She has studied octopuses and their close relatives since 1978, and has done extensive field research into the cephalopod mind. What do you think an octopus is experiencing when it's being cut into pieces and eaten alive? The organisation claims that octopuses, which are considered to be among the most intelligent invertebrates, can feel pain in the way that mammals do. Of course they do, just as much as you would if you were eaten alive! Octopuses are eaten alive in several countries around the world, including the USA. I hoped that she could offer greater insight into pain and sentience in octopus terms. There's everything to learn about them. But there was a discussion I had with PETA about someone who was frying octopuses alive in New York, and I was asked to comment on that. What I would do is put it in the freezer. Octopus are being held down, cut up alive, and then served in sushi restaurants. In Seoul, South Korea, there are entire restaurants centered around dining on octopuses whose arms continue to squirm when they're placed on your plate—and as they wriggle down your throat. Do Octopuses Feel Pain? That is a living thing, pain or not it is conscious and most likely doesn't want or like to be eaten alive. But don't feel TOO sorry for her . If you look at us, most of our neurons are in our brain, and for the octopus, three-fifths of its neurons are in its arms. Restaurants in New York give customers the chance to “ pick belly sashimi out of (the lobster’s) still moving body.” In China, drunken shrimp, or qiang xia, is a delicacy that involves clawed river shrimp soaked in baijiu or another spirit. Understanding that if there's a crab under a rock and you got it, there might not be another crab for that rock for a while. Live octopus is served at about a … I have also seen octopuses unscrewing jar lids easily to get a small crab inside. We don’t yet know whether oysters feel pain, but if they do, they represent a very large number of suffering animals—a single meal might require the deaths of 12 or more oysters. The octopus has a nervous system which is much more distributed than ours. Not only can they remember where home is, but they can go out and hunt, come back, and then go out the next day and hunt in a different place. They can anticipate a painful, difficult, stressful situation—they can remember it. They're wonderful animals. I find it difficult to have any sympathy for people who choke on a live animal that they're eating piece by piece. And, people do experience fear so great that it can cause them do die from the fear. I've talked to other people about this—there is cultural sensitivity, and there is suffering. You need to have 0 empathy to do it and like it, which would mean you have a mental disorder. The reaction is an automatic response to the sodium chloride, or salt, in the soy sauce. It's not just a sense of direction, it's a sense of where you've been. Are baby octopus really babies? Understanding that if there's a crab under a rock and you got it, there might not be another crab for that rock for a while. There is absolutely no doubt that they feel pain. MUNCHIES: Have you come across the practice of eating live octopus over the course of your research on cephalopods? The past couple posts have described some pretty severe experiments on octopuses, including: showing how octopus arms … In the U.S., Europe and around the world, it is common practice to eat oysters and lobsters alive. Do Octopuses Feel Pain? How can we account for differences in the perception of what constitutes cruelty between cultures? So it's a barbaric thing to do to the animal. Many do not realize that they do indeed feel extreme pain and in some countries they are tortured first and then eaten alive! But they really don't have the central nervous system to be, so to speak, making decisions and suffering. The recently deceased squid may lack a brain, but its muscle cells, which receive electrical commands, are still intact , NPR reports. So how does the squid "come back to life?" They use tools, and they'll think about what they want to do with something even before they do it. What would be the best way to kill an octopus quickly and with minimal pain to the animal? There's no doubt about it. One of them dug up a coconut shell and hauled it around with it, and when it got to the point where it wanted to rest, it picked up the shell, tucked itself inside of it, and went to sleep. If they stuck a shrimp on a block of ice until it's unreactive, it's probably less aware than it would be if you picked it out of the water and started chewing it from the tail up. . [T]he octopus, which you’ve been chopping to pieces, is feeling pain every time you do it. "I understand your emotional response but it's unconfirmed by fact." In your research, particularly with octopus, what was the most surprising evidence of anecdote you found about their intelligence or sense of sentience? I suspect that they're just throwing an octopus on a chopping block and cutting off pieces as they go, and they are absolutely causing that animal suffering. No animal deserves to be hacked to pieces while still alive. But, do octopuses