There is an imbalance in comparative cognition such that over-attribution of mental capacities to animals is treated as far more problematic than under-attribution

However, the dictum regarding the need to avoid anthropomorphism is also a philosophical assumption embedded in comparative cognition and, as such, it can be questioned. It has been argued, for instance, that a blanket ban against the attribution of human-like qualities to animals would beg the question by assuming that said qualities are indeed uniquely human (Fitzpatrick 2017a). Frans de Waal (1999) uses the term “anthropodenial” to refer to the a priori rejection of the possibility that human