Animal Testing: What if You Were in Their Place?

1622 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Should animals be used for scientific purposes

Every year about 241,000 rabbits are tortured in United States laboratories to test for the effects that household products, such as cosmetics, dishwashing liquid, and drain cleaner will have on their eyes ("Rabbits in Laboratories | PETA.org." 1). Scientists will drip chemicals into the eyes of the animal to see how much irritation it will cause, a process known as the Draize eye irritancy test ("Rabbits in Laboratories | PETA.org." 1). The test is certainly not pain free; it often causes distress, such as redness, swelling, and sometimes blindness. After the rabbits are finished being toyed with, they are killed ("Rabbits in Laboratories | PETA.org." 1). The Draize eye irritancy test is just one of the thousands of examples of profuse animal testing that has been going on for centuries. Mice, rats, dogs, pigs, cats, fish, birds and primates are tested every day by human beings in an attempt to learn more about the functions of our own bodies ("Update: Animal Testing" 2).

The issue of animal testing has become an important topic of debate because despite the cruel and inhumane treatment of laboratory animals, people who support animal testing claim that the research benefits are phenomenal and surely outweigh the animals’ pain and suffering. I feel as though the question of whether or not animal testing is immoral is an easy answer. Animal testing on any species is unethical and should be abolished as soon as possible because it is a form of animal cruelty, provides inaccurate results, and there are better alternatives that can be pursued.

First of all, animal testing is immoral because it involves harming or killing animals for the purpose of “science”. Animals that are tested on are enslaved, beaten, burned, poisoned, electr...

... middle of paper ...

...ewpoints In Context. Web. 21 Apr. 2011.

Howard, Carol. "Alternative Testing Can Replace Animal Experimentation." AV Magazine CXIII (Spring 2005): 14-15. Rpt. in Animal Experimentation. Ed. Cindy Mur. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2004. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 25 Apr. 2011.

Philips, Trevor. "Human Self-Interest Will Ensure That Animal Experimentation Continues." The Independent (25 Apr. 1998). Rpt. in Animal Experimentation. Ed. Cindy Mur. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2004. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 21 Apr. 2011.

"Rabbits in Laboratories | PETA.org." People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA): The Animal Rights Organization | PETA.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2011.

"Update: Animal Testing." Issues & Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 31 Mar. 2006. Web. 20 Apr. 2011.

Show More
Related

  • Testing on Animals: Behind the Eight Ball

    1429 Words  | 3 Pages

    She sits alone in a threadbare, chilly, metal cage. Her eyes dart around wondering when the next torture will commence. If the testing fails to kill her, the stress definitely will. Entering is the doctor who plans to perform an eye irritancy test. The rabbit’s eyes will be held open with clips for at least three days if she survives that long (“Frequently Asked Questions”). Similarly, if these procedures would be performed on a human, they would be considered illegal. Yet, scientists continue to make harmless animals suffer incessantly. Annually, countless animals are abused in American test labs; however, alternative practices should be implemented in order to participate in worldwide trade, save innocent lives, and provide more accurate data.

    Read More

  • Animal Testing Dbq

    597 Words  | 2 Pages

    The information that animals have provided scientists over the past decades has changed society, and is still changing society for the better. Millions of lives have been saved with the use of animal testing and many more will be saved with continued research. However, there are many who dismiss this monumental achievement completely and oppose the use of animals in laboratory research. Though many find this practice to be

    Read More

  • Let's Put an End to Animal Research, Testing, and Experimentation

    2009 Words  | 5 Pages

    Lane, Stuart. “Banning Animal Testing May Be Hazardous to Your Health.” Priorities Spring 2013: 23.

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of Animal Experimentation

    1261 Words  | 3 Pages

    In modern society, animal experimentation has triggered a controversy; consequently, vast amount of protests have been initiated by the animal rights community. Although these organizations have successfully broadcasted their concerns toward animal experimentation, its application continues to survive. Sally Driscoll and Laura Finley inform that there remain fifty million to one-hundred million animals that experience testing or experimentation throughout the world on a yearly basis. But despite opposition, animal experimentation, the use of experiments on animals in order to observe the effects an unknown substance has on living creatures, serves multiple purposes. Those particular purposes are: research of the living body, the testing of

    Read More

  • Case Study: The Benefits of Animal Testing

    1715 Words  | 4 Pages

    Animal testing is a largely debated and controversial issue. It was first introduced in the United States in the 1920s (Goldberg 85). Since then, there have been many advances in the field of medicine and science. These advances are due largely to the fact that animals are used in experiments and research.  Animal testing has given doctors some of their most successful accomplishments. Also, they help researchers discover how to improve long known theories about the human mind and body. Over 40 Nobel Prizes have been given to researchers “whose achievements depended, at least in part, on using laboratory animals” (Trull 64). These animal experiments have helped humans live a better life. Animal testing benefits doctors...