experience would-be painful experiences the same way mice do? It's not just a sense of direction, it's a sense of where you've been. But in some corners of the world, there is less taboo assigned to eating the still-breathing. If they stuck a shrimp on a block of ice until it's unreactive, it's probably less aware than it would be if you picked it out of the water and started chewing it from the tail up. We asked a cephalopod expert how it feels for an octopus who is on the receiving end. It's probable that the octopus's reaction to pain is similar to a vertebrate. The controversial practice of eating live animals is still popular in many parts of the world. But the octopus, which you've been chopping to pieces, is feeling pain every time you do it. They're fascinating. I know this from person experience and from what I've heard from others. After quite some deliberation, they decided that in terms of research, you should give consideration to cephalopods, including octopus and squid, but they did not include crustaceans. They can anticipate a painful, difficult, stressful situation—they can remember it. Are there any ways, short of medical sedation, that one could reduce the amount of suffering while still eating an animal alive? Are there any ways, short of medical sedation, that one could reduce the amount of suffering while still eating an animal alive? A video has been making the rounds of a woman in China who has a live octopus stuck to her face. Of eating an octopus alive, Dr. Jennifer Mather, an expert on cephalopods and a psychology professor at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, says the following: “ [T]he octopus, which you’ve been chopping to … The designations of welfare, cruelty, and simple squeamishness are not always clear-cut—especially in issues surrounding the types of animals that we don't hold particularly near and dear. This article originally appeared on MUNCHIES in December 2014. It’s just as painful as if it were a hog, a fish, or a rabbit, if you chopped a rabbit’s leg off piece by piece. To do this, octopus use a protein called protein acetylcholinesterase, or AChE. “If I was an octopus trying to be eaten alive I would have done the same. There's everything to learn about them. In Seoul, South Korea, there are entire restaurants centered around dining on octopuses whose arms continue to squirm when they're placed on your plate—and as they wriggle down your throat. These are intelligent animals with minds of their own, and I doubt they would enjoy being eaten. A 2010 article in The Guardian ignited heavy opinions for opening discussion about Copenhagen restaurant noma's dish of still-writhing langoustine; since, the issue has popped up here and there in editorials and YouTube videos. dining on octopuses whose arms continue to squirm. One of them dug up a coconut shell and hauled it around with it, and when it got to the point where it wanted to rest, it picked up the shell, tucked itself inside of it, and went to sleep. So, in most cases it would be painful, yes, and terrifying, but there can also be some protection from the experience, not always but sometimes. The only command issued by the octopus's brain is "FOOD NOW" -- the tentacle already knows what it needs to do in order to fulfill that goal without any further input from mission control. I have also seen octopuses unscrewing jar lids easily to get a small crab inside. If you've got pieces of arm, because there's so much local control, they might react to the painful stimuli that they get, but they're probably not exactly "feeling pain," because they're disconnected from the brain. Octopuses are sometimes eaten or prepared alive, a practice that is controversial due to scientific evidence that octopuses experience pain. They also have spatial memory. What do you think an octopus is experiencing when it's being cut into pieces and eaten alive? What I would do is put it in the freezer. She has studied octopuses and their close relatives since 1978, and has done extensive field research into the cephalopod mind. Rather than trying to reckon with apples and oranges (or spaniels and squids), I consulted cephalopod expert Jennifer Mather, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta and author of numerous studies on octopus and cephalopod sentience, including "Cephalopod consciousness: Behavioral evidence" and "Ethics and invertebrates: a cephalopod perspective." You just stick it in the freezer. Octopuses can feel pain, just like all animals. There is absolutely no doubt that they feel pain. In addition, fruit doesn't feel pain and you can eat plenty of that if eating plants is problem for you. She says, “There is absolutely no doubt that they feel pain. The fact is that many octopi have their tentacles cut off while they're still alive, that is torture, and I am not okay with torture. What's going on physically when their arms continue to move after they've been cut off? The octopus has a nervous system which is much more distributed than ours. That would be the quickest, easiest way to render an animal that might be conscious not conscious. There is absolutely no doubt that they feel