Persuasive Essay On Animal Testing

Animal testing is something that has occurred for many decades. Many believe that humans are treated superior to animals. This is known as "speciesism" (Garner). Even though using animals for testing can be needed in the medical world, the use of testing on animals is unethical and should be treated differently. The Animal Rights Act along with other movements have made great strides over the years to prove that there are many other options than testing on animals. While many scientists have changed their experiments from animals to in vitro, many still decide to use animals (Howard). The species of animals used widely varies, but 90% of testing occurs on mice and rats. These are commonly used for cancer and immune testing while primates

One of the first activist movements was the Animal Rights Movement in 1980. This led to a drastic decrease in the number of animals that were used for testing. They stated that 10 's of millions of animals are used for some sort of animal testing in a one-year time frame. During the research, the did, in fact, conclude that animals do suffer physically or mentally from the experiments they are used for. Also, many scientists argues that animals are needed for human health and product creations along with helping to find new things in the medical world. Two other major activist groups include the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals (ASPCA) and the Humane Society of America. Both of these welfare groups have been around for more than 100 years. Soon PETA took charge. PETA is People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. They displayed public demonstrations, boycotts and also many campaigns to liberate animal research. These efforts PETA put forward helped to reduce cosmetic testing. With the different movements that happened during this time had also led to a drop with fur sales (Leepson). In 1981, CAAT was created. This stands for, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing. This was a grant from cosmetic, toiletry and fragrance association. It was thought that this center would help to develop and enforce in vitro and other nonanimal testing methods. The CAAT was funded for around 300 different grants totaling up to $6 million to help with the knowledge and creation of in vitro research and safety of different products. Also, they helped to promote the creation and development of the three r 's and alternatives in biomedical research, safety, and product testing. CAAT is also well known for conducting workshops on reducing, refining, and replace, as well as animal welfare organizations and government