Have you ever wondered what your toothpaste, laundry detergent, shampoo, and pain relievers have in common? All of those things were likely tested on animals before being sold to you and many animals were harmed in the process.
Annually, approximately 110 million animals are killed in laboratories in the U.S. alone according to the organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). According to them the animals include, but aren’t limited to, dogs, cats, rabbits, monkeys, fish, and birds. Animal testing is widely considered cruel due to the suffering and harm inflicted upon animals but it’s still practiced.
During testing, animals are put into small cages and deprived of their natural habitats. Frequently, they are forcibly tested and exposed to toxic substances, causing severe health issues and, occasionally, death. If the animals don’t die during testing, they “are typically killed” according to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).
Additional cruel conditions that are often found in animal testing labs include “injecting or force-feeding animals with often harmful substances, removing animals’ organs or tissues to deliberately cause damage, forcing animals to inhale toxic gasses, and subjecting animals to frightening situations to create anxiety and depression,” reports Cruelty-Free International, an organization that works to create a world where no animals live in laboratories.
A common pro-animal testing argument is that there is no other accurate way to test medicines and improve scientific study. One specific fact that is often pointed out in favor of testing on mice is the fact that they share 98% of their DNA with humans, according to Animal Research at Stanford.
While testing medicines and improving science is very important, there are many alternatives such as in-vitro tests. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) writes that IVDs or in-vitro diagnostics are, “tests done on samples such as blood or tissue that have been taken from the human body.” Vitro-testing models are “cheaper, faster, more precise, and more reliable test results compared to animal models,” according to Frontiers in Medical Technology.
The cruelty of animal testing lies in the fact that they are treated as disposable objects. When we allow this to occur as a society, we ignore their pain and suffering while knowing better options are available.