Animal Testing: Cruel or Crucial?

A Dalmatian named Pepper in 1965 is believed to be the stimulant that sparked the anti-animal testing era in the United States in the 1960's.

Although testing has been found in ancient Greek writings from 500 B.C., it wasn't until the 1800's when adoption of pets became an interest that objections to animal experimentation became a public issue.  Pepper was a farmer's pet that was kidnapped, sold into experimentation, and died after researches attempted to implant a pace-maker in the dog's body.

Is animal research cruel or crucial?  If you ever find yourself objecting the sale of a cosmetic product that tested on animals, or attending the awarding of a Nobel Prize to a scientist who found a cure in result of the animals he/she used, here's both viewpoints to help you form your own opinion.

The Animal Welfare Act (AWA), defines animal as "any live or dead dog, cat, monkey (nonhuman primate animal), guinea pig, hamster, rabbit, or such other warm blooded animal."  Birds, rats, and mice used for research are excluded from the definition, as well as cold-blooded and farm animals.  These excluded animals account for 95% of animals used in research, as they are not protected by the AWA.  That being said, less than 0.2% of animal research is performed on dogs, cats, and primates combined.

Over the last decade, animal research has helped with medical advances.  Monkeys and mice with Alzheimer's-like brain deformities have helped identify the molecule miR-34c that plays a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease.  Asthma is the most common childhood illness.  Inhalers were developed after research done on the lungs of guinea pigs in the 1960's.  The zebrafish is an animal that can mend it's own heart muscle.  If part of the fish's heart is removed, it can grow it back in a matter of weeks.  The zebrafish has been a vital part of biomedical science in providing traces to heart failure.

Animals are very similar to humans but have a main differentiating factor; they do not have cognitive ability.  Animals cannot talk or reason but they can still suffer and feel pain in the same way humans do.  A common test performed on animals is called the Draize test.  The substance/product that is being tested is put into the eyes of the animal and monitored for damage to the eye which can result in scarring, blindness, and death.  Another test used often is called the LD50 test, in which the product being tested is pumped into the animal's stomach until it dies.

Studying cell cultures in a petri dish as an alternative method to animal testing can help achieve more applicable results because human cells can be used.  Artificial human skin created from human skin cells grown in test tubes creates useful results rather than testing on animal skin.

The ethics of animal research will continue to stand as an ongoing debate, whether you feel it is inhumane or life-saving.