Finally, the welfare of the animal—the ultimate ethical goal of veterinary medicine—is inseparable from its behavioral state. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) defines animal welfare by an animal’s ability to express normal behaviors, among other criteria. A physically healthy animal housed in a barren environment, deprived of social contact or opportunities to forage, hunt, or play, cannot be considered to have good welfare. Its resulting abnormal behaviors, such as feather-plucking in parrots or tail-biting in pigs, are clinical signs of psychological suffering. Modern veterinary science therefore extends its purview beyond curing disease to preventing suffering, which requires designing environments and management practices that promote behavioral health. This is the essence of “preventive behavioral medicine.” Whether advising a farmer on enriching pigsties or teaching a dog owner how to manage separation anxiety, the veterinarian acts as a guardian not just of biological function, but of the animal’s entire subjective experience.
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