NotMe wrote: [...]
What if...
The animal abuser did not know it was wrong? I'd like to point out a medical diesease which means people do not have feelings such as empathy and sympathy, and do not understand the concept of those.
Interesting point you've got there. Sociopaths are very hard to detect under normal conditions. Also, they will never see their actions as inappropriate [how ever inappropriate they actually are], therefore giving them no reason to see what they're doing is wrong. But someone would be able to find out eventually if they were doing some crazy experiments with their pets.
@Yes Man:
Even if someone had a mental issue that didn't allow them to know sympathy and empathy doesn't mean they don't understand the concept of consiquence. If creatures react negatively to what they are doing, they would be aware they were doing something "bad".
Therein lies the problem -- Sociopaths don't have that type of connection. They do see the suffering and the consequences. That doesn't mean they feel the consequences.
If there was a person... oh say, with schizophrenia, and one of their auditory hallucinations told them to choke their pet, they most certainly would. But that person will have other people around them 24/7 ensuring they don't do anything to harm themselves or others, including pets if need be.
I doubt anyone living alone with a government-verified mental condition is even allowed to own a pet, so I'd say that's just a dead end.
//Sorry, I'm such a psychological nerd. x3
