interests (00:13:50)

5. Veterinarian's Trilemma (00:17:40)

6. Animal Welfare Science (00:22:39)

7. Navigating Veterinary Work and Ethics (00:27:53)

8. [Ad] Wild Times: Wildlife Education (00:27:53)

9. (Cont.) Animal Welfare Science (00:28:32)

10. Blending Animal Worlds and Genres in his Book (00:33:20)

11. Passive Consumption, Animal Welfare, and Animal Rights (00:41:15)

12. Breeding, Slaughter, and a Dual Duty (00:48:02)

13. Quote (Chief Seattle) (01:03:23)

14. Animal Use and a Vision for the Future (01:05:16)

15. Working on now? (01:13:55)

16. Credits (01:17:23)