I am not a dairy cow, a dog, a guinea pig or a chicken. Rights are a legal contract between a government and its citizenry. As a human being and a woman, I am capable of living up to that contract by practicing my rights and living up to my responsibilities as a citizen. Animals can’t do this which is why they don’t have rights. That doesn’t mean that we don’t have responsibilities towards the animals we keep. I’m all for providing animals with environments that allow them to act out their natural behaviors while keeping them healthy and well-fed, be they livestock or pets. Based on that standard, Temple Grandin has rightly pointed out that most beef cattle spend their lives in such environments and have better lives than most pet dogs.