Figley 1

Bailie Figley
Mr. Conrad
ERWC Period 5
12 April 2016
Are Animals Actually Subordinate?
Are we responsible for the death of animals due to our own personal gain? The use of
animals in medical and other research has been the root of progression. Biomedical research in
the United States involves the use of several million animals (mostly rodents) each year. With the
increased use of biotechnology and genetic modification, animal testing will continue to be used.
The dependability of information acquired from animal
testing, and whether it is acceptable morally to exploit
animals for the sake of knowledge is beginning to be
questioned along with epistemological objections. Despite
the outbreak of objections, many questions have arose. Who
is exploiting animal testing and why? Is animal testing more
harmful to the animals being tested than the outcome of
supposed benefits for humans?
Annually, based on data in 2005, 115.3
million animals are being experimented on annually,
this is underestimated though because it excludes all
invertebrates. They are used for biological lessons,
medical training, along with drug, food, chemical, and
testing cosmetics. Animals are used when someone

Figley 2
needs to find out a reaction in or on the human body. It is difficult, if not impossible in
most cases to replace the use of testing these animals with other methods because their
anatomy is so similar to ours. There are four main reasons why animals are used in
research: To advance scientific understanding, as models to study disease, to develop and
test potential forms of treatment, and to protect the safety of people, animals and the
environment or so we think. Gaining knowledge through the research and tests helps
acquire knowledge of how the living body of both animals and humans function, and
apply what is learned to benefit the use of that product safety for humans. Because many
functions and processes of cell are similar if not identical in both animals and humans in
how they perform the vital functions for survival, studies lead to an understanding of how
a healthy body works and how the body reacts when we become ill and how the illness
can be treated. Humans and animals also share many common illnesses and mutations
which can be used for studies of cures for those illnesses or treatments for defects. For
example, rabbits suffer from atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), emphysema, and
birth defects. Dogs suffer from cancer, diabetes, cataracts, ulcers and haemophilia and
cats from a few of the same visual impairments as humans. Once researchers are aware of
a disease, they then test animals for potential treatments and therapies. New medicines
that have yet to be distributed require the testing of animals to learn about not only the
benefits of a whole organism but the harmful effects that go along with it as well. Once
proven that new ways of testing are just as effective if not more advantageous than the
current ones, government agencies aim to replace the use of animal tests. How far will
companies and Scientists go with testing just to sell a product or discover new

Figley 3
information? When will they stop testing animals with the harmful chemicals only to alter
it for the safety of humans?
Animal testing is no stranger to multiple countries across the world but not all statistics
are properly recorded. Japan, for example, has a self-regulation system and surveys on the
numbers of animals used do not have to be conducted. In Canada, only labs that receive research
funding from the national funding agencies have to submit data, (Lush). There are some
countries though who do not use statistics so they disinclude many animals. For example,
Animals killed to supply tissues (an additional 21% of animals on top of published figures);
genetically-modified animals used only to maintain breeding colonies (an additional 34%);
animals bred for use in labs but killed as surplus to requirements (50% of mice and rats
according to industry figures); some young animals in early stages of development (foetal and
embryonic forms); and certain invertebrate species, (Lush). Statistically, the United States is
claimed to be the worlds largest
consumer of animal testing or
experimentation in labs. In 2012,
the United States only recorded
1.1 million animals being used in
experiments and tests but
realistically the number is thought
to be over 22 million animals.
Some countries include different animal species and experiments under different testing laws
such as Norway, including honey bees or the Czech Republic with bird ringing which is the
capture of wild birds and putting a ring on one leg for identification before released unharmed.

Figley 4
The Animals contained in labs tend to live in a constant state of stress due to the
confinement in cages and lack of survival necessities with the only change coming from a call
into a research or test which could be anything from an experiment, or test ending in the death of
an innocent animal. Daily life in the labs for animals include confinement in overcrowded
cement cages, minimal to no sunlight or fresh air, and unable to make decisions based on their
natural instinct. Labs also lack enrichment, loud noises, and have bright lights out of sync with
natural lighting. These things are are known to cause stress in the animals who will begin to
show symptoms physically. Animals in labs suffer not just stress from the day to day lives but
also pain from protocols. These animals experience both mental suffering as well as physically
from the small space in the cages, fear of being called to experimentation, and emotional stress
life in the lab daily for the remainder of their life not to mention the pain of the procedure itself.
Annually in the United States alone, over 115.3 million animals are used in biomedical
experimentation, product and cosmetic testing, and science education including dogs, cats,
ferrets, rabbits, pigs, sheep, monkeys, chimpanzees, and the majority of animals in labs (over 90
percent) are rats, mice, and birds all in which are subjected to experiments that can include
everything from testing new drugs to infecting with diseases, poisoning for toxicity testing,
burning skin, causing brain damage, maiming, blinding, and other painful procedures, (Harm
and Suffering) that can also include the use of restraints. Those wp conduct these experiments
claim to connect it to anxiety and depression in humans. While conducting these experiments,
the animals can experience severe suffering, isolation from other animals, electric shocks,
starvation, or the separation of the babies from mothers immediately after birth. In toxicity
testing, animals used in chronic toxicity receive the test substance daily for up to two years with
no recovery periods, (Harm and Suffering) and many, if not most die before the end of the

