Poll: Do animals have free will?

[Rakkana]

Kinda depends on the individual to be honest.
Instinct is a hell of a lot stronger with other animals than humans.
This doesnt mean they cant think. Merely that listening to their Instinct takes priority.

Say an animal smells 3 different types of food: apples, oranges and pears. It can eat all 3 safely and are all equal distance away.

But this animal likes the taste of apples better so it goes for the apples.

Is this free will?

Are all animals capable of preference?

OT:My sisters hamster certainly likes carrots more than anything else we give it.

Are ALL animals capable of preference.

 

[tomtom94]

Animals are capable of free will - though it must be said they are controlled far more by instinct than humans are.

 

[quiet_samurai]

Like free to roam about and come and go as they please? Then yes, obviously.

But then again, to have free will and consciously make decisions concerning themselves, one has to have self awareness. And only certain types of animals are actually self aware on an intellectual level. The others all operate on mostly genetic and survival instinct.

 

[monstersquad]

Animals DO NOT have free will. Free will indicates the ability to freely distinguish your behavior between what your instinct drives you to, and what you've learned above and beyond that instinct.

Some animals have the ability to learn free will from human beings, but even then they usually need that person to command them to act appropriately.

But I personally would relinquish my own free will, to have the animalistic freedom of action/existence.

 

[maddawg IAJI]

Well, considering that a house cat lays around the house all day while stray-cats are constantly looking for food, I'd say no. They will act based on their enviorment. A house cat, even if it was the offspring of a stray, will lounge around the house if it is fed at proper intervals since it has no need to look for food.

So I would say yeah. Thought this is just from knowledge based on what I've seen.