Animal testing is a practice widely done throughout the world. It is a popular standpoint that testing on them is cruel and unnecessary, and researchers themselves have even admitted to a lot of animal testing being pointless. Animals aren't humans, after all, and and the majority of results and reactions received from them don't translate to humans. The animals tested on are not only rats and mice, but also include frogs, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, ferrets, fish, birds, pigs, sheep, and even monkeys, cats, and dogs. Would you want your puppy to be brutally tested on and treated inhumanely?

"The problem is that animal testing hasn't worked, and it's time we stopped dancing around the problem... we need to refocus and adapt new methods for use in humans to understand disease in humans." This was said by Dr. Elias Zerhouni, a well known scientist, radiologist, and biochemical engineer. Dr. Zerhouni is exactly right. Animal testing is cruel, unnecessary, and inexcusable. Animals have been tested on since before the nineteenth century, and even though countless valuable discoveries have been made while testing on animals, it is time to move on to better and less cruel options.

According to PETA, new technologies developed by scientist are available and a much better option than testing on animals. Harvard has created "Organs-on-Chips", a new technology that contains human cells that grow in a system to copy the structure and functions of human organs. The Organ-On-Chips can be used instead of animals in many fields such as: drug testing, chemical testing, cosmetic testing and several other types of test. Researchers have also developed Human-Patient simulators that could be used instead. These simulators are like humans: they can breathe, bleed and even die. With all of the new technologies created by respected scientist and college research centers it is very possible to end all testing of products on animals. They should not be put through the torture they have experienced for years - no one should. It is time to bring this unjust treatment to an end. Science has improved. Companies need to realize this and start using technology or humans rather than animals.

Over 115 million animals die unnecessarily per year in the United States from animal testing. However, that number doesn't include the 80% of animals being tested on that aren't protected by the Animal Welfare Act. "Animal testing" includes biology lessons, medical training, curiosity-driven experimentation, and chemical, drug, food, and cosmetics testing. At the end of a test, just one test, the animals are disposed of. They are killed by asphyxiation, which is being deprived of oxygen and is one of the most painful and terrifying ways to die. They are also killed by neck-breaking or decapitation. Imagine how scared the animal must be during this whole process. But before death, animals are forced to endure psychologically traumatizing things. When not being experimented on, they are confined to barren cages and are socially isolated and neglected. They are treated as expendable objects rather than loving, feeling creatures that deserve respect. Animals should be valued and it's immoral to treat them so horribly. They are forced to inhale toxic fumes, have their skin burned off, their spinal cords are crushed, holes are drilled into their skulls while still conscious, and they are immobilized in restraint devices for hours. Skin and eye irritation and corrosion cosmetics tests are performed where chemicals are rubbed onto the shaved skin or dripped into the eyes of the restrained animal without any pain relief or anesthesia provided. Another barbaric test widely practiced is the acute toxicity, or the 'lethal dose', test in which animals are forced to swallow large amounts of a test chemical to determine the dose that causes death. This is a pointless exercise, however, because people and animals have different weights, different DNA, different metabolism, and different responses to medicines. If scientists want to discover the 'lethal dosage' on chemicals and drugs, they should perform that experiment on human volunteers, which would provide much more accurate results. If you think this type of experimentation would be inhumane on people, then it is inhumane to experiment on animals that way as well.

In the majority of data received from animal testing, results do not translate to humans.  Dr. Richard Klausner said,"We have cured cancer in mice for decades but it simply did not work in humans." An example found on humansociety.org is a case where an AIDs vaccine was shown effective in monkeys but failed in human clinical trials because it did not prevent people from developing AIDs. In some cases, people believe it made them more susceptible to the disease. If monkeys, animals considered to be the closest to us in DNA, aren't providing the same results, how are fish and birds and rats supposed to?

I believe it is time we face the facts: animal testing is wrong and barbaric. Why continue to put animals through relentless, painful experimentation when there are more efficient and humane ways to get more accurate results? Today is the day we need to stand up and fight for those who do not have a voice. We need to protect those who cannot protect themselves. "There is no beauty in stolen freedom" and no longer any justification for torturing helpless animals. Let's not make any more excuses for causing defenseless creatures to cry in terror and scream in pain and endure untold suffering and brutality. Now is the time for all who care to stand for the oppressed and against the oppressors. Now is the time to end animal testing. Let us start caring and stop abusing.