If I may say:

Quote from the initial reply:

“Yet, I truly don't understand how anyone in their right mind can feel nothing when viewing something so horrifically cruel towards such a being?”

My experience/ my journey:

At that point, it is cultural and even environmental. As a young boy in Mali and from a Muslim family, I remember my uncle who was a university student explaining to us the group of onlooking kids, about the different parts of the lamb, once its throat was ceremoniously slit according to the kosher rites and for religious holiday celebration.

He was surgical about it and proceeding as learned from his biology professor. Regardless, it would look very odd for anyone to project those feelings on a random animal. However, there are cases of individuals not wanting to eat the flesh of the animal if for instance prior to its killing they felt a connection, while it was staying with the family. I know of personal stories between relatives and animals (not pets).

But cruelty to animals is widely condemned, to go along with the religious need for a "humane" death, accompanied by words of prayer to the dying animal, in consideration. Everyone is aware that they feel pain, but there are contexts for justifying human motivations.

Anecdotally, many years ago when I visited Mali, I traveled through the regions, following the recommendations by my aunt to go see an advanced soothsayer or shaman. It was pretty much just a very restricted group of elders in a particular village. I recall the last leg of the journey in a canoe across a pristine river with sparkling water as it reflected the sun rays by the zenith.

They were still holding on to the authentic and non-exploitative possibilities of these practices. I was called into the hut where three of them were sitting, as they were about to get started to tell me about my life and future, they had to first sacrifice a certain type chicken (based on feathering) right then and there in the hut as part of the process of divination.

However, they stopped short from doing it. They said that they can sense that killing this bird is something that does not agree with me, and therefore they cannot be of help. Even though I did not get service I was impressed by their competence.

Now, even here on ISY, there are some rare documentaries I struggle to watch. When I think about the pain in the world, I freeze and feel gloomy. As a child in this particular regard and in the cultural context, I didn’t have access to certain aspects of my subconscious in a deliberate or exercised manner.

I have to also live with the fact that I may have for similar reasons killed even other human beings!

So it is not easily said.