The N-Word: has it gone beyond racism?
Animal testing: is it time to say no?
The arguments about animal testing are still going on today, as they have been for many years now and the fight for justice is still not won. The fact is that animal testing for medicines is legal, however testing for beauty products is now illegal in Europe. Protesters claim:
* Over 100 animals die from animal testing every year. These vary from dogs, cats, mice, hamsters and fish.
* Most animals in laboratories are not legally protected.
* There aren’t enough inspectors to properly inspect research facilities.
* Most inspectors aren’t empowered to do anything consequential about violations.
* Many labs pass inspection even where protesters claim legal violations occur.
* Alternatives to animal testing are more effective, more reliable, and more humane.
The pros of animal testing are that the animals are under strict laws to be cared for 24/7. They receive special treatment to try and stop them from causing any pain. The conditions of the animals that we eat are far worse than those that are tested on. These animals are saved from this harsh reality and kept under a close eye. The treatments are only used when there is no other available option. All animal scientists work on the three R’s to help prevent the animals any pain. These are: replace -replacing animal methods with non-harmful ways of testing products; reduce -reducing the amount of animals that they use to limit the number that come to harm; refine - refining the tests that they do on animals to reduce the risk of suffering and improve the welfare of the animals. These are all helping us reduce the amount to a point where animals are not needed at all. They have saved human lives.
The cons of animal testing are that so many animals die from this. For example, 4.11 million animals were tested on in 2012 alone. 2.95 million were tested on without anaesthesia which would have caused them great pain. Nine out of ten experiments fail with testing because animals
behave differently to humans. There are other ways of testing products and despite what labs say they fail to use these ways. Animals are exactly the same as humans: they feel pain too and shouldn’t be made to go through this terror.
If it were humans that were being tested on it would be an outrage so why should it be any different? An animal dies every three seconds in a European lab. This is an everyday mouse or rabbit that you might buy as a domestic pet. By staying silent, protesters claim you are supporting this act of cruelty. By donating to certain health charities for humans to help cure diseases you may be donating to help them torture animals. The money can be passed on to labs for animal testing.
We should change to the painless, more effective ways of finding medicines without the use of animal testing. People should treat animals with the same respect they would a human as we are animals scientifically and we are hurting our own kind. Don’t sit around and surrender to this horrific way of finding you medicines when you can help switch to humane ways. For more information visit PETA.org or BUAV.org.
Article by Isabel de Groot, Year 8
What do you think? Email [email protected] if you want to join the debate.
* Over 100 animals die from animal testing every year. These vary from dogs, cats, mice, hamsters and fish.
* Most animals in laboratories are not legally protected.
* There aren’t enough inspectors to properly inspect research facilities.
* Most inspectors aren’t empowered to do anything consequential about violations.
* Many labs pass inspection even where protesters claim legal violations occur.
* Alternatives to animal testing are more effective, more reliable, and more humane.
The pros of animal testing are that the animals are under strict laws to be cared for 24/7. They receive special treatment to try and stop them from causing any pain. The conditions of the animals that we eat are far worse than those that are tested on. These animals are saved from this harsh reality and kept under a close eye. The treatments are only used when there is no other available option. All animal scientists work on the three R’s to help prevent the animals any pain. These are: replace -replacing animal methods with non-harmful ways of testing products; reduce -reducing the amount of animals that they use to limit the number that come to harm; refine - refining the tests that they do on animals to reduce the risk of suffering and improve the welfare of the animals. These are all helping us reduce the amount to a point where animals are not needed at all. They have saved human lives.
The cons of animal testing are that so many animals die from this. For example, 4.11 million animals were tested on in 2012 alone. 2.95 million were tested on without anaesthesia which would have caused them great pain. Nine out of ten experiments fail with testing because animals
behave differently to humans. There are other ways of testing products and despite what labs say they fail to use these ways. Animals are exactly the same as humans: they feel pain too and shouldn’t be made to go through this terror.
If it were humans that were being tested on it would be an outrage so why should it be any different? An animal dies every three seconds in a European lab. This is an everyday mouse or rabbit that you might buy as a domestic pet. By staying silent, protesters claim you are supporting this act of cruelty. By donating to certain health charities for humans to help cure diseases you may be donating to help them torture animals. The money can be passed on to labs for animal testing.
We should change to the painless, more effective ways of finding medicines without the use of animal testing. People should treat animals with the same respect they would a human as we are animals scientifically and we are hurting our own kind. Don’t sit around and surrender to this horrific way of finding you medicines when you can help switch to humane ways. For more information visit PETA.org or BUAV.org.
Article by Isabel de Groot, Year 8
What do you think? Email [email protected] if you want to join the debate.