Animal Testing

2/24/2019

Should animal testing (scientific specifically not commercial) be allowed?

There is an estimated 26 million animals used every year for testing. This testing includes medical, commercial (such as makeup) and other research based tests. Animals have been used to develop medical treatments that have been highly beneficial to humans but they have also been used for the far lesser cause of makeup testing.

Focusing on the medical testing, many medicines we have today required tests to be had on a living organism. Although legal human trials are conducted, usually animals trials must be conducted first. There are other options to this testing such as in vitro testing which occurs in a glass but the systems of living organisms are far more complex which allows for more definite results.

It is said that most every medical breakthrough in the past 100 years has occurred through animal testing. For example the discovery of insulin occurred because of testing done on dogs and the polio vaccine was also originally tested on animals. But animal testing is cruel and inhumane. The animals are put through things like forced feeding and inhalation, starvation, dehydration, infliction if wounds etc.

Another con in animal testing is that animals and humans are not the same. Because some tests do not ethically allow for human testing animals are used instead. But this can lead to many problems, such as in the 1950s when a sleeping pill passed through animals testing caused the deaths and deformities of thousands of babies.

So, what do you think? Is animal testing crucial enough to human medicine that it should be allowed? Is there another, safer, way that we can go about testing?

https://animal-testing.procon.org/#pro-01

37 Comments

Jesse B.

2/24/2019 02:02:30 pm

Sacrifices must be made for the sake of progress, especially in the case of science and medicine. For the most part, animals form the majority of sacrifices in this realm. There are millions of animals that are used for research, but the majority of those animals are rodents, fish, and birds, so very few large animals, like dogs, are tested on. Also, these creatures are being treated humanely, not only for their sake, but for results to remain consistent. Personally, I have investigated this subject little, but as long as the researchers are conduct tests in a humane fashion, I am fine with animal testing.

Rachel

2/24/2019 03:13:48 pm

Why does the animal's size make them any more or less right to be experimented on? (not to sound like a crazy animal rights advocate)
In addition, there are many locations where animal testing is not conducted in a humane manner. I do not agree with animal testing but if it is to remain, I think that there should be stricter regulations enforced regarding what exactly is being tested and how it is administered.

Katarina

2/24/2019 05:16:16 pm

I agree. While it may be harsh most people could care less what happens to rodents and that's probably why animal testing is still happening.

Sadie

2/24/2019 06:40:16 pm

Maybe not as much as smaller animals, but chimps are experimented on a lot as well. They are our closest relative. They have many of the same type of medical conditions and treatments. This also means that they are almost as much susceptible to true pain and sadness. Unlike other most other animals, they seem to have past memories, can experience grief and have future ambitions. That is why I agree with almost all testing except chimps and elephants.

Sadie

2/24/2019 06:42:14 pm

(Continuation...) They are the earth's second smartest animal and should be treated as such.

Rachel

2/24/2019 03:09:43 pm

I believe that animal testing is inhumane, but I recognize the impact that it has had on our medical advances throughout history. I think that by this point, we should be able to find another way to safely conduct experiments without having to run them on animals. It is cruel to inflict such things upon any animal, and as McKinlee pointed out, animals and humans are different anyway. The idea of vitro testing is interesting and I think that it should be developed further in order to save the health of animals. The other option is more human testing. Unfortunately, some of the tests could be dangerous. But, I think that if a person chooses to give consent to be experimented on then we cannot stop them. The only thing we can do then is thank them for their contribution to medical advancement.

Katarina

2/24/2019 05:14:48 pm

This is true humans can give their consent whether dangerous or not but animals can't.

Challis

2/24/2019 07:34:42 pm

Science should be more open to human volunteers as long as they know what they could possibly be getting themselves into. I feel like there would be many people that would actually be okay with doing something like that. Maybe enough to decrease animal testing dramatically.

Conrad

2/24/2019 08:00:31 pm

There aren't many people that would sign up for the testing if it threatens their lives, I know plenty of people who like their life as it is. It is safer, and quicker to do the results on an animal. Cheaper too.

Bailey

2/24/2019 08:02:02 pm

I agree that consent is a big choice that humans have and animals don’t. But I do realize that without animal testing for medical advancement, we would not be this far medically.

Katarina

2/24/2019 05:14:00 pm

I think some animal testing can be inhumane but not all is. I don't have a strong opinion on this due to not knowing enough. There are also so many factors that go in to it. Depending on what they have to do for the test, who it saves, and how cruel it is.

Kenna

2/24/2019 07:22:01 pm

I agree, there are many factors to consider with this topic. I also don't know very much about the topic. I just know that I don't want animals to suffer but if that can bring us good medicine than that's a sacrifice we should take.

Katherine

2/24/2019 07:22:11 pm

I agree that it is hard to have a very strong opinion on this, this is a topic that isn't talked about much. It isn't really shared on how much of it is humane. There really is a lot that goes into it, and most of that isn't common knowledge.

Jesse B.

2/24/2019 07:38:03 pm

I am with you in that I do not have much experience in this subject. With all of the different reasons why animal testing is done, it all is relative to the situation and the animal. It is like that lifelong question, is one life lost worth one thousand saved?

Sadie

2/24/2019 06:32:05 pm

Animal experimentation has led to so many new and helpful discoveries. Even the human experimentation of Jews in WWII led to the discovery of countless new medical conditions and how to treat them. Did you know that the German aspirin company Bayer was used by the Nazis for experimentation purposes? It might not be what it is today if not for that. Animal and human testing is very different, but the world would not be the same without it. Testing on animals is a much smaller sacrifice and should be taken advantage of. There is so much more to learn. There is no way to avoid it and still get the same results.

