The Ethics of Animal Testing

1500 Words6 Pages
Animal Testing, also known as animal experimentation, in vivo (Latin for within the living) testing, and animal research refers to the use of animals in experiments. Sometimes it involves simply observing animals in their natural behaviors (i.e. a mouse running through a maze), while other times it involves questionable practises that challenge ethics. Animal testing is primarily conducted in universities, medical schools, pharmaceutical companies, farms, defence establishments, and commercial facilities. It is used for numerous products and applications, with some of the most common being cosmetics, drugs, food additives, supplements, household products (cleaner, dish soap etc), pesticides, and industrial chemicals. It is estimated that 100 million non-vertebrate animals are used for testing annually. This does not include invertebrate species (species that do not develop a vertebral column) such as mice, rats, birds, fish, frogs etc. The source of these animals varies, but most are purpose-bred (meaning they were specifically bred to be used for testing), with some being supplied by dealers or caught in the wild. An estimated 10% of these specimens receive absolutely no anesthesia. Animal testing is an extremely controversial topic. In fact, it is so controversial that the biases on either side of the spectrum may skew the true definition of the practice. Those against animal testing generally argue that it is nothing more than blatant cruelty and the causation of pointless suffering of living creatures. Those for it tend to define it as using animals to benefit humans and save lives. Well known supporters of animal testing such as the British Royal Society make the argument that virtually every medical achievement made in the 20th century was somehow reliant on animal testing. Notably, the National Academy of Sciences states that even the most sophisticated

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