GEN1189 [T]hat compassion for animals is a quality inherent in the righteous person, is articulated most famously in the book of Proverbs: “The righteous person knows the needs [nefesh, literally [“soul”] of his animal” Proverbs 12:10. The same conception seems to be operative in [this verse], where Abraham’s servant Eliezer determines that Rebecca—a paradigm of the good wife—is a suitable spouse for Isaac when she provided water not only for him, but also, without prompting, for his camels. We also find it in rabbinic texts, such as Midrash Tanhuma (Noah 5), where both Noah and Joseph are deeded righteous man “because they nourished creatures.” Perhaps most strikingly, Exodus Rabbah 2:2 relates that both Moses and David--the paradigmatic male leadership of Israel—were tested by God through how they functioned as shepherds. (By Aaron S. Gross, "Jewish Animal Ethics") OXFORD 423