A US scholar has claimed animals should be given the right to vote.
Dogs could be given the right to vote under a scholar's proposal
Ioan-Radu Motoarca, a professor in the philosophy department at New Jersey's Rowan University, has proposed the idea of a voting system that allows animals to have their say on matters that affect them in a new paper.
Professor Motoarca - who acknowledges that his idea "sounds preposterous" - argues that the animal voting system should involve appointed representatives to take part in polls on behalf of the creatures.
He said: "Accordingly, most authors who have touched on the issue dismiss it in a few words as obviously absurd.
"However, I will argue that we can understand this idea as a natural outcome of our fundamental democratic commitments.
"Consequently, I believe governments should recognise a political right to vote for at least certain categories of animals."