Why animal testing should be illegal
Animal testing has been a controversial topic for years. Animals are used in research experiments for medicine and cosmetics. Many drugs and cosmetic products must undergo an animal testing trial to ensure their safety and efficacy (Rezk). Many animals used in testing have negative side effects on the products (“Animals Used in Experiments”). However, these products can still be sold to consumers even though the animal testing trial failed (“Animals Used in Experiments”). These animals are used in research because of their biological system similarities to humans (Rezk).
Many different types of animals are used for this research, such as rabbits, mice, birds, fish, primates, and dogs (Rezk). Yes, most of the animals you would keep as pets are being experimented on. These animals are used because of their fast rate of reproduction. Compared to primates, rodents have much lower costs to maintain and provide for during the research process. Mice are a very important animal model for genetic engineering, used in research for conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and other abnormalities (Rezk). Many companies, such as Charles River and Jackson Labs, breed mice specifically for research purposes (Rezk). A frequent use for testing mice is in drug toxicology and toxicity testing. These tests are to evaluate whether a drug will have negative side effects, such as skin irritation and reproductive toxicity (Rezk). A common test is the LD50 test, which is the measurement of a drug that is required to kill fifty percent of the subjects (Rezk). Many people believe that the lives of humans are worth more than the lives of animals, even though animals possess emotions and have conscious experiences.
The ethical debate against animal treatment caused the Animal Legal Defence Fund to be established in 1979. Many animals that undergo these experiments are unprotected because of the inability of the inspections. The facilities must follow guidelines but are not required to release any data from the research or what the animals undergo. This means the facilities are trusted to follow guidelines that are not enforced. Many people believe there is not enough animal protection under the Animal Welfare Act (Rezk). Laboratory Animal Care is a nonprofit organization that protects animals used in laboratories. In some countries, cosmetic animal testing is banned due to cruelty to the animals undergoing the experiments (Rezk).
The largest animal rights group in the world is People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals(PETA) (Rezk). PETA works by informing the public, through social media, protests, and animal rescue. This group tries to expose the truth about animal testing by releasing photos and videos taken at the research properties. Other groups such as Primate Freedom Projects and the Animal Liberation Brigade are known for their violent actions against those who use animals as test subjects (Rezk). The main purpose of these groups is to reduce animal experiments, refine them to make them less unpleasant to the animals, and replace the animals with different techniques (Cobb). The distress suffered by testing animals is one of the main concerns of these groups.
Cosmetic research is less crucial to human existence than biomedical research (Cobb). Animals should not be used for cosmetic research purposes because it puts them through unnecessary pain. Cosmetics are not crucial to the health of humans, so I believe it is inhumane to put these animals through tests that are unnecessary for humans.
