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ANIMAL TESTING: OUTLINE

Juan Arango

Excelsior College

Animal Testing: Outline

1. Animal testing of medications, medical devices and health/beauty products.

2. Is it necessary to test medicine on animals before using it in humans?

3. The testing of animals for medicine has been an ethical dilemma for decades. Experimenting in animals such as rats, dogs, monkeys, and rabbits have been going on since modern medicine started. Scientist using million of animals every year to conduct experiments that will “benefit” humans but at the expense of animals that have no say in this matter and did not volunteer for such experiments. Most experiments cause pain and overall reduce their life expectancy. Scientist that experiment on animals are aware are inhumane and comes with a lot of ethical problems. If there is an alternative to animal testing that would bring the same result scientist must agree to use it.

4.

i. Animals have been used for transportation, food or companions by humans for thousands of years, but experimenting on animals is cruel and immoral.

ii. Experiments in animals are performed without great moral problems since they began experiments because of the Cartesian philosophy around the 17thcentury (Gene Ther, 2004).

iii. Experiments in animal is beneficial only if the experiment compensates with the animal suffering (L.F. van Zutphen, 2001).

iv. Experiments in animal could lead to suffering and it is important to find an alternate method that can reduce pain and improve their overall welfare. Animal testing could be beneficial and play major roles in treatment and prevention of some diseases.

References

Gene Ther (2004). Use of animals in experimental research: an ethical dilemma? Department of Laboratory Animal Science, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.

L.F. van Zutphen (2001) A contribution to the humane use and care of animals and to the quality of experimental results. Principles of Laboratory Animal Science, Revised Edition 1ST Edition.