This is the first sustained and comprehensive attempt to base a whole account of animal rights around an interest-based theory of rights, and the first to use such a theory to deny that animals have an intrinsic right to liberty. It dispels once and for all the myth that animal rights must be about condemning all uses of animals and that a failure to do so commits one to an acceptance of an animal welfare ethic.
Robert Garner, University of Leicester Non-human animals may have morally relevant interests in avoiding suffering and death without also possessing comparable interests in non-interference. By drawing on this neglected insight into the specificity of animals' interests, Cochrane's rigorous yet accessible book exposes a false dichotomy that has divided animal ethicists for decades, making a major advance in our understanding of the subject.
Paula Casal, Universitat Pompeu Fabra Alasdair Cochrane argues that there is a plausible theory of animal rights that allows us to continue to own and use animals. It would be an understatement to say that I disagree with Cochrane but he does a fine job presenting the argument and his book will surely provoke debate and discussion.
Gary L. Francione, Rutgers University ...thoughtful and thought-provoking, making it a welcome and highly recommended addition to personal and academic library Contemporary Ethics reference collections and supplemental reading lists.Midwest Book Review Midwest Book Review Well-argued Political Science Review