Student presentations highlight animal rights issues

By: Alli Voorhees

Posted: 4/13/09

Friday April 10 marked the end of Shawnee State's annual Celebration of Scholarship. At 10 a.m. room 210 in Massie Hall was full of students and staff eager to hear about "Animal Issues: Pit Bulls, Factory Farms and Animal Rights."

Each student presenter offered research and information about her own particular topic.

Lisa Anderson opened the session with her discussion "The Pit Bull Peril: Is Their Behavior Inherited or Learned?" Anderson tested the characters of several pit bulls and whether they had aggressive behaviors. Her results concluded that the animals are not inherently aggressive, but learn the aggression from their owners.

Second in the line-up, Sonya Godfrey presented "Down on the Factory Farm," an in-depth research on the effects factory farming have on animals. Her studies showed that factory farms not only negatively impact animals by pumping them with growth hormones and antibiotics, but also the environment by polluting the air with toxins from lagoons filled with animal waste.

Lastly, Jill Hamblin presented her paper, "Animals Have Feelings Too!" Her presentation included general information on animal neglect, stating that 4,000 out of 12,595 animals are neglected. There are three types of cruelty humans impose on animals: intentional, unintentional, and beneficial. The first two make sense, while beneficial is a bit cloudier. Beneficial cruelty is that of a circus or zoo, which harms the animal, but benefits humans.

Each student was well-rehearsed and knew her topic well. Audience members left the presentation more aware of the ways animals are treated on farms, in zoos, and in the home.

"And given the details from the Factory Farm presentation, I would stay from the chicken if I were you," one student said.