Parental Responsibility and Our Special Relationship with Animal Companions.

What is the basis of our obligations to our animal companions? This is an important question for practical reasons, as the relationship that many individuals have with their animal companion is amongst the most intimate of relationships they share with a non-human animal. It is also important for th...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Journal of Value Inquiry Vol. 60; no. 2; pp. 247 - 263
Autor principal: Sigsbee, Dustin
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Springer Nature Jun2026
Materias:
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hlh&AN=192844973&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: hlh
    uiTerm: 192844973
    longDbName: Humanities International Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        00225363
        OJ8
      jtl: Journal of Value Inquiry
      issn: 00225363
      maglogo: N
    pubinfo:
      dt: Jun2026
      vid: 60
      iid: 2
      pid: 237
      pub: Springer Nature
    artinfo:
      ui:
        192844973
        10.1007/s10790-023-09973-2
      ppf: 247
      ppct: 16
      formats:
        fmt:
          – @attributes:
              type: T
          – @attributes:
              type: P
              size: 689KB
      tig:
        atl: Parental Responsibility and Our Special Relationship with Animal Companions.
      aug:
        au: Sigsbee, Dustin
        affil: https://ror.org/04p549618 University of South Carolina, Columbia, USA
      su:
        Responsibility
        Pets
        Parenting
        Animal welfare
        Moral attitudes
        Intimacy (Psychology)
      sug:
        subj:
          Responsibility
          Pets
          Parenting
          Animal welfare
          Moral attitudes
          Intimacy (Psychology)
      keyword:
        Animal Companions
        Causal-voluntarism
        Ethics of Partiality
        Parental Responsibility
        Philosophy and Religious Studies Philosophy
        Special Relationships
      ab: What is the basis of our obligations to our animal companions? This is an important question for practical reasons, as the relationship that many individuals have with their animal companion is amongst the most intimate of relationships they share with a non-human animal. It is also important for theoretical reasons. One of those reasons is that our commitments to animal companions may appear to present a kind of puzzle. If we think that we have moral commitments to animal companions that we do not have to other animals, such as livestock or free-roaming animals, what could explain this? I argue that the explanation for this difference in moral commitments is the result of the special relationship we have with our animal companions. More specifically, the basis of our moral commitments to animal companions are like those incurred by parents. Further, it is argued that causing the existence of or voluntarily taking on commitments of care for especially vulnerable and dependent sentient organisms implies robust responsibilities aimed at nurturing and promoting individual flourishing. This conclusion has implications regarding several related moral issues, such as whether animal companions require a moral education, what end-of-life commitments animal companion caregivers have, and whether it is justified to feed our animal companions other animals or let them engage in predation. Further, these issues are of practical interest to animal companion caregivers, law makers, and veterinarians, as well as being of theoretical interest to legal scholars and ethicists.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
    refInfo:
    copyright:
      @attributes:
        flag: Y
      custom: Journal of Value Inquiry is a copyright of Springer, 2026. All Rights Reserved.
      item: Journal of Value Inquiry
      holder: Springer Nature
      dt:
        @attributes:
          year: 2026
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N