Animal Testing Argumentative

Have you ever known of someone, or had a loved one with a life threatening disease? Have you ever known anyone still surviving with it, or even beating their disease? If you can't think of anyone, just imagine it. Where do you think a lot of the information and resources came from to help gain more knowledge of that disease? How do you think scientists and doctors figured out how to help it?...Or maybe even cure it? Thats right, animals. How would you feel if we didn't have that knowledge, and hadn't started animal testing? In some cases, that loved would no longer have been here anymore. Animal testing has affected research in a positive way, even  more than you may know. Although some companies and organizations may not follow the set laws

for humane treatment, that was not the goal at the start of animal testing, and how are we to know who will be breaking the law and who won't? That's like predicting a police officer or law enforcement official won't take advantage of his rights or position. Yet we still have these officials who take advantage of their position and break laws too. Animal testing should be continued mainly for veterinary development, furthering drug and extreme illness research, and helping us understand more about human and animal biology, anatomy, and behavior.
Animals have been used repeatedly throughout the history of medical research. Early Greek physician-scientists, such as Aristotle,and Erasistratus, performed experiments on living animals in the BC years. Also, Galen ( from AD years), a Greek physician who practiced in Rome, conducted animal experiments to advance our understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathology, and pharmacology. Ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar), an Arab physician in twelfth century Moorish Spain, introduced animal testing as an experimental method for testing surgical procedures before applying them to human patients. “The use of animals in scientific experiments in the UK can be traced back at least as far as the 17th Century with Harvey’s experiments on numerous animal species aiming to demonstrate blood circulation.” (History of animal research)  As you can see, in different areas of the world, animal testing came about in a variety of different time periods. Some areas are found to have experimented with animals anywhere from BC years to the 17th Century. “In 1876, parliament passed the Cruelty to Animals Act, the first legislation aimed at regulating animal experiments.” (History of animal research) And following that, more acts and laws were passed as the history of animal testing continued, such as the Animals Scientific Procedures Act (1986), the Medicines Act (1968), and the EU Directive 2010/63(2010). All of these Acts helping to support animal laboratory standards, and improving animal welfare. Over the late 19th and the 20th centuries, the numbers of animals used in research increased steadily. The number of animals used raised to over 5.5 million in 1970. Animals had played a part in most medical advances of the 20th century, including insulin, the polio vaccine, penicillin and the complete elimination of smallpox.
Despite what some people may think, animal testing helps animals as well humans. Animal testing helps progress veterinary development. “Animals themselves benefit from the results of animal testing.” (Trish Consunji-California Veterinary Medical Association).  If vaccines were not tested on animals, millions of animals would have died from rabies, distemper, feline leukemia, infectious hepatitis virus, tetanus, anthrax, and canine parvovirus, which there are now vaccines for. Treatments for animals developed using animal testing also include pacemakers for heart disease and cures for glaucoma and hip dysplasia. According to Veterinary Medicine And Animal Testing, “Veterinary medicine relies on animal testing in much the same way as the medical field relies on animal testing for humans” (Murnaghan). Animal testing has also been key in saving endangered species from extinction, Some of these include the black-footed ferret, the California condor and the tamarins of Brazil. Koalas, severely damaged by an epidemic of sexually transmitted chlamydia are now classified as endangered in some regions of Australia, but are being tested with new vaccines for chlamydia that may stall the species extinction. Veterinary Medicine And Animal Testing also informs the public that, “It is also important not to forget that pets are not the only animals that benefit from animal testing.” (Murnaghan) Farms and other areas where animals are raised for food can suffer consequences when disease breaks out. With many animals kept in small living spaces, an outbreak of disease can mean that the entire farm can catch it and die from it or be harmed by it. Therefore, antibiotics, vaccines and other treatments are crucial for maintaining the health of multiple species- not just pets. Our society shows the importance of our food being safe and sterilized. And because of that, animal testing plays a vital role in keeping our food supply as safe as possible for us to consume.  
Animal testing helps us to understand more about human and animal anatomy, biology, and behavior. “Basic medical research and animal testing studies a particular part of the body to understand how it works, or to help understand a particular illness or condition and behavior.” (Diseases & Research) Awareness of the differences between a healthy and a diseased or damaged system can give insights into how to prevent and cure illness. Finding out more about the interactions between different cell types and organ systems leads to better treatments for diseases. Recent technology has offered new understanding into causes of many illnesses, and have provided new ways to prevent or cure disease. “We share 95% of our genes with a mouse, making them an effective model for the human body.” Having knowledge that humans are just that similar to something that seems so different, is a great example of the fact that animal testing has helped humans learn and understand more about the anatomy and biology behind the animal and human bodies. Different types of animals used for testing are very similar to humans, we have mostly equivalent organ systems performing the same tasks in more or less the same way.
Animal testing has provided the furthering of medical research for extreme illnesses and aid with medicine and drugs that help people with certain diseases.

