I don't know if an animal can be truly evil. I have known dogs that are out of their minds aggressive though. Some dogs and other domestic animals have been too inbred or just have really bad lines. That can result in horrible things. Both physical and mental. "Rage" was a real problem in some dog breeds. Animals do have their own personalities though. Another problem is how the animal was treated. Abused animals can be unpredictable in their behavior.

I know some animals who have been abused by their owner, or a previous owner, or maybe the shelter they were in, will lash out if provoked, or if scared. I don't think an animal is capable of being 'evil' though. I think theyre capable of being scared and attacking in self defence if they feel threatened.

And I do think animals have feelings and personalities as well! It's not unheard of, for a pet to get sad if their owner passed, or if their pet friend passed, etc...

This is really interesting, actually. I've never thought about animals being good or evil or having morals. I don't like when people have no empathy or sympathy for injured animals and say "It's just an animal." They have feelings. They have personalities and they learn and adapt and do incredible things. They are more........ simple, I'd say, but I'm able to think about things differently and appreciate things. I mean, domestic animals like cats or dogs are sometimes raised within a closed home, yet they are still able to communicate with other animals. Take your dog to the dog park for the first time and it'll sniff butts and stuff. Cats have language that we can't hear. Is it instinct? We don't have that. We're the only species that needs to be taught these things, language, movement, basic actions. I'm not sure how infants survived way back when, they tumble around and make noises and can't understand when momma says stay put or stay quiet. They also suck their own feet which, while adorable to watch, is incredibly unhygienic! Germs!
But yeah, I can't look at our cats and say that they don't have souls or personality or individuality. Jessica is a posh, arthritic sh*t with dainty little cutesy paws that only loves my dad and Annie is just weird. She shoves her head against my arm when she wants petting and she'll walk in front of me just to stick her butt in my face. I once looked over and she was sitting with her butt off the counter. She's adorable and I love both of them. Jessica's getting old and, since I've grown up with her, it's going to hit me hard to know that she's gone.

Sorry, off subject. I would say that how an animal was raised might have a lot to do with it. I mean, if a dog is raised to fight, it'll take a lot to teach it that it doesn't need to be afraid or aggressive. Abuse and neglect hit both animals and people hard.

they do. we're ignorant. the more we learn about them, the more complex we realize they are.
i've never looked at them like husks. i hate that people do.

Animals aren't evil. At least 99% of them technically can't be because their brains aren't developped enough.
Humans can be evil because our brain grew out of proportions.
To be evil, you need to :
- Be able to read what others want/feel/need
- Also understand what you need in others
- Understand that what others feel/need/want isn't the same as what you feel/need/want
- Chose to purposely do the contrary of what they feel/need/want, just to get in their way

To many steps for their brains. Maybe apes and dophins can do something ressembling evil, but most animals definitely can't. I know animals can be very smart, but they just don't have these brain functions.

I jusppose that dog was just very misunderstood.

LylaHayden wrote:A true sociopath is quite rare. Psychopaths however are not as rare. A sociopath is born that way, a psychopath is made. Could an animal become a psychopath? Yes. I do believe that. Enough nasty stuff happening to an animal or a person and it is possible.

Isn't it the other way around? I thought a psychopath was born with their frontal lobe being relatively inactive, or something like that. Sociopathy is nurtured in the environment. Correct me if I am wrong.

We are all just biological machines that follow our programming. No such thing as evil. We all just are who and what we are.