This is partly because we don’t rely solely on SADs averted per dollar when interpreting our CEAs, but also consider metrics like animals helped per dollar.
Could you elaborate on why you use the number of animals helped per $? In the context of interventions targeting humans, that is analogous to using people helped per $ in addition to QALYs per $. I wonder whether you could change the estimates for SADs such that they account for the reasons which make you independently value the number of animals helped. Using animals helped per $ favours interventions targeting smaller animals with a lower capacity for welfare, so you may want to use a higher welfare range for these.
Ideally, we would be fully reliant on SADs, which take into account the species’ capacity to suffer as well as the intensity and duration of their suffering. However, SADs are still a new method with some speculative inputs and ongoing updates. To account for this methodological uncertainty, our CEAs show results in both SADs averted per dollar and animals helped per dollar. In our decision-making, we look at both of these metrics and more, and interpret them alongside the broader context of the intervention.
Thanks for clarifying!
Could you elaborate on why you use the number of animals helped per $? In the context of interventions targeting humans, that is analogous to using people helped per $ in addition to QALYs per $. I wonder whether you could change the estimates for SADs such that they account for the reasons which make you independently value the number of animals helped. Using animals helped per $ favours interventions targeting smaller animals with a lower capacity for welfare, so you may want to use a higher welfare range for these.
Ideally, we would be fully reliant on SADs, which take into account the species’ capacity to suffer as well as the intensity and duration of their suffering. However, SADs are still a new method with some speculative inputs and ongoing updates. To account for this methodological uncertainty, our CEAs show results in both SADs averted per dollar and animals helped per dollar. In our decision-making, we look at both of these metrics and more, and interpret them alongside the broader context of the intervention.