ABSTRACT
The topic of animals and ethics existed only around the margins of philosophical and scientific discourse until the second half of the twentieth century. Normal adult humans are moral agents, but some humans are not. They, like "normal mammalian animals aged one year or more" are moral patients. While the moral agent/patient distinction has continued to be used, the categorical distinction that it marked between "normal adult humans" and animals has become increasingly blurred. The distinction between suffering and pain can be viewed as tracking the distinction between agents and patients. This distinction has often been influential in discussions of ethics and animals. Moreover, the recognition of rich behavioral and psychological repertoires in animals also forces the recognition that "one size fits all" is a bad approach to animal welfare. The parks and reserves that provide sanctuary for shrinking populations of animals are increasingly taking on the characteristics of captivity, with guarded, patrolled, and often fenced borders.
