The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics

This handbook provides an in-depth examination of the practical and theoretical issues within the emerging field of animal ethics. Leading experts from around the globe offer insights into cutting edge topics as diverse as killing for food, religious slaughter, animal companions, aquariums, genetic manipulation, hunting for sport and bullfighting. Including contributions from Lisa Johnson on the themes of human dominance, Thomas White on the ethics of captivity, Mark Bernstein on the ethics of killing and Kay Peggs on the causation of suffering, this handbook offers an authoritative reference work for contemporary applied animal ethics. Progressive in approach, the authors explore the challenges that animal ethics poses both conceptually and practically to traditional understandings of human–animal relations.

Key Features:

·         Structured in four parts to examine the ethics of control, the ethics of captivity, the ethics of killing and the ethics of causing suffering

·         Interdisciplinary approach including philosophical, historical, scientific, legal, anthropological, religious, psychological and sociological perspectives

·         Focussed treatment of practical issues such as animals in farming, zoos and animal experimentation

The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics is an essential resource for those with an interest in the ethics of modern-day treatment of animals as well as scholars, researchers and advanced students in zoology, philosophy, anthropology, religious studies and sociology.

“There is a lot of interest within its considerable volume, and if a rights-based way of ‘doing’ animal ethics appeals to you there is no doubt that this book is well-written, scholarly and covers a wide range of topics.” (Madeleine LH Campbell, Animal Welfare, Vol. 28 (4), November, 2019)


“This handbook provides a comprehensive, multidisciplinary discussion of current ethical questions regarding treatment of nonhuman animals. … The handbook's greatest value is that it brings together, in one volume, the current standard moral imperatives from animal experts and scholars. The book is encyclopedic, but cost is bound to be problematic for some.” (M. A. Betz, Choice, Vol. 56 (7), March, 2019)



“To show the complexity of trying to develop an ethical philosophy regarding the interrelationship of humans and nonhuman animals. It is to explore this difficult and very complicated subject that The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics is designed. … The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics deserves to be on the shelves of every individual and every organization concerned with the way in which human beings and nonhuman beings relate to each other on the planet that we all share.” (Infodad.com, transcentury.blogspot.com, October, 2018)

“This collection offers an impressive and timely range of perspectives on both historical and contemporary instances of animal abuse and exploitation, and the contexts within which that harm is perpetrated, such as the laboratory, the factory farm, the circus, and the less frequently challenged zoo.” (Wahida Khandker, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK)

Andrew Linzey is Director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, and Visiting Professor of Animal Theology at the University of Winchester. He is the author of such works as The Global Guide to Animal Protection (2013) The Link Between Animal Abuse and Human Violence (2009) and Why Animal Suffering Matters: Philosophy, Theology, and Practical Ethics (2009).

Clair Linzey is Deputy Director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, and Associate Editor of the Journal of Animal Ethics. She has written entries for the Vocabulary for the Study of Religion, the Encyclopedia of Bioethics 4th Edition, the Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics, and the Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics.