answersLogoWhite

0

There are many types of animals. An earthworm is an animal, and it is undoubtedly not sentient. It has no brain, just a nerve ganglion, with negligible intelligence. A chimpanzee is also an animal, and they are estimated to have an intelligence comparable to that of a five year old human child, which clearly does fall within the range of sentience. So it depends which species we are talking about.

==========

It depends on how you use the term "sentient".

  1. If it broadly defined to simply "able to experience sensations", then any organism with sensory organs is sentient.
  2. If it is limited a bit to he concept of "able to feel pleasure and pain" then it gets more murky since we have no way to determine for certain if the response of an animal translates to the same things we call pleasure and pain but we believe most "higher" animals are able to be sentient by this second definition.
  3. If we further limit it to the ability to reason and think abstractly, this is little evidence that animals are sentient to that degree.
User Avatar

Wiki User

8y ago

What else can I help you with?

Related Questions

How do you use sentient in a sentence?

Those creatures that are aware of stimuli display a sentient quality .


Who practices the application of math?

All sentient human beings as well as some animals.


What are some reasons why you shouldn't do animal cruelty?

Animals are sentient beings like you and I who can feel and understand pain.


What is the difference between conscious and sentient beings?

Conscious beings are aware of their surroundings and can perceive and respond to stimuli, while sentient beings have the capacity to experience emotions and feelings.


What is the purpose of testing on animals?

The purpose is to ensure that products will not harm actual sentient beings before the product is used on one.


Why do PETA complain about eating meat but they kill and eat plants?

Animals are sentient beings and are known to feel pain. Plants are not.


How could you use sentient in a sentence?

Whales are sentient beings and therefore shouldn't be hunted.


What are the characteristics of semi-sentient beings and do they actually exist?

== == The state or quality of having existence is either sentient or not sentient therefore the question is nonsensical.


What are the characteristics of semi sentient beings and do they actually exist?

== == The state or quality of having existence is either sentient or not sentient therefore the question is nonsensical.


What social structure do Buddhists have?

The Equality of Sentient Beings


Can you hunt on Christmas?

Not if you have compassion for other sentient beings.


What does sentient beings mean?

In Buddhism, sentient being are the opposite of a Buddha.The term "sentient beings" refers to beings who are still in the cycle of existence and who haven't attained complete liberation yet. There are six classes of sentient beings: gods, demigods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings.Answer:Sentient beings are "aware" beings. Awareness can be seen, at it lowest level, as the ability to sense pain, hunger, warmth etc. Some would limit sentience to self awareness - this is condition mankind may hold for itself alone or perhaps share with mammals and birds. With the Buddhist injunction to not harm sentient beings, there is a tremendous range of interpretation open to the individual practitioner. Most would refrain from harming any animal but happily wash their hands to kill bacteria and be open to discussion on the swatting of mosquitos.