Animal rights activists aim to give animals basic rights and, as they say, release them from all “exploitation conditions”. That is why the movement or at least a part of it is called “animal liberation movement”.
A distinction is often drawn between “animal rights”, “animal welfare”, “species conservation” and “nature conservation”, even if the borders are sometimes not quite clear.
Only superficial. Many animal welfare activists, like animal rights activists, for example, refuse factory farming, but animal rights activists do this for other reasons.
The opponents of animal rights declare that animals can not participate in the legal system because they are not able to make moral decisions and to respect the rights of others. In addition, detractors see the danger of calling into question the universal human rights.
If human rights were transferred to animals, all people would have to become vegans, which would lead to major nutritional problems, at least in many poorer areas where nutrients and plant proteins are not available to a sufficient degree.
If you are vegetarian, do not eat meat, what just mostly includes fish. Vegans do not eat any animal products at all, including, for example, eggs and milk products.
Of course you can also eat vegan, without adhering to the animal rights ideology. Presumably even the fewest vegans support the position of animal rights activists.