Purpose of One Voice: To make sentience known
Do we know who the animals really are? Each new scientific discovery unravels a little more the artificial boundary that some have tried to put between humans and the animal kingdom. Like us, animals have a mental and emotional life. They are sentient beings. Discovering and understanding their ability to feel but also to think, to love and to suffer, is an important step in questioning our practices, some of which cause a lot of suffering.
One Voice invites you to discover their deeper identity, through their sentience cards, each of which is entirely dedicated to a species. Whether wild, domestic, or even our companions, you will enter the intimacy of animals with, no doubt, information that will not fail to surprise you...
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Some examples of sentience
Humans surrounded by animals have become aware of their companion's ability to feel emotions. But it is not always easy to become aware of animals that we do not share everyday life with. Here are some examples:
- In 2007, animal behaviour biologist Marc Bekoff went to study at a reserve in Kenya. He noted a great solidarity within a herd of elephants and especially towards the weakest ones. "Babyl walked very slowly," he says, "crippled and unable to move at the speed of the rest of the herd. The elephants did not leave her behind and always waited for her over the years. After a moment of walking, they would stop and turn to look at her and depending on how she was they waited or they just continued on. Sometimes the matriarch fed her. "
- Bats are also capable of empathy and emotion. A study was conducted by Thomas Kunz on these animals. He witnessed a particularly moving scene between two females. A first time mother remained voluntarily upside down while this is the only position to be adopted to suit their needs. For two and a half hours, another female bat helped a fellow female who was on the point of giving birth. She fanned the exhausted future mother, mimicking gestures and positions to help facilitate the delivery. Once the baby was born, the female "midwife" helped the baby to ride on the mother's back.
