Animal Experimentation presented in a different genre for English 1201.

1. ANIMAL
EXPERIMENTATION
BY: ALEXIS RENICK

2. WHAT IS ANIMAL TESTING?
• “Animal testing or animal experimentation is the use of animals in experiments and
development projects usually to determine toxicity, dosing and efficacy of test drugs
before proceeding to human clinical trials” (Biology online, “Animal testing”).
• Every year, tens of millions of animals are dissected, infected, injected, gassed, burned,
and blinded. By looking at animal experimentation, the abuse of animals, and effects
of animal experimentation, we can clearly see what rights should be afforded to
animals.
• Through looking at reasons for animal testing as medical, cosmetic and psychological
testing, effects such as harm on animals physically and Catholic teaching in regard to
experimentation one can better understand the issue, the concerns of the animals,
and the need to stop animal testing.

4. WHY IT’S DONE
• According to Biology Online, “Animal testing or animal experimentation is the use of
animals in experiments and development projects usually to determine toxicity,
dosing and efficacy of test drugs before proceeding to human clinical trials” (Biology
online, “Animal testing”).
• Many people believe that experimenting on animals benefits mankind and that it
should be continued. A study done at the Research Defense Society shows that many
doctors are in support of animal testing and that it contributes to many medical
advances.
• . The author of the article, “Medical Doctors Support Animal Research” reports, “The
study found that 96% of general practitioners agree that animal experiments have
made an important contribution to many advances in medicine and that 88% agree
that safety tests should be carried out on animals before human trials of new
medicines are conducted” (Anthis, “Medical Doctors Support Animal Research”).

5. MEDICAL
• As a philosopher and author of the book, Animal Experimentation Needs Moral
Justification, R.G. Frey points out, “Scientist experiment on animals because they
do not know the outcomes of some of the medicines they plan to use on humans.
They use animals to test on because their bodies respond closely to that of
humans and then based on the results of the test from the animal, they make
predictions on how it will affect humans” (12).

6. COSMETIC
• Another reason animals are experimented on is for cosmetic purposes. Every year,
due to cosmetic testing, millions of animals are killed. Cosmetic companies claim
they do their testing on animals for the safety of humans but according to the
organization, and website of In Defense of Animals, “The Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) does not require animal testing for cosmetics and
alternative testing methods are widely available and lead to more reliable results”
(IDA, dausa.org)

7. PSCHOLOGICAL
• Psychological testing on animals is one of the most inhumane and disturbing
experimentation.
• According to the International Association Against Painful Experiments on
Animals, “Countless animals have been surgically dismembered, drugged, starved,
fatigued, frozen, electronically shocked … maddened and killed on the belief that
their behavior, closely observed, would cast light on the nature of humankind!”
(IAAPEA, iaapea.com).

8. THE RESULTS
• Many people are against animal experimentation as it involves animals being
injured, enduring suffering, and pain, and in many cases, being left to die.
Because of the result, many people view animal testing as unethical, unnecessary,
and a poor way to practice science.

10. IS IT ETHICAL?
• People should question whether or not these tests on animals are ethical or
moral. Animals experience pain like humans do. If painful experiments can’t be
done on humans, then they shouldn’t be allowed to do these experiments on
animals either. In his book, R.G. Frey states that, “Because animal lives have value,
ethical persons should question whether animal experimentation is justified and if
we cannot justify what we are deliberately doing to animals we are using our
power over them for our own needs and this is selfish” (27).

11. EXAMPLES OF UNETHICAL EXPERIMENTS
• Vladimir Demikhov, Soviet scientist and organ transplant pioneer who performed a Monkey-
Head Transplant surgery reports, “The monkey survived a day and a half before succumbing to
complications from the surgery” (Demikhov, “Monkey-Head Transplant”). This kind of
experiment has no kind of justification.
• The Vioxx Scandal; Vioxx was a drug that was supposed to treat arthritis and other conditions
with acute pain and was heavily tested on animals and humans. Stated by the author from the
website, Pro-Test, “The FDA estimated that it caused 88,000-139,000 heart attacks, 30-40 percent
of which were fatal.”
• The Monkey Drug Trials of 1969; Deneau, Yanagita and Seevers, the two that conducted the
experiment confirmed that, “These monkeys were trained to inject themselves with different
drugs including morphine, alcohol, codeine, cocaine, and amphetamines” (Yanagita, Seevers,
“Monkey Drug Trials 1969”). These drugs had disturbing effects on the monkeys. Some would try
to escape and broke arms and legs in the process. Monkeys that were taking the cocaine tore off
fingers, and one monkey that was on amphetamines tore out its fur from its arms and stomach.
Monkeys that were taking morphine and cocaine combined, death resulted in a matter of two
weeks.

