Breaking News
- BUAV criticises EU countries for poor funding of non animal tests for REACH
- Save Our Monkeys team present at the Maha Shivaratree Festival in Mauritius
- Samina Pure Makeup Goes Cruelty Free
- Public urged to act over transportation of monkeys to Canada for experiments
- Putting cruelty-free companies In the Spotlight
Humane Science
Harming animals in the name of science is morally indefensible, but there are also important scientific problems with using animals that cannot be ignored.
Statistics
We estimate that on average 115 million animals are used and/or killed in the name of science every year, worldwide. The UK is one of the largest animal testing countries , carrying out over 3.6 million such tests in 2009 alone. Not only are these experiments conducted on animals people care deeply about such as primates, dogs and rabbits but only about a third of the experiments are actually testing new drugs for human diseases. More information.
Key Criticisms
Animal experiments can be criticised on a number of levels. Because animals do not get many of the human diseases we do such as heart disease, many types of cancer, HIV, Parkinson’s disease, or schizophrenia, these have to be artificially induced in the animal. The resulting ‘animal models’ are therefore usually crude and incomplete representatives of the human disease. Because the animals are often stressed the results may also be very variable and difficult to interpret. It is not surprising to find that treatments tested on these models rarely work in humans, with the danger that not only is animal life (as well as money and time) being wasted but that effective treatments are being mistakenly discarded. More information.
Animal Testing on Trial
Claims that animal testing has, or will, lead to cures for every human ailment are very powerful. It is this fear of not wanting to halt medical progress that allows animal researchers to continue largely unchallenged. However, there is very little scientific evidence for these grand claims. Indeed when scientists review the effectiveness of animal experiments over time, the results are damning. The promise of advanced models using genetically modified animals is also sadly doomed to failure. More information.
Alternatives
There are many alternatives to using animals and momentum in this area is growing. We can use cells or tissue grown in the test tube, imaging machines, computer models and volunteer studies. The alternative to not using animals is not harming patients or vulnerable people. It also doesn’t mean halting medical progress. It can in fact mean improving both the quality and humanity of our science. Examples of alternatives.
How do we get there?
So, why, given the lack of evidence for the validity of animal experiments and the promise of alternatives, are animal tests still permitted? Much of the reason is not scientific but down to conservatism within the scientific establishment and bureaucratic hurdles. More information.