Animal Testing History

To many people today, see animals as pets that are part of the family, but to others animals are objects that are being used for animal experimentation. Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and in medicine testing, is the use of non-human animals in experiments that seek to control the variables that affect the behavior or biological system under study. Animal testing has a history that is fraught with controversy and debate, although most of this occurred as a response to increasing awareness around the use of animals for experimental purposes. Animal testing had a rapid increase in the mid nineteenth century that led to the development of numerous agencies aimed at stopping animal testing. Throughout the
Sometimes the tests don’t go as planned and the animal dies either the medicine is too much or the dose is. In the article, “The World’s Largest Animal Testing Programme – Even Worse Than You Thought” the author encounters that “the world’s largest animal testing programme – which has already killed an estimated 200,000 animals – is killing tens of thousands more animals than the law says it should” (Peta). Thousands of animals are being killed every day to get find health cures for humans. Since technology has improved over the years, maybe there will be less animal testing. There are endangered species like Chimpanzees that are facing high risk of extinction. In the article, “Endangered species used in medical experiment” the author clarifies that “Chimps were used because we have the same DNA make up. They are used in various experiments as animal models for human diseases because like humans, they can contract nearly all diseases like HIV, Hepatitis A, B, and C. They are also used in research like heartless transplant, alcoholism, aging, social and maternal deprivation, and oral contraceptives, as well as skull impact research” (Ortigas). Many chimps are privately owned as pets, and then bought for research programs. Using the chimps as laboratory subjects are just one of the factors why these animals are critically endangered. If it works on an animal, it might not work on humans. The reaction of some drugs in an animal’s body is quite different from the reaction of humans. In the book Animal Welfare, by Sylvia Engdahl, an American writer, known best for science fiction states that “Due to the fact that animals are in an unnatural environment, they won’t react to the drug in the same way compared to their potential reaction in a natural experiment” (Engdahl). Scientist fail most of the times with their studies because they do not know how it will react to a human’s body. It’s highly likely that one test will work on