Arguments Against Animal Research

Humans share 98% of their DNA with mice and almost all modern vaccines, anesthetics, and surgical techniques have relied on animal research for their development. Furthermore, the medical advancements made through animal research have saved millions of lives, human and non-human. Animal research has been a topic of discussion since it began because of the debate on animal morals and ethics. Although many people oppose it, animal research is necessary to humans because it leads to many medical breakthroughs and is more ethical than testing on humans and it should continue (“Testing” 1-2). The rights and morals of humans and animals have been debated over for hundreds of years, but human should always come before other species. Many philosophical

One reason they are used is because animals operate and work in the same way that humans do. They suffer from the some of the same diseases and have the same organ systems that humans do, which makes them great test subjects. Also, mice have almost the same genes as humans, so they are often used to study diseases and human physiology. Moreover, most animals used in labs and as test subjects are strictly bred for research purposes and over 90% are rodents. To limit the amount of research done with animals, many testing alternatives have been invented, but often these alternatives are not accurate. Modern-day technology is not advanced enough yet to replace all animals completely from medical research. It could be hard to examine the effects a new medication or treatment has on the whole body on a computer model, so animals are still required. Many people claim that all test animals are tortured, abused, and neglected. The work performed on animals by scientists though is done with care and compassion. There are laws and regulations, such as the Animal Welfare Act and the Public Health Service Policy, which set rules for how labs operate and handle the animals. These laws ensure that the animals are only being used for research and not being abused (Poste 95) (Post

As Joan Ryan once said, “Animal research and testing has played a part in almost every medical breakthrough of the last century. It has saved hundreds of millions of lives worldwide…” (“Reasons” 1-2). These advances include new vaccines and drugs, surgical techniques, and diagnosis of disease. Modern polio, tetanus, diphtheria, smallpox, rabies, whooping cough, typhoid, MMR, hepatitis B, meningitis, and HPV vaccines were all developed on animals. These vaccines have saved millions of human lives. Another drug developed on animals is Penicillin, an antibiotic that fights infection. While it was not obtained using animals, its ability to kill infection was in 1941. Another medication that was discovered using animals is Herceptin, a mouse protein. The medicine is used to treat breast cancer and has made the survival rate of the deadly cancer rise significantly. Also, animal research led to the development of asthma inhalers and insulin for diabetes. As well as treatments and medications, many surgical also owe an enormous debt to animals. Organ transplants, blood transfusions, and heart pacemakers have all relied on animals. Also, chemotherapy for some cancers like Leukemia, a blood disease, have been found using mice. Some people argue that inflicting pain on an innocent, living being is always wrong,