13. WHY ANIMAL’S ARE USED INSTEAD OF HUMANS
• First, to advance scientific understanding. Many basic cell processes are the same in animals as they are in humans.
By using animals, they can better understand how living things work.
• The second reason is to use animals as models to study disease. Humans and animals have hundreds of illnesses in
common. According to the website, AnimalResearch.info, “rabbits suffer from atherosclerosis (hardening of the
arteries), as well as diseases such as emphysema, and birth defects such as spina bifida. Dogs suffer from cancer,
diabetes, cataracts, ulcers and bleeding disorders such as hemophilia, which make them natural candidates for
research into these disorders. Cats suffer from some of the same visual impairments as humans. From such models,
we learn how disease affects the body, how the immune system responds, who will be affected, and more”
(AnimalResearch.info, “Why Animals are Used”).
• The third reason is to develop and test potential forms of treatment. Once the researchers learn more about the
disease animals are used to develop different forms of treatments. For example, medicines for Parkinson's disease
have been developed using animal models with induced Parkinson's-like symptoms.
• Finally, the fourth reason to use animals in experiments is to protect the safety of people, animals and the
environment. New medicines require testing because the researches must measure both the benefits and the
harmful effects on an entire organism. First the medicine is tested in vitro using tissues and organs but to legally and
ethically use the medicine in clinical trials in humans, it must first be tested on an animal model.

14. ALTERNATIVES TO TESTING ON ANIMAL’S
• One alternative would be to do testing on human tissue. There is a laboratory in
Royston, England that has gone about doing this and they are the first company
to use human tissue in computer technology. In addition, this company does
studies of the human genes and how the different drugs affect the genes or the
proteins they make. Scientists believe that this process is much more effective
with human tissue than animal testing.

15. IN CONCLUSION
• In final consideration, the different types of animal experimentation have been shown and how it
is morally unacceptable to do these experiments on animals. This is evident to see by how many
unwanted deaths and injuries come from the millions of animals that are experimented on.
• If scientists and other scholars would just take the time and effort to look into different types of
testing many of these deaths and injuries would be prevented. By looking into other forms of
testing they could find ways that could be just as beneficial to mankind while at the same time
allowing animals their right not to be harmed just as humans because it is overall morally wrong
to do any type of experimenting on animals.
• We must also know the signs, how to report it, and ask yourself, “What can I do about this?” We
can no longer allow animals to go through such horrible pain and torture.

16. WORKS CITED
• Animal Species Tests. Chart. National Statistics Office. N.p., Web. 1 March 2017
• "Animal testing." Biology online. N.p., n.d. Web.
• Anthis, Nick. "Medical Doctors Support Animal Research." The Scientific Activist. N.p., 10 Oct. 2006. Web. 13 Apr. 2017.
• Day, Nancy, “Animal Experimentation: Cruelty or Science?”. Enslow Publishers, Inc. Berkley Heights, NJ. 2000. Print.
• Demikhov, Vladimir. "Monkey-Head Transplant." Mad Science Museum. N.p., 03 Aug. 2011. Web. 13 Apr. 2017.
• Fadali, Moneim A. "'Alternative' Medical Research?" Alternatives to animal experiments. N.p., Dec. 2001. Web. 13 Apr. 2017.
• Frey, R.G. “Animal Experimentation Needs Moral Justification.” Greenhaven Press, Inc. San Diego, CA. 2000. Print.
• “IDA”. dausa.org. In Defense of Animals, 2013. Web. 1 March 2017
• “IAAPEA”. iaapea.com. International Association Against Painful Experiments on Animals, 2013. Web. 1 March 2017.
• “Monkey Drug Trials 1969.” listverse.com. Top 10 Unethical Psychological Experiments, 2008. Web. 28 February 2017.
• PETA. “About PETA.” Peta.org. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, 2012. Web. 1 March 2017.
• "Why Animals are Used." AnimalResearch.info. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2017.
• Wiz, G. “Animal Testing.” Prezi. N.p., Web. 1 March 2017.
• Wynne, D.L. Clive. “Do Animals Have Rights?” ENotes Social Sciences. 2004. enotes.com. Web. 3 March 2017.