IOW, I am in no way an animal rights activist.
However, I do believe that animals have souls. I also believe that their souls will enter Heaven when they die.
Quote
1. Why do they feel pain?
Do you mean physical or emotional?
Physical would be because they have a nervous system.
Emotional would be a different story.
Amimals that have been domesticated have learned to trust or not trust humans.
I have a 3 month old kitten who lives indoors. She and I play a lot. She knows that if she uses her claws I will swat her and then ignore her. She wants to be played with and she doesn't like the discomfort of a swat. She knows that she can trust me to play with her, pet her, feed her, give her fresh water and a clean kitty box.
There are two kittens that are about the same age as my kitten. They live outdoors. They are wild. When I come outside, they run in fear of the unknown. They've never learned to trust me. All they know about my house is that its a great place to catch mice and gophers and that there is food and water for them. They don't know that I set out the food and water for them. However, I'm guessing they are litter mates, they seem to trust each other and they defend each other.
BTW- Infants inutereo feel physical pain also.
Quote
2. Why do dogs dream?
The same reason why newborn babies and adults dream. All creatures dream because of brain wave activity. The brain does not cease to function simply because we are asleep. When our brain stops functioning, we die.
Quote
3. Why do animals show fear, and the need for self preservation?
God-given instincts.
At birth, humans rely heavily on instinct too.
Quote
4. How do animals sense good and bad people?
Excellent question, however, animals aren't always right about that.
My ex-inlaws were prejudiced. They owned a dog that only attacked African Americans. They didn't train the dog that way, but I'm sure the dog could sense the difference in the way they treated people of different skin colors. They lived in a neighborhood that was mostly African Americans. The dog didn't even wake them up when a couple of white guys came in one night and robbed them. That dog was wrong.
Back to the kitties in my yard. They sense that I'm bad. They sense that about all people. Those kitties have no reason to fear me at all. In fact, if they would trust me to befriend them, I would make their lives much better and safer by taking them to the vet and caring for them in other ways. But, they sense danger because I'm human. [/color]