Across
the globe, animals without the ability to defend themselves are being tortured
on a daily basis in the name of science. Scientists take these animals, force
them to live in substandard conditions (most commonly small cages and boxes),
and then abuse them repeatedly in every way: mentally, physically, and
emotionally. These animals are helpless and defenseless, forced to endure the
pain until meeting their inevitable death, for after they have served their
purpose, they are not released or rehabilitated, but rather just euthanized or decapitated. Their remains are then used for further
scientific observation, as they rip open the animals to observe what havoc
they’ve been able to wreak on their internal organs. Not only are these
practices inhumane and reprehensible, they are rarely accurate and cause more
harm than good. Because the consequences of continuing animal testing are so reproachable
and frequently inaccurate, it is immoral for us to continue these failed
experiments, no matter how well intentioned.
One of the most disconcerting
theories concerning animal testing is the idea that because many animals are so
similar to us, we can practice scientific experiments on them without having to
practice on humans, while maintaining similar results. However, this brings
into question two important factors. Initially, while many animals, most notably
gorillas, have anatomical structures very similar to humans, there are still
major differences between the species that cause vast rifts in scientific data.
For example, since 1984 over one hundred and fifty chimpanzees have been
injected with the HIV virus in order to study its effects. Unfortunately, it
only developed within the members with already weakened immune systems, and
even then it was not similar enough to the human HIV symptoms to prove any sort
of explicit evidence. In fact, of the multitudes of animals tested, only one
showed symptoms that demonstrated any type of correlation with humans
(Anderegg). The second concern is that because animals are so similar to us
that we are able to test on them and reasonably assume that some evidence will
correlate with humans, it should therefore be accepted that they are similar
enough to humans to experience the same type of pain and discomfort a human
would feel. This shows how vastly unethical it is to torture animals who have
been proven countless times to feel the same pain we as humans do. In essence,
the only difference between animal testing and human testing is that animals do
not have the ability to fight back. Maybe rather than testing on helpless
animals, the cruel scientists should attempt to experiment on each other. The
results would be more accurate, as they would be practicing on the same
species, and the specimens being experimented upon would be volunteers, not
forced participants.
One may argue that animal testing is
necessary because many believe that losing the life of a rodent or feline is
less tragic than losing the life of a human. In addition, according to American
Association for Laboratory Animal Science, “the short life span of research
animals allows scientists to study them throughout the entire life cycle – and
even through several generations – within a short period of time.” In addition,
observing animals in a laboratory allows researchers to control their
environment, including temperature, ventilation, and other factors. This gives
scientists a more in-depth perspective as to what causes certain diseases and
disorders, and also allows them to keep experimental variables to a minimum.
However, while that may be true on some levels, it still does not justify its
usage. The bottom line is that these animals are given no say as to their fate,
and are operated on as though they are somehow resistant to pain. The idea that
a scientist would inject an unknowing animal with a disease just to observe how
that animal will eventually wither and die is cruel and senseless. These
actions are blatantly unethical and need to be stopped immediately.
Another important factor to take
into account when observing animal testing is that animals do not maintain the
same social, ethical, hereditary, and mental norms as do humans. For instance,
one study was done in which animals were forcibly fed alcohol to see whether or
not they would develop an addition to it, signaling signs of alcoholism.
However, after nearly sixty years of studies, the results were inconclusive, as
very few of the animals seemed to want to drink more alcohol when they were not
required to do so (Anderegg). In
addition, the same source states that their “review of ten randomly chosen
animal models of human diseases did not reveal any important contributions to
human health.” The most horrifying news of all concluded that according to the
FDA, “a staggering 92% of all drugs found safe and therapeutically effective in
animal tests fail during human clinical trials due to their toxicity and/or
inefficacy, and are therefore not approved. Furthermore, over half of the mere
8% of drugs which do gain FDA approval must later be withdrawn or relabeled due
to severe, unexpected side effects.” With the millions of animals being put in
harm’s way on a daily basis, these results are horrifically subpar.
Overall, animal testing is an
inhumane and ineffective way at determining scientific breakthroughs with the
human body. Animals do not hold enough similarities to humans to be able to form
a distinct connection. In addition, the way these animals are treated during
the experiments is unnatural and unethical. Animals, just like humans, should
have the right to live on their own in peace without overpowering humans using
them for their experiments. With improvements in science in other areas, there
are now ways to genetically engineer cells, organs, and limbs to be
experimented upon without taking the life of an innocent creature. With all the
alternative options out there, it proves that we only continue to operate upon
animals in the name of convenience. However, this needs to change. Animal
testing is a horrific phenomenon that has gone too far, and now we must play
our part to stop it before it goes any further than it already has.
Works Cited
Anderegg,
Christopher, M.D., Ph.D. "A Critical Look at Animal Experimentation."
Medical Research Modernization Committee. N.p., June 2006. Web. 15 Apr.
2013. <http://www.mrmcmed.org/Critical_Look.pdf>.
"Animal
Testing in Depth." People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-experimentation/animal-testing-in-depth.aspx>.
"Use
of Animals in Biomedical Research." American Association for Laboratory
Animal Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.aalas.org/pdf/08-00007.pdf>.
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