The practice of animal testing is a debatable subject, which raises questions about whether it is wrong or right to use animals for experiments. Animal testing is a term used for the process of subjecting an animal to clinical trials before examining human trials. The process involves experimenting to determine the efficiency of a particular drug or the efficacy of a certain product. According to Doke and Dhawale (2015), 26 million animals are used for experiments annually in the United States. New medical treatments and products are tested on animals first to verify their level of toxicity and their safety before being tested on humans.
In the biomedical industry, animal testing can be traced back to the Aristotle period during the time of Greek scientists who used medical experiments on live animals. Various scientists worked to improve the medical field by using specific animals such as rats or monkeys to develop a clearer understanding of the pathology and pharmacology effects of drugs. The drugs can only be tested on humans after it has successfully been tested on an animal.
During the nineteenth century, Arab physicians commonly known as Zuhr Ibn carried out numerous experiments to assess the successful surgical procedures in humans. Since the Arabs showed positive results, using animal testing has always been seen as the most efficient way to develop new commercial products and drugs in the medical field (Doke & Dhawale, 2015). However, policymakers are not convinced about animal testing as they believe using animals for experiments causes more harm to animals despite helping scientists.
Moreover, animal welfare groups are against animal testing, and they term it as an inhumane activity which should be prohibited. Despite these arguments and opposes, animal testing is still practiced up to date in many countries to test the effectiveness and danger of a particular drug or product. Animal testing is used in different fields which are in biomedical research and education courses. Animal testing is condemned by many groups who advocate for alternative testing methods other than animal testing. Various animal welfare organizations have increased their awareness level of using alternative methods for testing other than using innocent animals. These organizations argue that animal testing does not produce reliable results in relation to the human application and therefore there is no need for animal testing for new products and drugs.
However, animal testing is necessary for medical purposes. Animal testing usually begins with a trial using rats, and if the results are successful, further tests are conducted on monkeys before using the product on human beings. When it comes to testing, these steps are necessary as they reduce the level of errors and the negative effects of the product can be traced at an early stage. Many scientists argue that animal testing has saved many lives as only drugs that were successful were used for human consumption Theses scientists add that the alternatives procedures might not provide accurate results like how animal testing provides and thus they may end up killing lives because dangerous drugs may be used on humans and therefore cause adverse impacts.
Medical experts argue that animals are not intentionally harmed but are well taken care of and treated with respected. Various rules and regulation have been pronounced that limit the misuse and mistreat of animals during animal testing. Despite the regulations, animal welfare organizations still argue that it is unnecessary to perform animal testing as it is a cruel and inhumane practice. Animal testing is a promising practice which helps the medical field to introduce only effective drugs and products to the industry. Therefore animal testing should be embraced in the world and scientist should work with animal welfare organizations to introduce advanced regulations that favor animal testing and ensures animals are treated fairly.
References
Bohner, G., & Wanke, M. (2014). Attitudes and attitude change. London: Psychology Press.
Doke, S. K., & Dhawale, S. C. (2015). Alternatives to animal testing: A review. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal, 23(3), 223-229.
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