Animal Testing is a Cruel and Useless

Nelly, a beagle puppy, had a very rough start since the day she was born. She was used for testing in a laboratory, she was sold for experimentation and was later abandoned. As time went by, she was shot and was left for dead with two other assassinated puppies in a locked cage with little space to breathe or move. They were left on the side of a lonely road, lost, somewhere in Florida. Nelly, the beagle, deserved better. All of the other animals used for testing, deserve better.Animal testing is a major problem around the US and around the world, it needs to be addressed.Preview 3 main points (1 point each = 3 points): animal testing, why is it wrong, how to stop itEstablish Credibility (1  points): As a pet owner, I was interested in the topic so I did further research.

I. First Main Point “ description of the problem (3   points): Animal testing is a cruel and useless, it does not work and only causes harm to hundreds of thousands of harmless animals.A. Subpoint: Animal testing is based when scientists use animals in studies and experiments in order to prove a theory or see how they react to a chemical or trial. Each year, millions of animals including dogs, cats, monkeys, and mice experience cruelty because of these tests and experiments. Throughout this time, the creatures have to breathe in test substances and run the risk that they are toxic.1. Sub-subpoint: As stated on the BBC website, scientists experiment on animals for basic research, investigating potential treatments for human disease, safety and quality control testing of drugs and to explore how organisms function. (Katsnelson, 2013)

Most people can agree that animal experimentation is not only outdated but it is immoral and painful as well. However, there are a lot of people who have wrong perception that this practice is necessary for medicine to keep developing and improving.

There are several cases that show what they have to go through and the cruelty tested animals experiment. For example, in the state of Virginia scientists forgot to remove one of the rats they used in their experiment out of the cage, and took it to a cage washing system. When the cages are washed, they reach temperatures higher than 180 degrees Celsius, causing the rat to suffer and ultimately die.

In another experiment, mice were put in a swimming pool, after a specific time interval researchers placed a wire net that drowned them and did not let them get out. They were underwater for about 30 seconds, to see the effects of underwater trauma. This is an unnecessary practice and torture for the test subjects. And like these, every day, hundreds of thousands of animals, including cats, monkeys, rabbits and dogs, are forced to suffer in laboratories and undergo burning and uncomfortable experiments.

One of the first disagreements over animal testing took place about 60 years ago with a published article about Pepper, a dog that was used as a test subject. Pepper was a farmer's dog that was kidnapped from his property and was later sold into experimentation. Scientists tried to place an experimental cardiac pacemaker in his body, which led to the dog dying.(Transition point) Furthermore, this is why animal testing is ineffective.II. Second Main Point - description of the cause or causes (3  points):

Animals are very different from human beings, making them unsuccessful test subjectsA. Subpoint: There are many variances between animals and people that make them poor models for humans, including anatomic and cellular differences.Sub-subpoint:
Several years ago, scientist found a relationship between cancer and tobacco use. There was strong data that backed up this information, so it was believed to be true.

Researchers used animal and tested them to see how their bodies would react to the tobacco and whether or not it caused them to have cancer. After testing it frequent times, the tobacco did not seem to produce cancer in the animals, so this theory was rejected. Therefore, warnings regarding the dangers of cigarettes and tobacco were rule as false for many years.
This shows that only a small portion of substances that are known to produce cancer in humans, cause cancer in animals as well, which makes them poor models.

There was another medicine that was used to treat arthritis. After being tested in monkeys several times it was found to be safe, therefore could be used in humans. This medicine has now caused more than three hundred and twenty thousand heart attacks and strokes and about one hundred and forty thousand deaths around the world.

According to cruelty free international, out of 93 dangerous drug side effects, only 19% could have been predicted by animal tests. (Against Animal Testing, 2018)

About two years ago in Europe, a drug to treat Parkinson's disease was tested in animals to see if it was safe. It was ruled to be fine after it was given to four different species of animals, including mice, rats, dogs, and monkeys and they were all fine. However, when given to people it killed one volunteer and caused other four volunteers to suffer with severe brain damage, ruining their lives forever.

(Transition  point) So what other methods can be used?II. Third Main Point “ description of the solution (3 ?? points):
There are other alternatives researchers can use instead of animal testing.A. Subpoint: There is no evidence that animal experiments were needed and essential in making major medical advances. If enough money and resources were dedicated to animal-free substitutes, other solutions could be used.

1. Sub-subpoint: According to www.peta.org, alternatives to animal testing include sophisticated tests using human cells and tissues, advanced computer-modeling techniques, and studies with human volunteers. Investigators have created organ on chips that can be used instead of animals. In these chips human cells are grown to do perform the functions of the organs and the organ system as well as to simulate the structure of them. (Peta, 2018)

With the new technology, we now have computer models that can show how diseases progress inside the body and models that mimic human biology. It has been found that these models are an accurate prediction of how medicines will react in humans, without having to use animals which most of the time are unreliable.

Also, there is a method called micro dosing, that can provide fundamental evidence on how safe an experimental drug is before giving them to humans, especially in large-scale trials. With this way of testing, volunteers are given a very small dose of the medicine and it is only one time. Then, they are monitored closely to see how it reacts in the body and the possible effects of the drug.

Mechanized human-patient simulators that are able to breathe, bleed, talk, and even die have shown to be better at teaching students than exercises that implicate using animals.(Transition  point) In conclusion,Conclusion “ To Include:

Summary Statement (1  points): Animal testing is still a huge concern today that harms millions of animals per year; however, other alternatives such as organ-on chips, computer models and micro dosing can eradicate this problem.Revisit the Thesis (1  points): The evidence provided shows that animal testing is not effective, and that they are poor models for humans.Reviewed Three Main Points (1 point each = 3 points): animal testing, why is it wrong, how to stop itEnding Statement (5 points)“ try to finish with a BANG

So picture yourself in a place you don't know, locked up without any room for movement. People you do not know come and go every couple of hours and rub things into your skin that burns and makes it bleed. They put substances in your eyes that makes you go blind. Imagine being alone and helpless, with people who is waiting to see what makes you die. These are only a few things animals go through during testing, a change needs to be made.(3) APA Style

References

Against Animal Testing. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2018, from https://www.crueltyfreeinternational.org/why-we-do-it/arguments-against-animal-testing
Peta. (2018). Alternatives to Animal Testing. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-experimentation/alternatives-animal-testing/
Katsnelson, A. (2013, June 10). Future - Will we ever... eliminate animal experimentation? Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130609-will-we-ever-end-animal-testing

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