We shouldn’t eat animals, whether they are intelligent or not | Letters

If something becomes appalling and unconscionable when you imagine it being done to a human, it should not be done to any other animal, writes Shannon Ray

I agree with Elle Hunt’s view that the perceived intelligence of an animal shouldn’t determine whether or not we eat them (Octopus farming turns my stomach – but are some species really more worthy than others?, 30 March). She is absolutely right that our idea of intelligence is biased towards human abilities, accounting for neither those cognitive areas in which animals outperform humans, nor those animals who simply haven’t been put through “intelligence tests” yet.

So, I find her conclusion – that we should eat higher-quality, more local meat – slightly baffling. Absolutely, we should avoid factory-farmed meat (both terrestrial and aquaculture), but we are kidding ourselves if we believe that there is any humane way to slaughter livestock or club octopuses. A general rule of thumb: if something becomes appalling and unconscionable when you imagine it being done to a human, it should not be done to any other animal, either – at least not by choice.