I am brand new here and was looking for something else...ooh shiny...and would like to weigh in on the OP's question. I will not claim to be well read, and I do not, by any means, have all the answers, but I do have some opinions on this from a "theist" point of view.
First, let me say that atheists are entitled to their view of facts and science. Tangible physical evidence is certainly a strong argument, but to forego any arguing on that point, I'll grant that there could have been an evolutionary process in conjunction with Bible doctrine. However (there's always one of those, right?), I would like to say as an author of stories, as a "creator" of sorts, I have the ability to start my stories anywhere. A 38-year-old woman walking into a grocery store, for example, my readers have no clue of her history and background other than what I reveal about her. So, that being said, I will ask those who are avid evolutionists to grant, for the sake of the current argument only, the possibility that God created the world in aged form because as a creator, that was His vision. I'm not asking for belief, simply establishing "neutralish ground" for the sake of addressing animal cruelty and sin from a Biblical standpoint and attempting to reconcile a loving God in all of this.
I love animals. I've rescued many, and my heart goes out to their hurts. I also do not have an ivory tower background. I won't go into my past, but I know very well how cruel the world can be.
All that said, Adam and Eve sinned (it doesn't matter HOW perfect people sinned for this argument, so I won't address that here), thus bringing about a fallen race and cursed environment. Let's look at quarantine in illness briefly. The illness is contained so it doesn't spread beyond the quarantine area, but it would be awful to destroy everyone because they were exposed to the disease. And the results often bring about immunities. And, because this is a "theist" point of view, I'll go out on a limb and argue that God didn't wipe them out because He wanted them to have that right to choose, and still establish that immunization against any other "disease" of the type. That's my summary of my view of the fall. Why this story and not one without all this mess? To be honest, I don't have a clue, but again, irrelevant for this topic.
Because land, sea, animals, vegetation, AND mankind are now "under quarantine" all are cursed with this mess. We, as the beginning of the sickness, have to watch nature become what we have become. We opened the door to the spread of infection. Survival of the fittest, rejecting the caregiver on one hand, becoming completely reliant on the other. Animals have been given the nature of the beast, so to speak, and every day we have to see what we have done. Humans have to witness the suffereing they caused when they in essence said to their "author" "We don't like your plan. We can do better." We've seen this in people whose bodies had devolved immunities to diseases still carrying it and nearly or completely wiping out groups of people who had never been exposed. Without exposing all of the world around to the disease, it certainly could have ended similarly. It would certainly explain extinction of species and the flood; our "disease" brought about death to all (again not ready to tackle this in any more depth).
It breaks my heart that animals suffer, that people suffer, but I am a person of faith, even after going through my own little version of "hell" in this life. I struggled with my own inner debate between God and atheism for nearly 20 years. Do I blame God? Nope. Do I believe he has the power to change all this? Yep. Do I believe that animals should suffer? No. And I can make no claims apart from that.
Has nature, in reflecting the disease humans brought into the world become a threat to that which often threatens? Absolutely! I read an article recently about plants developing resistance to chemicals meant to enhance "domestic crops" and kill wild crops so much so that those "annoying" wild crops are threatening to take over some areas. This pain and damage in evolution that has been expressed, not only serves as a violent and painful reminder of how insane nature, including the human kind, truly is, it also serves as a defense mechanism against that often greatest threat, usually man himself.
I an not adept Biblically to quote scripture on this, and I'm certainly no scientist, but I believe God feels anger over the condition every day, but unlike me, who would get angry and burn the whole book and start from scratch, God is extremely patient and is letting this "quarantine" go on so that when the time comes, everyone will either be eternally quarantined or be immunized against further disease of this kind, and there will be no ground to argue that our way was better when the quarantine is finally lifted. I don't have an answer to reconcile why He would plan this plot line, but being a creative type myself, I can't help but believe there is a reason bigger than I can see in my limited scope of all of this.
I don't know what happens to animals in death, I'm certainly not God, but I know that if I care so strongly about the works I create, the One who made me does as well. I, personally, need that strong hand of God, but that doesn't mean I can attack my fellow man for different beliefs, and it does mean I have a responsibility to love my fellow man and the nature I am supposed to nurture and care for.
The characters in my books don't know what and why things go the way they go, but I do. They see that place they are now, and can look at what lies behind them, I know the whole story at any given moment.
I can only believe that God is the same, that He is looking on all of it and taking a deep breath and saying "I know it looks like a mess from here to here, but the end is so beautiful that I wouldn't change a thing!" And it always helps to remember, the end of that story of the 38 year-old woman I mentioned at the start of this is not the true end of the story. We don't know what came before for sure, nor what comes after because we neither experienced the beginning, nor have we come to the end, nor did we create this story in which we live.
The cruelty we see in nature should serve as a reminder of our responsibility toward not only suffering animals, but also our fellow man, no matter what our beliefs.
And that's all I'll say on the matter...ooh...shiny!