pain. I hoped that she could offer greater insight into pain and sentience in octopus terms. Only someone with a mental disorder would do that. But there was a discussion I had with PETA about someone who was frying octopuses alive in New York, and I was asked to comment on that. You don't have to figure out exactly where the brain is, and you don't have to worry about an anaesthetic tainting the flavor of the meat. It's just as painful as if it were a hog, a fish, or a rabbit, if you chopped a rabbit's leg off piece by piece. But that doesn't mean that crustaceans can't experience the same pain stimuli, anticipation, and memory of painful events that an octopus does. She's in pain and crying, and it takes her 34 long seconds to pull it off. Short of cannibalism, the most controversial issues in meat-eating today are likely the consumption of dog meat—due to our social and sentimental attachments to the canine species—and the practice of eating live animals. How can we account for differences in the perception of what constitutes cruelty between cultures? Sometimes, they’re even eaten alive! The octopus has a nervous system which is much more distributed than ours. Crustaceans, cephalopods, and mollusks don't have any internal temperature regulation, so if you freeze them you can get them to the point where they're really not conscious. But goodness knows, I have eaten raw oysters and raw clams. I think it was the Hawaiians who used to bite down on the brain to kill it quickly. That would be the quickest, easiest way to render an animal that might be conscious not conscious. You just stick it in the freezer. I've talked to other people about this—there is cultural sensitivity, and there is suffering. By signing up to the VICE newsletter you agree to receive electronic communications from VICE that may sometimes include advertisements or sponsored content. What about other types of sea creatures—the live langoustine, for example, that caused waves for Copenhagen's Noma? Of all people, Julia Child had instructions for cutting the brain of a lobster to kill it before you boil it. But goodness knows, I have eaten raw oysters and raw clams. But in today's day and age, we get to see all the glorious FAIL! If you look at us, most of our neurons are in our brain, and for the octopus, three-fifths of its neurons are in its arms. Rather than trying to reckon with apples and oranges (or spaniels and squids), I consulted cephalopod expert Jennifer Mather, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta and author of numerous studies on octopus and cephalopod sentience, including "Cephalopod consciousness: Behavioral evidence" and "Ethics and invertebrates: a cephalopod perspective." The octopus has a nervous system which is much more distributed than ours. “[T]he octopus, which you’ve been chopping to pieces, is feeling pain every time you do it. Cephalopod expert Jennifer Mather, PhD explains that an octopus likely suffers tremendously while being cut up. Cultural live animal traditions. We asked a cephalopod expert how it feels for an octopus who is on the receiving end. Even though plants probable don't feel pain and most defiantly don't suffer from pain signals. dining on octopuses whose arms continue to squirm. There's an interesting situation because the European Union, over the last few years, looked at all of their animal welfare rules. There's no doubt about it. She added, “Octopus expert Dr. Jennifer Mather has stated that ‘There is absolutely no doubt that they feel pain,’ and explained that an octopus who is being eaten alive is in just as much pain as a pig, fish, or rabbit would be.” JUNG YEON-JE via Getty Images. I suspect that they're just throwing an octopus on a chopping block and cutting off pieces as they go, and they are absolutely causing that animal suffering. Octopus can feel pain and are aware of each hack into their sensitive tentacles. My thought is that if you had a whole octopus and tried to eat it, it would be a completely repellant situation because the octopus would try to climb out. They're fascinating. There's an interesting situation because the European Union, over the last few years, looked at all of their animal welfare rules. Not only can they remember where home is, but they can go out and hunt, come back, and then go out the next day and hunt in a different place. A 2010 article in The Guardian ignited heavy opinions for opening discussion about Copenhagen restaurant noma's dish of still-writhing langoustine; since, the issue has popped up here and there in editorials and YouTube videos. There's a wonderful video from some guys in Australia—there are several that have done this actually—they need someplace to hide while they rest. Of eating an octopus alive, Dr. Jennifer Mather, an expert on cephalopods and a psychology professor at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, says the following: “ [T]he octopus, which you’ve been chopping to pieces, is feeling pain every time you do it. You can give an animal a quick and minimally painful death before you eat it—at the least, you can destroy the brain. 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