I can see how my use of the word “intense” was imprecise (the part about utility was likely worded better; I guess I didn’t want to open with utilitarian jargon that I probably don’t fully understand myself), but I still think domestic-animal suffering is much worse than wild-animal suffering, because death is only a small portion of overall suffering. Being eaten alive is obviously very unpleasant, but at least it’s over relatively quickly. The same can’t be said for the lives of factory-farmed animals.
To be more open about where I’m coming from, my level of horror at suffering relies heavily on to what extent I think I could deal with it myself. Minutes of excruciating pain is something I’ve personally experienced, whereas intense (even if not excruciating) pain on a continuous basis over the course of months or years is something I can’t even really imagine.
I can see how my use of the word “intense” was imprecise (the part about utility was likely worded better; I guess I didn’t want to open with utilitarian jargon that I probably don’t fully understand myself), but I still think domestic-animal suffering is much worse than wild-animal suffering, because death is only a small portion of overall suffering. Being eaten alive is obviously very unpleasant, but at least it’s over relatively quickly. The same can’t be said for the lives of factory-farmed animals.
To be more open about where I’m coming from, my level of horror at suffering relies heavily on to what extent I think I could deal with it myself. Minutes of excruciating pain is something I’ve personally experienced, whereas intense (even if not excruciating) pain on a continuous basis over the course of months or years is something I can’t even really imagine.