Abstract

Firstly, this chapter offers a historical analysis of the animal welfare and animal protection legislation in Brazil. Although the Brazilian Constitution brings an important rule which determines the duty of public power to protect animals against cruelty, this is usually interpreted in the sense of conferring just an indirect protection to animals, i.e., as a way of promoting the dignity of human existence. This opens a dangerous window to practices that explore animals as things and property. The authors then argue for a different, yet plausible, interpretation of that Constitutional rule: it is possible to claim that, according to the Brazilian Constitution, animals are not mere things, they are subjects of right, and entitled to freedom from cruelty. Finally, they examine bills in the Brazilian Legislative that aim to change the status of animals.