• Question: do you test on animals and why because it is extremely cruel?

    Asked by totallygnarly to Charlie, Eoin, Jemma, Julian, Steve on 17 Mar 2011. This question was also asked by mazza, jackpuddin.
    • Photo: Charlie Ryan

      Charlie Ryan answered on 16 Mar 2011:

      Hi totallygnarly again! I’ve answerred a similar question on anaimal testing before, so you might want to look back at that!
      but no i don’t test on animals (i’m an aerospace engineer!). I think it might be ok if it helps with a cure for cancer or some other life threatening disease, but aprt from that, anaimal testing just seems wrong.

    • Photo: Stephen Moss

      Stephen Moss answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Hi Totallygnarly

      In the UK we have some of the strictest laws in the world about using animals in experiments, and cruelty is simply not allowed. Anyone who does anything cruel to an animal would be immediately stopped and could potentially end up in prison. In fact there is far more cruelty by pet owners to their pets, which is much harder to spot and more difficult to regulate.

      And don’t forget that animals get lots of the same diseases as us. To give one example, the Briard dog, a popular pet, has a genetic problem that causes it to go blind by the time it’s about two. Some humans have exactly the same condition. A while ago some eye researchers developed a new gene therapy to treat this specific type of blindness, and naturally they tested it on the Briard dog first. The great news was that the dogs didn’t go blind, and the human patients were safely tested too – so both animals and people benefited!

    • Photo: Julian Rayner

      Julian Rayner answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Totally gnarly.

      This is a really tough topic, and there are no absolute answers. Testing things that aren’t necessary, like cosmetics, on animals? Absolutely extremely cruel. Testing a drug that could save the lives of millions of children on animals when the regulatory authorities say that you can’t try it on people until you are pretty sure you aren’t going to make them sick? Different question.

      There are lots of emotions around this question, and fair enough, it’s a tough one. My personal belief is that there are some situations when testing on animals is OK, as long as it is 1) Absolutely necessary; 2) Likely to lead to direct benefit to very sick humans and 3) Is done ethically and responsibly.

      Still, it’s just my opinion. What is yours?

    • Photo: Jemma Ransom

      Jemma Ransom answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Im going to have to contradict you there I’m afraid, because there a lot of misconceptions about how lab animals are used.

      Scientists use animals in their experiments only when they have to, and it is illegal to make, or allow an animal to suffer. The use of animals is very tightly regulated by the Home Office, and we have to be licensed by the government to perform animal work. They insist (as do we) that every animal used is fully justified, and that there is no other way of doing the experiment. Also, every institution has to have one or more vets to ensure that all these rules are adhered to. Moreover, if something goes wrong and an animal does suffer, the scientist involved can be prosecuted and sent to prison, and the institute can be shut down by the Home Office. So it is all really well regulated, and animal suffering is not allowed. Also, it is illegal to test anything out on animals before it has been worked through on animal models – so we are legally obliged to test certain things out in animals.

      That being said, my research does not involve animal work directly because the questions I’m answering do not require this. I instead use animal cells that have been transformed such that they continue to grow indefinitely, this reduces the number of animals required by our lab. The only reason under which I would use animals is if the benefit to society outweighed any harm caused to animals, and that is how we are regulated as scientists.

    • Photo: Eoin Lettice

      Eoin Lettice answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Hi totallygnarly,
      No, my work doesn’t involve testing on animals. I’m all about the plants!
      Testing on animals should only be done when it is absolutely necessary and there is no alternative. Some mediceines for humans needed to be tested before they are given to the public. So, animal testing has improved human health.
      Animal testing is very tightly controlled and monitored in the UK to make sure that no animal suffers unduly and that it is only done when really necessary.

      Eoin

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