Parshas Ki Seitzei includes many laws which would seem to imply Hashem is an animal-lover. For example, we may not take eggs from a nest while the mother is there, nor may we hitch together a donkey and an ox whose strengths are mismatched. Further, it is pointed out that an ox chews its cud while a donkey doesn’t, so the donkey is liable to be upset that it sounds like the ox is being fed but he isn’t.
However, the Gemara in Brachos 33b explains that Hashem is not taking mercy on individual animals. Rather, these are His decrees. The Ramban goes to great lengths to explain that Hashem’s focus in laws regarding being compassionate to animals are not about the animals at all, but rather about us! The purpose is to refine people and train them to be thoughtful, compassionate, and sensitive.
The reason some animals are kosher and some are not is because those impure animals act in ways unbecoming a human so we are to keep our distance. Slaughtering animals is fine as it serves a human need, however, we are commanded to perform shechita in a specific way which is most “humane.”
Indeed, the idea of acting “humanely” is not because animals are people and people are animals, but because as people we are to act better than animals which simply act on instinct and self-interest. We are to act on Hashem’s guidance and hold ourselves to a higher standard. These mitzvos teach us that Hashem does have mercy on His creatures – on Mankind, who cannot exist unless he learns how to be caring and considerate of the rest of his species. These mitzvos reinforce that the way to do that is to practice whenever he can.
