Anthropocentrism versus pathocentrism - On the integration of animal protection into the system of safeguarding basic democratic rights

Modern animal protection laws must be firmly rooted in a decisive pathocent ric fundamental declaration. In accordance with this, it is not a case of p rotecting human interests concerning a particular way of treating animals b ut rather to protect animals from the exploitation interests of humans. In order to attain a balance between animal protection and the laws pertaining to animal use, the regulations governing pathocentric animal protection mu st rest on a legal foundation backed up by constitutional law. In the final instance, a statutory framework either in the form of an objective legal o bligation - or better still - in the form of subjective-legal animal protec tion must be considered. The latter solution has the advantage that the law enforcement deficits of the authorities responsible for animal protection may be supplemented by the fiduciary safeguarding of animal rights by a thi rd party.