Writings in the Sand

How Do We Know Lobsters Don't Feel Pain?

This might be a strange blog post to return to the blog with, but it sort of follows a theme with the last post. Because lobsters are not fish, either, but like mermaids, they live in the ocean.

First, let me say that I have never eaten lobster and it is very unlikely that I ever will. But that doesn’t stop me from thinking about them. Not really sure what makes me start thinking about them, but this morning I got lobsters on the brain.

Thinking, that’s what it’s about. And brains.

Because for years, scientists said that lobsters don’t feel pain because their central nervous system is too rudimentary. They haven’t got a central brain. No brain, no pain.

I have always been a bit suspicious of people who purport to know what another creature is feeling. You and I are humans - the very same species - but I can never know exactly what your pain feels like. I can tell you I have a headache and you can accept that, but not feel it. And there could be times we think others are faking. Right?

So, how do we know lobsters don’t feel pain? Scientists said so. But now some scientists are saying the opposite. Canadian scientists, even, which would make it eminently believable according to my mother. And surprisingly, people who used to say there was no better way to kill a lobster have come up with some new and more humane ways to kill a lobster. In case it feels pain. Which they still deny.

I don’t eat lobster and have never ordered one to be killed for my pleasure. So why do I care? It’s just this thing I feel about having great responsibility and taking care to not do harm on purpose and to try to give voice to the voiceless. The non-verbal make really easy targets for injustice.

If you are going to make decisions that might cause pain, that might be cases of life and death, I think you’d better be sure about all your facts. And in some cases, where you can’t be sure, you have to err on the side of caution.

Anyway, I don’t know what a lobster feels or thinks, which is no good reason to drop it alive into a vat of boiling water. Personally, I think they are nothing more than big insects that live in the sea, but I don’t step on insects that are too big to kill with one attempt. There’s that squishy effect, too. Yuck. But my personal opinion on lobsters and whether or not I want one doesn’t really have any influence over whether they deserve humane treatment.

I guess I am saying that just because someone gave you the right to kill something that has no power to object, it doesn’t mean you should or that you know everything you need to know to make an informed decision.

Can Lobsters Feel Pain