The stance of "caution and respect", as you put it, is not without its perils. If we accept that animals are conscious, the amount of laws we'd have to put in

The stance of "caution and respect", as you put it, is not without its perils. If we accept that animals are conscious, the amount of laws we'd have to put in place to protect them would very likely have lasting detrimental impacts on the quality of life for the world's poorest peoples. Given that we know humans to be conscious, I think we must err on the side of protecting humans first and foremost, even if that means to the possible detriment of other potentially conscious entities.