    Read More

  • Animal Testing Cruel And Inhumane

    532 Words  | 2 Pages

    While animal testing has led to many life-saving cures, animal testing is cruel and inhumane because it involves inflicting pain and harm on the test subject to study its effects and remedies. Testing involves physically restraining; force-feeding; and depriving animals of food and water. They are forcibly given toxic substances and pain relief is never an option. Killing the animals at the end of the testing is common practice since the animals are no longer useful. In one example, rabbits acted as test subjects to test the eye irritation of certain shampoos. The bunnies were restrained; their eyelids forced open with clips for days and the shampoos were applied. Some of the test subjects

    Read More

  • The Island of Dr. Moreau: The God Complex

    1468 Words  | 3 Pages

    "Rabbits in Laboratories | PETA.org." People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA): The Animal

    Read More

  • The Necessities of Animal Experimentation

    1270 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...Because people see animal testing procedures as unethical and immoral, it’s important for them to consider what their health would be like without the process—potentially afflicted with incurable illnesses. Continuing the animal experimenting process can only prove beneficial in promoting fewer ailments and cures to existing and future diseases.

    Read More

  • Is the Testing of Products on Animals Humane?

    1995 Words  | 4 Pages

    Examples of Severe Animal Suffering in Laboratories. Humane Society of the United States, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.

    Read More

  • The Unseen Cruelty: A Critique on Animal Testing

    1045 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the largest controversies involving the testing on animals is the harm that is inflicted on them. Proof lies in the many leaked photographs showing the horrific pain that has been forced onto beings that cannot speak for themselves. A test called Lethal Dose 50%, or LD50, is a test to assess cosmetics such as lipstick, nail polish, skin care products, and others. This can leave the rabbits, dogs, mice, or other unfortunate animals left crippled with severe untreated chemical burns. During the assessment of the product the animals are force...

    Read More

  • Animal Testing Essay

    1209 Words  | 3 Pages

    Current animal testing has been a contentious subject ever since it started off 150 years back. Although a lot of people discover animal testing inhumane and egoistic, it is an important factor to boost our understanding of medication and to improve our understanding of science. Animal testing, to some, is the way to ameliorate our level of living and preserve many lives, and therefore has many benefits. On the other hand, the negatives may not be passed, and scientists are constantly trying to decrease the damage with some methods they create in the process. Even so, to the dismay of numerous animal lovers in addition to those who are endeavoring for animal rights, animal testing will not be stopped every time soon because, for now, it is the most trustworthy form of testing that includes the safety of daily products we use more carefully than any other procedure.

    Read More

  • Ethical Ethics Of Animal Testing

    700 Words  | 2 Pages

    Every year approximately 100 million animals are killed as a part of scientific research in the United States alone. Animal testing is a highly controversial practice in the modern world. There are records of animals being used in biological and medicinal research as far back as 384 BCE with the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. Many people believe animal testing is unethical as it is bringing harm to animals in order to benefit humans. Ever since the beginning of this practice, animal testing has been used for a variety of purposes, all of which are inhumane and unethical.

    Read More

  • Medical Schools and Animal Experimentation

    1618 Words  | 4 Pages

    "U.S. Government Animal Testing Programs | Animals Used for Experimentation | The Issues.”PETA. N.p., 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2014. http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-experimentation/us-government-animal-testing-programs/ .

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay: We Must Eliminate Animal Testing

    613 Words  | 2 Pages

    The practice of using animals for testing has been a controversial issue over the past thirty years. Animal testing is a morally debated practice. The question is whether animal testing is morally right or wrong. This paper will present both sides of this issue as well as my own opinion.

    Read More

  • Is Animal Testing Necessary?

    2044 Words  | 5 Pages

    For years animal testing has been a very controversial issue around the globe. Animal testing has been very beneficial to people, but has cause an up stir to animal rights activists and organizations like PETA. “The earliest references to animal ex...

    Read More

More about Animal Testing: What if You Were in Their Place?

Open Document