The list of diseases that were cured goes on and on. And in some cases if a certain disease has not been cured, still certain drugs and medicine were derived in order to at least help with the process. According to Pro Test Benefits, “Smallpox (cow): The vaccinia vaccine against smallpox was derived from the cowpox virus used by Edward Jenner following his observation that farm workers who contracted cowpox were protected against smallpox - It has now been eradicated from earth.” This was just one of the deadly diseases that animal testing had cured. Also, Polio has been eradicated from North America and people in countries all over the world are being successfully treated. Insulin is now able to help control diabetes and there are vaccines for tetanus, rubella, anthrax, and rabies. Animal testing has also led to advances in our knowledge that may help us develop additional cures, including an understanding of the Malaria lifecycle, tuberculosis and Typhus. Vivisection was also crucial in the discovery of anti-blood-clotting drugs for the treatment of haemophilia , penicillin, lithium, treatment for leprosy, organ transplantations, laparoscopic surgical techniques, and a drug for AIDS treatment. “It had been shown in animal experiments that a single implanted leukaemic cell was sufficient to kill a mouse, thus researchers realised to need to eradicate every last leukaemia cell.” (Cancer-Animal Research) This resulted in a the approach using chemotherapy to treat leukaemia through the 1960s, this pushed remission rates up from 25% at the start of the decade to 60% by the end of it. Mice models in the 1960s also paved the way for something called combination chemotherapy. Scientists showed that drug resistance to one drug could be overcome by the use of another. In the present day, the majority of children with

acute lymphocytic leukaemia are cured through the use of aggressive combination chemotherapy programs.

When most people think of the term “animal testing”, their mind automatically thinks animal abuse and cruelty. Mainly because of the use of animal testing for some certain products that can be purchased in the market. Animal Welfare Act article explains, ”The Animal Welfare Act was signed into law in 1966. It is the Federal law in the United States that regulates the treatment of animals in research, exhibition, transport, and by dealers.”  Animal research is highly regulated, with laws in place to protect animals from mistreatment. Multiple housing standards for research animals (enclosure size, temperature, access to clean food and water, etc.), the AWA also requires regular inspections by veterinarians. All proposals to use animals for research must be approved by an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) set up by each research facility. Humane treatment is enforced by each facility's IACUC, and most major research institutions' programs are voluntarily reviewed for humane practices by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC). All institutions receiving funding from the US Public Health Service (PHS) must comply with the PHS Policy on humane care and use of laboratory animals. Animal testing is not animal abuse when done the correct, lawful, and humane way.
The next time you think of animal testing to be cruel or unfair, think about the outcome. I’d rather put one rat through a series of tests to save the many, than to take even more time, which isn't something you have a lot of when lives are at stake, to find alternate ways (if there is any) to help with medicine and medical development. Why take more time when the most efficient and thorough way that we've come across so far to save those people, is already at our fingertips. And the next time animal testing is brought up, hopefully more thought is put into what it actually is and how much it has done for not only the entire human population, but also the animal population as well. Animal testing is a vital factor when it comes to human and animal life on earth.