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BBC Wildlife Magazine, April 2006 – Volume 24 Number 4 Do Animals Feel Joy? Jonathan Balcombe argues that animals have deeper feelings and emotions than conventional science accepts. When our duck, Jem, saw his brother and his mate being killed by a fox right in front of him, he seemed as traumatized as I was. He ran up the drive to the scene of the crime, quacking for his companions. He lost weight and became fearful where before he had been boisterous. Though I don’t think ducks are very bright, it was heartbreaking watching him stand dejectedly in his run, every so often calling for the others. Author Jonathan Balcombe would argue that Jem was grieving and that this is the flip side of animals’ ability to feel love. Though we ascribe emotions such as love and grief to pets, Balcombe claims that all animals feel, from butterfish to bees to bandicoots, and are particularly motivated by pleasure. Most scientists view animals as adapted to their way of life. For instance, a woodpecker is adept at pecking holes in wood and an anteater at eating ants, but few would go so far as to say that woodpeckers actually enjoy knocking holes in trees or anteaters love ants. But when Balcombe sees a starling he says, “I see not only a creature beautifully adapted to a way of life, I feel the joy of a creature fully alive and crisply aware of life.” In this interesting book he adds that feeling good is a powerful motivator that helps animals stay alive and reproduce: “Contrary to popular myth, life in the wild is not relentlessly harsh; survival and pleasure are mutually compatible.” What duck love is like I have no idea, but Jem is now very attached to his new friend, Cherry, and is once again fat and bossy. Reviewed by Sanjida O’Connell, writer and presenter. March 13, 2006
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