What obligation does humanity have to the rest of the animal kingdom? How have we been affected by past extinctions?

What obligation does humanity have to the rest of the animal kingdom? How have we been affected by past extinctions, such as the passenger pigeons that the Old Man remembers once blanketed the sky?

We have an obligation to respect all creatures, protect them from senseless slaughter and suffering. If they are a food source we owe them a comfortable life and painless death. Otherwise I think we should respect them as part of a very fragile ecosystem. We are doing a terrible job, destroying their habitats, abusing them, hunting them for sport rather than sustenance etc.
I don’t have much faith in our ability to protect and preserve all animals, money and greed will always win.

Humanity's obligation to the animal kingdom is mighty. We should respect and care for the animals--wild and domestic. We see so much destruction going on all across the world and it is ruining habitats and killing animals--for greed, primarily.

As others have said as humans we have an obligation to protect and nurture the animal kingdom plus support at least emotionally those individual working with animals in this capacity voraciously. We must continue to protect and fortify their natural habitats.

We must do everything that we can to keep the animals of this world safe and healthy. We need them to keep our universe in balance and also because they are just a loving and entertaining part of our world!

If we do not look out for the welfare of all animals we are in danger of losing them. Between mans greed and climate change we are losing more species everyday. If man does not take care of this problem it will only get worse. And man is the creator of the problem.

Feeling like humanity has an obligation and acting on that obligation are two different things. I think our country and world have a dismal track record in protecting one another, nevermind animals and their habitats. As long as there is money to be made, it is easy to overlook our responsibilities in protecting our world and its creatures. A person who advocates for animals has a different set of values than a person who wants a stuffed lion in his game room. I also think that if a person is hungry, he will be less concerned with where birds live and see the trees they nest in as as a way to put food in his belly. There is a large population of climate change deniers and those who oppose the regulation in business practices that could protect our environment. A zoo keeper makes less money than the owner of a mining company-and sadly, it is the person with the money who gets the audience of policy makers and wins court cases.

Woody had a close up, personal experience with two amazing creatures. He saw first hand how they behaved when they felt safe. He saw them recognize danger and react to it. He experienced them defending the people they cared about. All of this strengthened his belief that an animal isn’t just an animal. And Old Man gave him the permission he needed to fully act on those beliefs.

Well said, acstrine! Every organism on this planet is so interconnected. What happens to one affects so many others without our really understanding all of the implications. Just look at how quickly the various strands of a virus, a living organism, spread & wreaked havoc throughout the world during the pandemic. Whether it be the dwindling population of bees due to the use of pesticides, coyotes (& many other species) losing their natural habitat to human encroachment & development, sea turtles fighting for survival in changing ocean temperatures & pollution, or gorillas (tigers, elephants, etc) from poaching, the impact of human "connection" has been devastating. Yet, even the lesser known plant & animals that are endangered play a role in the life cycles of other species. The author of West with Giraffes clearly delineated the perspective of many who look at animals as only there to support the needs of humans either through work, food, or to provide a source of income to them. Unfortunately, until the majority of humans begin to believe that there is a more encompassing reason for the diversity of the planet, we stand the risk of losing much.

Humanity has a HUGE obligation to protect the animal kingdom and the planet we all inhabit together, because humans are the sole species that are destroying it all! There is no other species that the planet can rely on, but I have a very depressing view of where we are headed that I don't want to expand on in this chat--I'm enjoying everyone's comments too much!

We all have responsibility for protecting and caring for the animals in our world, even if it is through the voting process. I’m reading a book that talks about environments for trees in which a man who documents change calls humans the predators. Animals, plants, and humans are all interconnected.

We have an obligation to protect all species. If one subscribes to Judeo-Christian thought, humanity is charged with stewardship of the earth and all of its flora and fauna. So many adherents repeat that God gave man dominion over the earth, but they fail to realize that with that dominion comes the responsibility to care for the earth, not rape it until it is can no longer sustain life.

I am so fearful for the earth's future and especially since most can't see that if we destroy our world it won't matter that our pocketbooks are full of money.

I think that more and more of humanity is beginning to understand that everything is connected--that means humans, plants, animals, etc. Of course we have a responsibility to be careful stewards of all life on our planet.

We are learning more and more about the close connection between human and animal. Woody knew and felt the emotional connection he had back on his farm, yet while driving the giraffes, he saw up close that animals have emotions, feelings, moods. and care for humans. We share this earth and each of us has a responsibility to care for every creature.