Figley 5
experiment. The animals who do survive through excruciating pain and constant test may be
killed off at the end of the study with the only exception to those rules being chimpanzees.
Anesthetization, intubation, and euthanasia are also common lab procedures which require
training and skill. When improperly performed, these procedures cause extreme pain and
discomfort,(Harm and Suffering). In many situations, the one performing these procedures may
lack the experience and training to avoid animal suffering. For example, if a researcher performs
a test using a paralyzing agent on an animal but does not watch the animals vital signs to ensure
the appropriate amount was given for anesthetization, it is very likely that the animal is
experiencing excruciating pain but is unable to move or show signs of discomfort. The
experimentation of transplanting nonhuman primates cells, tissues, or organs from into another
species along with genetic engineering (commonly known as xenotransplantation) may also be
another source of animals pain or even death. These tests are performed in hopes of creating
specific animals with altered traits. Many of the animals performed on die, while others live the
rest of their lives with mutations in their DNA or other diseases from the experiment.
The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) is the only federal law that provides even minimal
protection for animals in laboratories,(Harm and Suffering). Though theres some protection
for the animals, this law does not include rats, mice, and birds that are all specifically bred for
these tests. These small animals are the ones who make up about 90% of those being tested on in
the labs. For the remaining 10% of animals who
were not the mice or birds in labs that are supposedly
protected under the AWA, the law does not exempt
any kind of experimentation no matter what kind of
pain it might cause the animals. The law only covers

Figley 6
only few standards for caging, feeding, handling, and veterinary care. These experiments and
tests are made and overseen by the research facility and their members composing it are for the
most part animal researchers. This in return allows most experiments to be conducted how they
want, no matter how much suffering the animal is experiencing. If deemed necessary to the
study, researchers can even withhold pain medication. According to USDAs latest available
figures (2009), 7.8 percent of all AWA covered animals in labs underwent painful procedures
without the benefits of pain relief,(Harm and Suffering). These numbers are thought to be low
due to the lack of reports done by labs, so the actual number is yet to be discovered. While both
the AWA and the IACUC systems claim to conduct humane tests on animals, they limite rules
and contain so many loopholes that the animals have basically little to no protection at all. They
do this to convince buyers the animals do not suffer so their product will be purchased. People
only acknowledge animal testing when convinced the animals are not under any pain, and that is
necessary for the consumers but in reality the animals do suffer and that is where it is
unnecessary. There have been student written papers published to present the idea that testing on
these animals is cruel, it does not predict all outcomes of human use of a product, and is often
unnecessary, not correct, and can even be dangerous for the usage of humans and their health. To
sum it up, we can stop the suffering of animals being tested and better the health of humans if we
can just substitute the use of animal testing.
Animals are dying by the millions each year due to mankind's selfish and materialistic
ideals. Innocent animals are suffering and dying in the labs so we know the effects a product will
have on humans. With the increased use of biotechnology and genetic modification of animals,
testing will be used more and more each year. Countries around the world must conduct an
alternative way to test these products to save the millions of animals dying and suffering in tiny

Figley 7
cement cages. Small amounts of products are not worth the large amount of death caused. Will
you stand against animal cruelty or look the other way?

Work Cited
"Why Animals Are Used." Why Animals Are Used. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
"HOW MANY ANIMALS ARE USED IN EXPERIMENTS AROUND THE WORLD?" The
2016 LUSH Prize. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2016.
"The Androgen-induced Phenotype." Gale Recources in Context. State Legislatures, Apr. 2015.
Web. 14 Apr. 2016.
FELLENZ, MARC R. "Animal Experimentation." Gale Recources in Context. Encyclopedia of
Science, Technology, and Ethics, 2005. Web. 14 Apr. 2016.
"Research Animals." Gale Recources in Context. Animal Rights, 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2016.
"EU Set to Ban Animal Testing for Cosmetics Forever." Gale Recources in Context. PR
Newswire, 30 Jan. 2013. Web. 14 Apr. 2016.