Animal welfare policies have been imposed in several countries. With this global survey, our team expects to better understand citizens’ awareness of this subject and whether animal protection matters in citizens’ lives.

  • Citizens’ awareness of animal welfare laws and initiatives is increasing globally, with 38% of participants considering these practices extremely important.
  • The majority of the respondents would like to be more aware of animal welfare in their countries.
  • 42.5% of respondents affirm that welfare animal protection laws increased in their countries during the last 5 years.

Our survey shows that animal welfare awareness rises globally, mainly in South Asia and the Pacific. Populations are satisfied with adopting new animal protection laws in their countries and, more importantly, taking these practices into their daily lives.

In the years leading up to 2020, people are not only concerned with their pets and the need to treat them better. Citizens from all over the world have started to change their food choices in order to save animals, choose brands with animal welfare policies, and refuse to buy products tested on animals.

Also Read: Survey: World Wildlife Fund for Nature Website

While society emerges in an economic and humanitarian crisis due to COVID-19, global awareness on animal matters brings a positive return to the current situation. Animals, in general, have gained rights in most developed countries and in large of under-developed countries. From pets to wild animals, more and more countries are adopting laws to protect their species, and respondents showed their agreement on this.

Look at the following chart, where the question is, “Does your country have animal protection laws?” and realize that the vast majority of respondents acknowledge having animal protection laws in their countries. This shows a growing concern for animal welfare on the part of people and governments globally.

does your country have animal protection lawsThe answers to the previous question were positive. Respondents showed that levels of concern for animal welfare in their countries have been rising with 361 people answering “Yes, animal sentience is formally recognized as in legislation,” 205 answered “Yes, laws against causing animal suffering,” and yet 23 answered that all the previous options are valid.

This shows that animal protection is gaining ground at the governmental level and that several countries worldwide have adopted laws to protect the welfare of animals on Earth. It is indeed a positive indication that governments are concerned not only with human welfare but also with creating laws to protect animals.

People Consider Animal Welfare as “Extremely Important”

To the question, “please tell us how important it is to you that the welfare of animals is protected?” The responses were overwhelmingly positive. 387 people say that protecting the welfare of animals is “extremely important,” and 276 people saying it is “important.” In contrast, only 60 people responded that animal welfare laws were “not important.”

Please tell us how important it is to you that the welfare of animals is protected

In line with this — as Forbes suggests — there are multiple forces transforming animal health. As we saw here, these forces are not only political or governmental but also come from the strong will of the populations to protect the animals. This suggests that younger, academically educated populations have greater animal welfare awareness, regardless of where in the world they live.

Awareness Increases But Citizens Would Like to Know More

To the question, “Could you tell us how much do you feel you know about the conditions under which animals are protected in your country?” opinions are divided. For the first time during the survey, a question generated some contradiction in the sense that many people feel that they have different levels of knowledge.

The most popular answer was, “I would like to be more aware of animal welfare in my country,” with 280 respondents. This was followed by “I am somewhat aware of laws and regulations with 271 responses and, thirdly,” I am aware of all laws and regulations “with 258 responses.

Finally, the last answers to appear are: “I am concerned with the topic, but I don’t know how to find information.” (110 respondents) and “I am not aware” (81 respondents).

Which animals are protected in your country

As discussed above, this question gives us a broader perception of the world’s citizens’ concern for animals. The conclusion turns out to be positive because, in addition to people feeling that they are informed, they greatly demonstrate an eagerness to learn more about the whole process of legislating the protection of animals.

Welfare Policies Increase Consumption

Finally, to the question “Would you be less likely to buy products or food processed by a company with a bad reputation for animal welfare?” it was not surprising to realize that a vast majority of respondents would not buy or would avoid buying products from brands that do not respect animal welfare.

On the other hand, surprisingly, the answer with the most votes (338) was, “I don’t purchase any item or food product processed by companies without welfare policies.” which shows that awareness is globally even more significant than expected. 301 respondents also said, “I would be less likely to buy products or food processed by a company without welfare policies.”While 218 people claimed, “I try to pay attention to brands’ reputations, but I feel I have a lack of knowledge about it.”

Would you be less likely to buy products or food processed by a company with a bad reputation for animal welfare

It is with great satisfaction that the Real Research team realizes that people are increasingly concerned with animals’ welfare. Besides, governments implement animal welfare laws globally and see their laws well received by the population.