• Question: How do you feel about testing on animals

    Asked by lolua to Sarah, Derek, Dalya, Tim, Tom on 13 Jun 2011. This question was also asked by aiishii.
    • Photo: Sarah Thomas

      Sarah Thomas answered on 10 Jun 2011:

      A lot!

      I love animals and I have a puppy called Banjo, a guinea pig called Boris and 4 chickens called Maggie, Vera, Edna and Wilma.

      I strongly disagree with testing cosmetics and household chemicals like detergents on animals. A lot of make up and beauty products are tested on animals and for that reason I only buy my make up from certain brands. They don’t need to test these things on animals to find out if they are safe or not, there are lots of chemical tests that can be done instead.

      But when it comes to testing drugs and doing medical research that could save lots of people’s lives, then I feel that animal testing is necessary. The doctors have to know what side effects there could be and if the drug works and there is no other way to find this out except to test it on living things.

      In our country there are extremely strict rules on testing animals in medical research and the scientists have to ensure that any suffering to the animal is minimised and they are kept very comfortable. I once visited a lab near Cambridge where animal testing was done. They were testing vaccines on rabbits. The rabbits were beautiful and their houses were super clean and they were really cute and friendly. And this might sound weird but the scientists loved the rabbits. The rabbits were given an injection of proteins and afterwards they would take a blood sample and that was it. And each rabbit only had to have it done once every six months.

      When a new drug is discovered, it has to go through a huge number of tests. Firstly it gets tested “in vitro” which is on cells in an artificial environment. If the cells remain healthy, the drug passes to the next stage which is called “in vivo” testing = real life models. They usually start with fish or mice. If there are any negative side effects the drug is usually binned at that point and the testing stops. If the animals remain healthy, the drug passes to the next stage which is human testing. It can take years for a drug to pass all these tests but the scientists have to make sure it is safe for everyone.

      I care a lot about animals and I wouldn’t want them to be harmed but I do believe that animal testing to save human lives is necessary.

      Tell me what you think about testing on animals – I’d like to know.

    • Photo: Tim Millar

      Tim Millar answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      Its an essential part of new drug discovery at the moment and many of us are alive because of it. However, the need to replace, refine and reduce animals in research means that many of us are working on new models of human disease so that we will no longer have to use so many animals. My research uses human samples taken (with permission of course!) during surgery or after birth. This is tightly regulated as is the use of animals so that we do it properly and for the benefit of all.
      So at the moment, there is still a real need for animals in the search for new drugs.

      As for cosmetics, the European Union will ban, in 2013, the use of chemicals for cosmetics that have been tested on animals. This is a world wide ban so companies can’t test on animals in China for instance and then use those chemicals within europe. Part of my group are also working on human skin as a replacement for the animal test which are now standard for cosmetics. Hopefully in the near future, these tests will become more widespread for other chemicals which will become the drugs of the future.

    • Photo: Derek McKay-Bukowski

      Derek McKay-Bukowski answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      With all things, there needs to be a balance. If you say that everything should be tested on animals, then it is a bit pointless and very cruel. On the other hand, if you say that no animal testing should ever occur, then it might seem kind in the short term, but ultimately it could lead to more suffering. While much testing in the past has been clearly unnecessary, there are cases where testing has led to improvements for the lives of many… and that included animal lives and well as human ones.

      However, unlike human volunteers, who can be explained the risks and can understand the reasons for the experiment and the benefits for others, animals cannot do that. We have to make that choice for them, and this is a tough choice to make. We must be so careful that we are doing the right thing, but not lose sight of what we are trying to achieve. And yet maybe, those choices will be ones that will decided on the life or death, pain or healing of others in the future.

    • Photo: Tom Crick

      Tom Crick answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      I think that as long as the testing is appropriate and necessary e.g. for testing drugs for medical research before they go to human trials (basically to save lives) then I have no problem with animal testing. Millions of lives have been saved through drugs that were tested on animals.

      However, it seems cruel and unnecessary for the sake of a new lipstick or face-cream…

    • Photo: Dalya Soond

      Dalya Soond answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      Torn.

      I am actually an animal researcher, working with mice. I love animals and have found it very hard to do emotionally, but I am always amazed whenever I do a dissection about how incredible the body is.

      Actually, little secret, I had started a Ph.D. in America and dropped out not long after I started because I didn’t feel the work I was doing on animals was important enough to justify their use. The only reason I have started using animals again is that I believe that the info I will get is important enough to human health to use animals (and you really do need to use animals for certain types of biology experiments.)

      I think it is a personal judgement call, and I do not know any researcher who uses animals that takes their welfare lightly. We try to use as few as possible, and do the best experiments we can with them.

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