The lights that are reflecting off of the white shiny floor feel like they're gleaming directly into your eyes. No windows, no natural lighting, in fact, there's not a single thing in sight that isn't man-made. It's warm and stuffy. It smells clean, like hand sanitizer. As you walk through the isles you see hundreds of different pills, bottles, oils, creams, and balms. Every color in the rainbow sitting neatly packed. And, We don't see a small white bunny who was shaved, smeared with chemicals, and murdered two weeks later. We don't see dogs who have never breathed fresh air or touched grass. Opponents say animal testing is cruel, abusive, and immoral. Supporters argue animal testing is for the greater good and could save many lives.

An article by Stanford Medicine explains, 'The use of animals in some forms of biomedical research remains essential to the discovery of the causes, diagnoses, and treatment of disease and suffering in humans and animals.' The article also explains how animal testing is critical for multiple reasons. First of all, animals are very similar to humans; mice share more than 98% of us. Secondly, animals are vulnerable to the same health issues as humans, for example, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and so on. Lastly, animals have a shorter lifespan than humans, so that scientists can study them throughout their lives and generations. According to Stanford Medicine, it is a critical element in understanding how a disease processes and interacts with a whole, living biological system.' 

95% of all animals used in medical research in the United States are Rodents. Mostly rats and mice are bred to use in the laboratory. There are laws around the world regarding animal testing based on the 4 R's, replacement, reduction, refinement, and rehabilitation. 

Replacement refers to when 'vitro methods,' i.e., computer programs, models, and alternative methods, can be used, and Testing on living animals should not occur. 

Reduction refers to scientists using methods to get enough research with the smallest amount of animals necessary.

Refinement refers to keeping the amount of pain, stress, and suffering to a minimum for the animal. 

Rehabilitation refers to the recovery and aftercare of the Testing. 

On the other hand, an article by the National Library of Medicine discusses how 'It is well-known and projected that animals are rarely good models for the human body due to their different anatomical and physiological properties. Hence, it is not always worthwhile to try to infect animals with diseases they would not normally contract.' 'In many cases, the outcome can be disastrous. It can harm and kill humans and not prove worthy enough by hurting the animals and wasting resources'. The article explains how 'Animal testing wastes time and resources by misleading researchers.' For example, scientists who were developing the oral polio vaccine faced a big misconception because of their experiments with monkeys, which also enhanced the suffering of the animals. 

Animal testing has many opposing sides like pain, suffering, and the death of the animals. 'Testing potentially includes the jabbing of needles, storage in cramped spaces, and lack of quality/quantity in nutrition. Some animals may die throughout the experiment or be killed after their use, and others may lose their limbs, eyesight, hearing, muscle coordination, and so on' Animal Testing is also expensive because of the costs of food, housing, and the cost of breeding or buying the animal itself. Animal Testing is also not necessarily accurate because the animals are kept in an unnatural environment and placed under stress. 

Jeremy Bentham once said, "The question is not, Can they reason? Nor can they talk, but they can suffer." 

When I first started researching this project, I was very biased. I firmly believed that animal testing was not okay under any circumstances. But now, I'm torn. Both sides of animal testing are complicated. On the one hand, the animals being tested are suffering, which can be very cruel. Still, that animal's suffering is potentially saving the lives of many animals and humans. Is it fair to force that animal into sacrificing itself for the greater good, though? 

Although some laboratory takes excellent care of their animals, the four R's are not always in place, and instead of animal testing, it becomes animal abuse. Also, even when the aftercare is provided, the animal is still in pain when the procedure occurs. In some cases, animal testing is vital to make sure the medication or product is safe. As long as the 4 R's are firmly in place, the scientists doing the experiments are responsible, and the animals are well protected and taken care of. Animal testing is okay because it is for the greater good. 

Sources 

Herrmann, Kathryn, and Kimberely Jayne, editors. Animal Experimentation: Working

     Towards a Paradigm Change. E-book ed., Koninklijke Brill NV. Document,

     chapter 24.

Mandal, Jharna, and Subhash Chandra Parija. "Ethics of Involving Animals in

     Research." National Library of Medicine, National Center for Biotechnology

     Information, 2013, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3745669/. Accessed

     16 May 2022.

Sather Health. OCF Berkeley Education, 10 Aug. 2013, www.ocf.berkeley.edu/

     ~sather/the-debate-on-animal-experimentation/. Accessed 12 May 2022.

"Why Animal Research?" Stanford Medicine, med.stanford.edu/animalresearch/

     why-animal-research.html. Accessed 23 May 2022.