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Animal Welfare

Vox's home for coverage of animal rights and welfare.

The latest in Animal Welfare

Elephants have names — and they use them with each otherElephants have names — and they use them with each other
Future Perfect

A new study reveals elephants are more like humans than we realized. What does that mean for the movement for their rights?

By Celia Ford
Republicans want to put pigs back in tiny cages. Again.Republicans want to put pigs back in tiny cages. Again.
Future Perfect

House Republicans are working to make America's factory farms even crueler.

By Marina Bolotnikova
10 big things we think will happen in the next 10 years
Future Perfect

Obesity will go down, electric cars will go up, and a nuclear bomb might just fall.

By Bryan Walsh, Dylan Matthews and 4 more
Big Milk has taken over American schools
Future Perfect

How centuries of milk marketing warped the way we think about dairy and nutrition.

By Kenny Torrella
Why aren’t we vaccinating birds against bird flu?Why aren’t we vaccinating birds against bird flu?
Future Perfect

It’s not as complicated as it seems, but there’s one key hurdle.

By Jess Craig
John Fetterman has beef with no-kill meatJohn Fetterman has beef with no-kill meat
Future Perfect

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis banned cell-cultivated or “lab-grown” meat. Why did Democratic Sen. John Fetterman lend his support?

By Kenny Torrella
Bird flu in milk is alarming — but not for the reason you thinkBird flu in milk is alarming — but not for the reason you think
Future Perfect

The US Department of Agriculture’s failed response to bird flu in cows, explained.

By Kenny Torrella
The meat industry’s war on wildlifeThe meat industry’s war on wildlife
Future Perfect

Your taxes fundan obscure government program that kills millions of wild animals to benefit Big Ag.

By Kenny Torrella
I gave up meat and gained so much more
Home Planet

The delightful abundance of going vegan.

By Marina Bolotnikova and Christine Mi
The dairy industry really, really doesn’t want you to say “bird flu in cows”The dairy industry really, really doesn’t want you to say “bird flu in cows”
Future Perfect

How industrial meat and dairy trap us in an infectious disease cycle.

By Marina Bolotnikova
The next big climate deadline is for meat and dairyThe next big climate deadline is for meat and dairy
Future Perfect

It’s a lot sooner than you think.

By Kenny Torrella
Why New York is suing the world’s biggest meat company
Future Perfect

Meat giant JBS said it’ll reach net zero emissions by 2040. LOL.

By Jan Dutkiewicz
9 charts that show US factory farming is even bigger than you realize
Future Perfect

Factory farms are now so big that we need a new word for them.

By Marina Bolotnikova and Kenny Torrella
Can effective altruism stay effective?Can effective altruism stay effective?
Future Perfect

The flow of new money and interest into core EA fields like AI safety poses a challenge to a movement that was used to being small.

By Kelsey Piper
The US uses endangered monkeys to test drugs. This law could free them.
Future Perfect

Everything from Ozempic to Covid vaccines is tested on long-tailed macaques. Experts believe many are illegally trafficked from the wild.

By Dayton Martindale
When one twin goes vegan and the other doesn’tWhen one twin goes vegan and the other doesn’t
Future Perfect

What a plant-based diet can and cannot do for you, explained by Netflix’s You Are What You Eat.

By Kenny Torrella
The 10 most read Future Perfect stories of 2023
Future Perfect

The case against pets, what Oppenheimergot wrong, and the magic of meditation.

By Bryan Walsh
The greenwashing of wool, explained
Future Perfect

Big Wool wants you to believe it’s nice to animals and the environment. It’s not.

By Marina Bolotnikova
Bird flu is surging again on poultry farms. The US is normalizing the cruelest mass killing method to stop it.Bird flu is surging again on poultry farms. The US is normalizing the cruelest mass killing method to stop it.
Future Perfect

We failed to prepare, and now animals are paying the price.

By Marina Bolotnikova
We raise 18 billion animals a year to die — and then we don’t even eat themWe raise 18 billion animals a year to die — and then we don’t even eat them
Future Perfect

From farm to plate, one in four animals raised on factory farms are wasted.

