Animal Experimentation

Ellen Olis
Hour 6
Mr. Heugh
3/13/15

Animal Experimentation
Burned, crippled, injected, lashed, decapitated, and poisoned, these are only a few
things that are inflicted on the animals inside a medical lab. Animals like these are
tortured for the daily drugs we use. Even with all the alternative paths and the money we
spend on the experimentations we keep testing these animals. Animal experimentation for
medical purposes is inhumane and should be eradicated.
Animals endure physical, mental and psychological abuse from scientists while
cooped in medical labs. These animals are poked and prodded at nonstop during their
weeks, months and even years worth of trials. They are held in cages and sometimes
isolated from any interaction with other animals for extensive periods of time. They have
no rights, allowing doctors to anything to them because it is for medical purposes.
When surveyed ten out of ten people agreed that animals have little or no rights in labs
and are abused. Medical research can involve highly invasive procedures during which
animals can be infected with debilitating diseases, painful tumors, genetically modified
physical deformities, inflicted wounds, broken limbs, are subjected to surgical brain
damage or given organ failure (Medical). Animals have no rights while in labs, enabling
doctors to do whatever to the animals because of research. The animals in these labs do
not deserve this torture; they deserve a giving life and not a hurting one. Too many
animals are subjected to these tests and trials. Around 115 million animals are used
globally in laboratory experiments. Some of that research will be toxicity testing for
industrial or agro-chemical products (Medical). They are testing your fellow known
friends and domesticated animals with toxic substances, which can be fatal. Those
scientists do not just use farm animals they use our friends that billions of people own.
They test Mice, rabbits, cats, dogs, horse, birds and non-human primates. They are
allowed the right to perform all those terrible things on a cat or a dog. Would you want
that used on your pet or your friends pet? A single pesticide can require fifty experiments
and twelve thousand animals (About). Those pesticides are some of the ones we own. On
top of that, Experimenters are not required to provide pain relief (Animal). That is like
giving you surgery without the anesthesia, you would not do it to other humans, then why

do it to other animals? How we accept this in our lives is terrible, animal experimentation
should be abolished, it is an excuse for animal abuse, and it uses way too many animals
and does not even prove to be effective for humans.
Humans look, think, act and work differently than most animals, then why trust
animal genes to solve all of our problems? Animals are too different from us to test; they
have different anatomy, metabolism, genetics and pharmacology. More than half of
people, when surveyed, were unsure if the drugs tested on animals would truly work.
That is not oodles of people thinking this is effective. In fact those trials are not effective,
ninety-two percent of experimental drugs that succeed in animal trials fail in human ones
(11). We test these animals, yet when it comes down to it their trials were worth nothing.
We shouldnt kill a life for no reason, if the animals experiments do not work on humans
most of the time, then do not use the animals. Three hundred million people suffer from
asthma and even with fifty years worth of animal research, no good treatments have come
out of those trials (About). We have worked on millions and millions of animals, to figure
out nothing further about asthma. That is a waste of time and lives, you are killing more
lives than you are helping. There is a great chance that cures used on animals and failed,
will not be tested on humans (Pros). Even if the drugs may work on humans, they do not
want to take the risk. If you are going to test these drugs to see if they are compatible
with humans, then do not test an animal, because the common drugs we use have been
tested on animals and when tested failed. Common drugs like; Penicillin; kills guinea
pigs, Aspirin; kills mice, rats, guinea pigs, causes birth defects in pigs and monkeys and
Morphine; stimulates goats, cats and horses (Medical). Drugs such as those failed in
animal trials. We lose time and money to get nothing but an educated guess on whether
the drug will work on humans. Exempt the animals from this torture and use a more
compatible way to test drugs. Stop wasting your time killing innocent lives and use a
safer more compatible alternative.
Alternatives have proven to be more compatible and successful to medical testing.
We use and abuse animals when there are heaps of alternatives. There will always be
another option when it comes to taking a life. Ten out of ten agreed, when surveyed that
there are other alternatives. People know that there is another way to go, and they are
willing to change for the better. Alternatives include; Ultra-sensitive micro dosing, which

provides vital human metabolism data in early phase drug development; non-invasive
brain research using brain imaging techniques; computer modeling with threedimensional virtual human organs and body systems and cell culture techniques to
produce disease models based on human cells and tissue (Medical). There are so many
alternatives that we can use besides animals. Instead of using your fuzzy friends, go with
the safer, kinder and more importantly, more accurate way to experiment. Human based
cell research, cadavers, patient simulators and computer models are known to be more
reliable, precise and less expensive (Animal). When using human based cells, cadavers
and simulators you are hitting closer to home, you are using alternatives that are more
based on what humans will react to, than animals. When performing a test pregnancy
drugs, scientists kill the mother and test her fetus (11). Now with the latest technology
none of this pain and agony is needed. Scientists are able to perform pregnancy tests
using blood samples (Animal). All tests can be changed to alternative options, using the
different ways to experiment. If you revoke animal experimentation, there will still be
other better and less expensive options.
Animals are expensive; most times the animals will cost more than most of the
alternatives. Animals take money to house, feed, and hydrate, some more than others.
Scientists test animals at the cost of hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions of
dollars per substance (Cost). On average they spend two to four million dollars per twospecies lifetime (Cost). That is plethora of money that is proven ineffective. We should
not waste our low economy money and government tax on a procedure that is
unsuccessful. Computer modeling techniques are lightning fast and are able to perform
using robotics at a lower cost than animals (Cost). There are alternatives out there that
save lives, and are affordable. When asked given the statement, Animal experimentation
costs the country millions all ten people surveyed agreed. We are paying for results not
worth our while, ban animal experimentation and it will save money, and end these
unnecessary tests.
Animal experimentation is atrocious; personally I feel it should be eradicated. Do
not let animals be burned, crippled, injected, lashed, decapitated, and poisoned inside
labs. Save your small friends from abuse and struggle. Go with the more effective and
money saving alternative.