Imagine walking past a street corner in Karachi and witnessing a dog being thrown from a balcony, or hearing the cries of a camel mutilated in Sanghar. These incidents are not rare anomalies. They are grim reminders of a systemic issue in Pakistan: animal cruelty. While compassion for the vulnerable is often selective in the country, animals in Pakistan, either domestic or framed, bear the burden of societal negligence and weak legal safeguards. The question is not only how widespread this cruelty is but why it continues largely unchecked despite public outrage and animal protection laws.

Globally, Pakistan ranks 14th in overall animal cruelty, according to VACI (Voiceless Animal Cruelty Act). While the country maintains relatively low production and moderate consumption of animal products, it performs poorly in legal protection and enforcement to improve animal welfare.

This creates a paradox where animals suffer disproportionately despite limited industrial exploitation. Therefore, to understand this problem, it requires an examination of how cruelty manifests, how societal habits contribute, and how legal frameworks fail to intervene effectively.

One of the main dimensions of cruelty arises from animal production and farming practices. Pakistan ranks 9th globally in “producing cruelty.” Each year, approximately 5.7 land-based animals are slaughtered per person, and there are about 3.4 farmed animals per person in the country. Most animal production remains small-scale and extensive, yet factory farming is emerging. This raises concerns about overcrowding, poor hygiene, lack of veterinary care to ensure animal health, and inhumane slaughter practices.

But beyond the numbers, these practices also inflict chronic stress and physical harm on animals. Large poultry or dairy farms often prioritize productivity over welfare, with little regard for the basic needs of these sentient beings. Although Pakistan has yet to reach the industrialized levels of cruelty seen in some Western countries, these emerging trends still risk systemic suffering if legal oversight and humane standards remain inadequate.

The second dimension is linked to dietary habits, which normalize the exploitation of animals. In Pakistan, 42% of the average diet is composed of land-based animal protein. It translates to roughly 27.3 grams of animal protein consumed per person per day. Cultural and religious traditions also shape these cruel practices, which give them strong social significance.

However, how........

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