By Kenny Torrella
What makes a good cat?
Features

Maybe your cat loves you. Maybe it would kill you if it could.

By Emily Stewart
The new Chicken Run movie is fun — and a damning critique of America’s meat industryThe new Chicken Run movie is fun — and a damning critique of America’s meat industry
Future Perfect

The mixed messages kids get about meat — and how we should think about them — explained by the Chicken Run movies.

By Kenny Torrella
Our love of orcas is making them miserable
Future Perfect

Whales and dolphins are smart, social, and thrive in the open sea. Why do we force them to live in tiny pools?

By Tove K. Danovich
Scaling slaughter-free meat is hard. Here’s one way to make it easier.Scaling slaughter-free meat is hard. Here’s one way to make it easier.
Future Perfect

Why there should be more collaboration in cellular agriculture.

By Julieta Cardenas
There’s less meat at this year’s climate talks. But there’s plenty of bull.There’s less meat at this year’s climate talks. But there’s plenty of bull.
Future Perfect

Meat and dairy are driving the climate crisis. Why won’t world leaders at COP28 do anything about it?

By Kenny Torrella
David Kaplan is building an academic community for the future of meat
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

Meet the scientist democratizing the cell-cultivated meat sector and training its next generation of researchers.

By Kenny Torrella
Crystal Heath wants veterinary medicine to live up to its values
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

The US veterinary profession props up factory farm cruelty. A coalition of vets is fighting to change that.

By Marina Bolotnikova
How Christopher “Soul” Eubanks fights for a better life — for animals and people of color alike
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

For the APEX Advocacy founder, moral consistency means championing the rights of all.

By Julieta Cardenas
Kristie Sullivan is quietly, and effectively, fighting animal testing
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

High-tech methods of chemical testing are helping get animals out of labs.

By Kenny Torrella
Justin Marceau is defending a new generation of animal rights activists
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

If you’re going to break the law in order to change it, you need a good lawyer.

By Kenny Torrella
From court to classroom, Jon Lovvorn is working to end factory farming
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

The lawyer helped spearhead California’s Prop 12, one of the most effective cage laws in the country.

By Julieta Cardenas
Genesis Butler is leading the next generation of animal and climate activists
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

At just 17, Butler is drawing attention to the connections between animal rights and the climate crisis.

By Marina Bolotnikova
Catalina Lopez is fighting the horrors of fish farming
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

Fish are often overlooked in animal welfare debates. Lopez is trying to change that.

By Marina Bolotnikova
Mahi Klosterhalfen is leading Germany’s animal welfare revolution
The 2023 Future Perfect 50

How Germany’s meat-centric culture is becoming more humane — and vegan-friendly.

By Kenny Torrella
How America broke the turkey
Future Perfect

A new investigation reveals how the company behind the White House turkey pardon — and the rest of the industry — really treats its birds.

By Kenny Torrella
You’re more likely to go to prison for exposing animal cruelty than for committing it
Future Perfect

California could send a man to prison for 3.5 years for rescuing factory-farmed animals. Where does the movement go from here?

By Marina Bolotnikova
Can a social media “pigfluencer” turn people off bacon?Can a social media “pigfluencer” turn people off bacon?
Future Perfect

How Esther the Wonder Pig put a face to factory farming.

By Kenny Torrella
This land isn’t for you or me. It’s for the meat industry.This land isn’t for you or me. It’s for the meat industry.
Future Perfect

Almost half of the continental US is used for meat production. There’s something better we could do with it.

By Kenny Torrella
Dog breed bans are about human prejudice — not the dogsDog breed bans are about human prejudice — not the dogs
Audio
Future Perfect

Why the UK is banning the American XL bully.

By Hady Mawajdeh
Zoos aren’t for animals. They’re for us.Zoos aren’t for animals. They’re for us.
Future Perfect

Zoos say they’re leaders in protecting wildlife. But is it true?

By Kenny Torrella