University of Southern Maine USM Digital Commons All Theses & Dissertations Student Scholarship 2017 Animal Welfare: Measuring Strategies for Improving Lives Elsbeth Paige-Jeffers MA University of Southern Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/etd Part of the Animal Studies Commons, and the Leadership Studies Commons Recommended Citation Paige-Jeffers, Elsbeth MA, "Animal Welfare: Measuring Strategies for Improving Lives" (2017). All Theses & Dissertations. 310. https://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/etd/310 This Open Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Scholarship at USM Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of USM Digital Commons. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Animal Welfare: Measuring Strategies for Improving Lives A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN LEADERSHIP STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MAINE BY ELSBETH K. PAIGE-JEFFERS 2017 iii This work is dedicated to all the animals I love and have loved, with special thanks to Watson, Nigel, Molly, and Alice, for their love and companionship. iv Abstract Animals are sentient creatures entitled to humane treatment and lives of dignity. There are many fields which address this notion, including animal welfare science, ethics, law, policy, and veterinary science. Such a multi-disciplinary approach to animal welfare reveals numerous best practices which can be used to improve the way animals are conceived of and treated by both specialists and the public. However, despite this faceted consideration of animal welfare, there is a dearth of quantitative means to assess entities’ adherence to best practices.