Animal welfare
Animal welfare organisations campaign to the protect the welfare of animals, either in the wild, in captivity or both.
Many animal welfare supporters also believe in animal rights, and animal welfare groups are often mistaken for animal rights campaigners. However, the two do not necessarily go together. We do not have to believe that animals have rights comparable to humans, to believe that it is cruel for them to suffer unnecessarily.
Many religionists, who believe that humanity was created superior to animals, reject the concept of animal rights, but support animal welfare campaigns because they do not wish God's other creatures to suffer.
Examples of animal welfare organisations include the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), the Captive Animals' Protection Society (CAPS), and, in the United Kingdom, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA).
These organisations often support animals being kept as pets, in zoo collections, or - in some cases - being used for food or limited animal testing, as long as the animals are treated ethically and humanely. On the other hand, many animals rights extremists such as PETA reject keeping animals altogether as a form of slavery.