Kunst Tami Lang and Rhet April 12, 2004
Animal Research
Animal research is one of the most controversial science processes. Daily, protestors line the sidewalks to prohibit the main reason our country has progresses thus far. Without the contribution of animal research, advancements in the science world would not be possible. Animal research is beneficial for so many purposes. For example, biomedical research has advanced in both the veterinary and humanity fields. A treatment for rabies and distemper have been developed due to animal research says an article called, "Animal Rights vs. Human Rights."(3). Pet owners are more willing to allow their pets to take part in experiments to benefit their own animals and others. Scientists believe that animal research on nutrition and social behavior can improve the way we care for captive and domestic pets (Animal 3). According to "On the Sacrifice of the Natural Order for Human Life," animal testing has been beneficial to learning the anatomy and body processes of animals (2). Veterinarians are more capable of diagnosing diseases as well as understanding the dimensions of the illnesses. Animal research has been just as, if not more, aiding to human medicine as animal treatment. Treatments against rubella, polio, measles and the mumps are a result of animal experimentation (Animal 1). Animal drug trials have advanced the pharmaceutical market not only by vaccines but also by the comprehension of the process of the disease. Introducing animals with eye infections and
HIV, has developed new theorems on the origin of such diseases (Sacrifice 1). Psychologists, Clifford Mynatt and Michael Doherty, authors of "Understanding Human Behavior," state that animal testing is more convenient and yet discoveries are applied to all species, especially humans (146). Most animal testes drugs that have past several trials have been proven to work just as well on humans. This is due to the similarities in anatomy and body processes (Mynatt 146). Our behaviors, such as responses to stimuli, are practically identical to all species. Therefore, medical research performed on animals is both beneficial to themselves as well as humans. Animal research is also used for education purposes. Schools are daily encouraging students to dissect animals. These dissections give the students a hands-on visual image of the true anatomy of animals. Until high school, animal dissecting is primarily used for teaching processes. On the other hand, medical students perform animal dissections to model surgical techniques later used in hospitals (Animal 1). Medical students also are able to practice analyzing and diagnosing illnesses of animals as they would for human patients. Animals are simple to observe changes, such as in behavior. Animals are also easily manipulated. They don't argue with the experimenter and are more reliable for accurate results. Animals are unaware that they are partaking in any experiment and therefore will not act awkwardly to improve the results for the experiment (Mynatt 146). Animal testing results are more dependable and accurate than human experimental results; therefore animals' experimentation must be performed. Before going to the market, nearly every product is safety tested. Normally, this is done on animals. Products such as hair supplies, cosmetics, and everyday house cleaners, are tested for irritation of the skin on animals. Food FDA, and Drug
Administration, approve the supplies after animal experimentation has been performed. If the results are not safe on animals, the FDA will reject the product for the human market and discard it (Animal 4). Animal Rights protestors argue that animal research is cruelty to animals. They defend the harmless creatures for they do not deserve the pain and suffering. They picture hundreds of little white rabbits lying dead in a laboratory just to make sure eyeliner is safe for Brittney Spears. Protestors claim that animals receive no benefit from animal research. They are closed minded about the subject and refuse to hear the opposite side of the argument. Little do protestors understand that animal research is beneficial to animals as well. As stated previously, observing animals' reaction to different experiments helps the progression in veterinary fields. Also, when animal research is being done the animals are almost always under while the experiment is being performed. They feel no pain due to the Novocain. When they are waken, if any suffering is felt by the animals they are immediately put to sleep (Animals 2). Secondly, a majority of animals used in dissection in schools were previously dead. Human life is more significant then those of animals. Humans are at the top of the food chain and depend on animals for survival. Daily, they are slaughtering pigs and cows for food for humans and no one objects to that. But when it comes to saving the lives of people with cancer, animal research is cruel and unnecessary. Human life is always viewed as superior to animals. If a protestor was asked whether they lose their child or their family pet, a guaranteed majority would choose the family pet. Humans are more advanced in development and are therefore seen as more worthy of life than animals. There are millions of animals in the world, more
than humans. Animal research helps in the control of the animal population.
Animals
have a much shorter reproduction time than humans. Also, most animals can reproduce in multiples, rather than one or two as humans do. Therefore, animal research is bettering the lives of humans while aiding in the control of the overwhelming animal population. Live animal research has decreased dramatically in the last fifteen years. Computer technology has developed programs to allow animal research to be done on the screen rather than to the actual animals. Schools use these programs to teach students the anatomy and body processes. Also, 3-D model structures of animal physiology were designed to show the animal body. Those these do not help in much of the pharmaceutical research, it has decreased the number of animals used for research from 50 million to 20 million since 1992 (Sacrifice 2). Therefore, animal research has drastically declined in the past years. Secondly, because animal and human anatomy is so similar, scientists relate one effect of animals to the same effect on humans. This benefits both in the long run. Protestors need to step back and take a look at the big picture. Animal research is not only done to aid humans, it is done to aid animals as well. Vaccines and other treatments have been developed for both humans and animals because of animal research. These contributions made by animal research have forced advancements in the science world that would have never been possible without the understanding of life animal research has provided.