As technology moves forward, there is less and less need for animal experimentation. Human genes cloned into microorganisms can yield more specific toxicology results, for example, than simply administering toxins to animals. While much scientific research cannot be adequately done without animals, commercial safety testing, such as by cosmetics companies, is increasingly being done without the use of animals. Meanwhile, improving the well-being of laboratory animals, such as providing an "enriched environment" for rats rather than keeping them isolated in traditional lab cages, can do much to ease the suffering of animals used in research.
Any discussion of animal testing pros and cons must acknowledge that certain kinds of animal research involve subjecting creatures to what can aptly be described as torture. According to the Humane Society International, animals are routinely force-fed, forced to inhale noxious compounds, deprived of food and water, physically restrained for prolonged periods, and burned; some of them reportedly even have their necks broken and are decapitated. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that nearly 100,000 animals suffered pain during experiments while not being administered any anesthesia. It is also a common practice for animals' eyes to be held open with clips for hours, even days, in the course of testing cosmetics products.
One of the leading arguments against animal testing is that it is simply a waste of scientific energy and resources, because the results of tests done on other species often cannot be reliably extrapolated to humans. For example, in a study at the Mayo Clinic by David Wiebers and his colleagues aimed at identifying drugs to treat ischemic stroke, the researchers found that 25 compounds that reduced the damage done by such events in cats, rodents and other animals had no beneficial effect whatsoever in people. And according to cell biologist Robin Lovell-Badge of the MRC National Institute for Medical Research in London, 94 percent of drugs that passed tests in animals failed in people. Unfortunately, the world of animal experimentation is rife with examples such as these.
