History of animal welfare

Systematic concern for the well-being of other animals probably arose in the as the religious ancestors return in animal form, and that animals must therefore be killed with the respect due to a human. This belief is exemplified in the existing religion, , and in varieties of other.

Other religions, specially those with roots in the, treat animals as the props of their owners, codifying rules for their care andntended to limit the distress, pain and fear animals experience under human control.From the outset in 1822, when British MP shepherded a bill through Parliament offering protection from cruelty to cattle, horses and sheep (earning himself the nickname Humanity Dick), the welfare approach has had human morality, and humane behaviour, at its central concern.

Martin was among the founders of the world's first animal welfare organization, the, or SPCA, in 1824. In 1840, gave the society her blessing, and it became the. The society used members' donations to employ a growing network of inspectors, whose job was to identify abusers, gather evidence, and report them to the authorities.

The main concerns of the animal protection movement since the 19th century had been slaughtering and, issues the Nazis picked up on as soon as they came to power in January 1933 as part of their sweeping attacks on, with the claim that vivisection was part of what they called "Jewish science." (See main article.) They passed laws regulating slaughter in April 1933, and banned vivisection in August 1933, removing the ban three weeks later when they were persuaded it would have a negative effect on research, and introducing regulation instead. On, , the Tierschutzgesetz, or animal protection law, was introduced, the first of a series of similar laws, giving Germany the most extensive animal protection legislation in Europe at the time. threatened to send anyone violating the vivisection regulations to concentration camps.