Litter (animal) and space, leaving the weakest young, or runts, to die through lack of care. In the wild, only a small percentage, if any, of the litter may survive to maturity, whereas for domesticated animals and those in captivity with human care the whole litter almost always survives. Kittens and puppies are in this group. Carnivores, rodents, and pigs usually have litters, while primates and larger herbivores usually have singletons. Litter (animal) A litter is the live birth of multiple offspring at one time in animals from the same mother and usually from one set of parents, particularly from three to
Wild animal suffering nature would be either unethical, unfeasible, or both. In his autobiography, Charles Darwin acknowledged that the existence of extensive suffering in nature was fully compatible with the workings of natural selection, yet maintained that pleasure was the main driver of fitness-increasing behavior in organisms. Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins challenged Darwin's claim in his book "River Out of Eden", wherein he argued that wild animal suffering must be extensive due to the interplay of the following evolutionary mechanisms: From this, Dawkins concludes that the natural world must necessarily contain enormous amounts of animal suffering as an inevitable consequence of Darwinian evolution.