Do Fish Feel Pain? (Victoria Braithwaite)

Waldo Malan

Oxford University Press South Africa (www.oxford.co.za)

At first I thought the title was a metaphor for something else, or some philosophical slant, but no, Victoria Braithwaite deals literally with the subject of whether fish feel pain. So with my interest piqued I picked up the book and sat down to start paging through. Michael Agger, writer and fisherman comments, “Whenever one of these studies about fish pain appears, animal lovers start glaring at me and my fellow fishermen. If fish can experience pain, then angling must be a cruel sport, right up there with deer hunting, bear baiting, and eating hot dogs. Why can't we just leave fish alone and do something else?” The anti-fishing crowd is seemingly supported in this book by biologist Victoria Braithwaite; she explores the question of fish pain and fish suffering, explaining what science can now tell us about fish behaviour, examining the related ethical questions about how we should treat these animals. However, her well balanced approach stems from active involvement in the fishing industry as well as angling, and in this book she argues for the protection of all fish and to afford them the same protective privileges afforded birds and other animals. Even for a non-fisherman this will prove to be an interesting read.