Sariah

2/24/2019 07:53:45 pm

I agree that this is a smaller sacrifice than humans and we should take advantage of it but I am also not against still looking for a way to do test that disclude animals. Do you believe human tests to be justifiable if it is for science? Or just animals?

Conrad

2/24/2019 07:58:34 pm

There are ways to care for the animals more, attempting to make the medicines safer for the test subjects. I think that test subjects don't actually have as rough of a life as many think.

Kenna Luker

2/24/2019 07:16:22 pm

I am on the fence with this issue. I don't want the animals to suffer but they are necessary for medicine and scientific research. I don't believe it will go away completely. While human testing is available animals are a much smaller sacrifice to make. I do think that scientists should treat their animals with care, but animal testing is necessary.

Katherine

2/24/2019 07:24:44 pm

I don't think that it is a possibility for it to go away. We view the animals as much less of a sacrifice, so why offer ourselves up if we don't know the end result? The process of animal testing is necessary, but as you said it should be humane.

Saylor

2/24/2019 07:32:41 pm

That is fair, animals shouldn't have to suffer. You make a good point about animals being more available to test considering animals can't make a point of "saying" they don't want to be tested on.

Sadie

2/24/2019 08:04:45 pm

Its hard to properly care for an animal when your injecting it with potentially harmful chemicals.

Katherine

2/24/2019 07:20:13 pm

I am not 100% for animal testing, however, I believe that it is necessary to experiments. Animal testing before human testing is a smarter way to go about it. The smaller animals can reproduce a lot quicker than humans can, so I don't think it is that much of a sacrifice. If humans want to consent to the treatment and be the first round of it, then that can be their decision, but it can't be forced. I don't think that the vitro testing is a very reliable test and like McKinlee said, it doesn't show the complexity of living organisms.

Kenna

2/24/2019 07:25:08 pm

Animal testing should be done humanely and should be done before human testing in my opinion. It is true that rodents do reproduce faster than humans.

Saylor

2/24/2019 07:29:04 pm

That is very true, some animals reproduce much quicker than humans so it is not too much of a sacrifice. There are many pros and cons to animal testing. I dont have a complete opinion on this as well.

Sariah

2/24/2019 07:57:47 pm

That is a good point you bring up about smaller animals producing faster, I didn’t even think of that even though it is a very important factor to consider. Especially if we think about rats and how they have tons and tons of babies at one time so they could become overpopulating if we don’t control them. People already have pest control so I feel we are just putting them to use??

Conrad

2/24/2019 07:25:39 pm

As much as I dislike experimenting on animals, there are no other options to be had for testing such things. Smaller animals can reproduce very quick and it won't damage their species. Also animals aren't the only test subjects being used for medicines, there is always human testing with those who have agreed to let it happen. I think that animal testing is no worse than testing it on humans who have agreed.

Challis

2/24/2019 07:37:55 pm

I am okay with animal testing to an extent if we need it but the main controversy between human testing and animal testing that humans can give consent to the testing and animals cannot.

Jesse B.

2/24/2019 07:46:30 pm

The comparison you make between animals and humans makes sense. I agree that with the smaller, faster-reproducing animals, it would not damage them as a whole. Also, they are produced for experimentation, so they should be used as such (humanly). Would you ever agree to human testing to some degree?

Saylor

2/24/2019 07:27:21 pm

I don't have a huge opinion on this honestly, I know any type of harmful testing on animals should not be allowed because that is horrible. But testing animals through medicine seems like a pretty good idea if it can help with medical problems that involve humans. Just torturing animals should be illegal just as it is illegal to torture humans.

Bailey

2/24/2019 08:04:55 pm

I agree. Animal torture, even if it is to advance medically, should be outlawed, and medical testing on animals should only be done if it is under humane environments that are checked out and approved to meet standards and regulations.

Challis

2/24/2019 07:32:06 pm

Personally, I do not like the idea of testing on animals but there is such a huge impact in doing so that it can be almost considered necessary. As long as it is for a good reason like medical advancements it is justifiable. And I might add, animals that are tested on are in many cases, treated better than the animals we eat for dinner.

Kelsey

2/24/2019 09:32:12 pm

Very true. There are far worse actions humans have done to animals, so I also think the benefits out weigh the cons.

Sariah

2/24/2019 07:43:44 pm

I understand that this could be seen as a problem but I think it is one of the sacrifices humans have to make in order to progress. I cannot think of any alternative either. I mean in all honesty we do testing on humans that could potentially be considered in humane. I mean especially with medicines and drugs we do a lot of tests on whole generations that either end really bad or in a great discovery.

Kelsey

2/24/2019 09:30:39 pm

Yes, I agree. The only way we know about modern medicine techniques is through trial and error on either humans or animals.

Bailey

2/24/2019 08:03:51 pm

I know that without animal testing as far as medical things are concerned, we would not have come as far as we have. There are a lot of benefits that animal testing has provided to the medical industry. I am of the opinion that as long as it is done humanely and that the animal does not have to suffer, then it is alright. I do not agree with practices such as makeup testing on animals, though.

Rachel

2/24/2019 08:29:34 pm

So what exactly has to be done to be considered suffering for the animal? How do we truly understand what animals are feeling? I agree that makeup testing is wrong but I think that other forms of testing are wrong as well, medical advancements or not.

Kelsey

2/24/2019 09:38:51 pm

Animal testing is unjust towards animals, and if there is any other way, we should find it. For example, is it possible to make robots that function like a human body, yet do not have emotions, brains, or feel pain? This is quite futuristic, but it would be amazing if we could end animal testing. Until that point, I feel we should continue with these practices as long as they are for a good cause - not for make-up purposes. We need to continue advancing medicinally, and currently, this is the only way.

Animal Testing

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