Life Without Animal Testing

A world without animal testing is possible.

It’s a world where millions of animals get to live free, happy and healthy lives! With great scientific advances being made regularly, there has never been a better time to abandon the inhumane and completely unnecessary practice of using defenseless animals for experiments.

Why are animals used in testing?

Originally, laws put in place well over fifty years ago made it compulsory for cosmetics and drugs to be tested on animals before these products were declared fit for human use. Since the laws were passed, mice, rats, rabbits and guinea pigs have been the most common species used for experiments, and cats and dogs are also used in certain tests. Beagles are the most common dog breed used because of their particularly docile nature. They’re regularly used in toxicology experiments where they’re filled with experimental drugs until they die: it’s a miserable and painful existence.

In recent years, many countries have banned animal testing, yet each year, more than 100 million animals still die in laboratories. This needs to end.

What are the alternatives?

Instead of using our furry friends, there are other avenues we can go down when it comes to testing.

In-vitro techniques

While there is still a long way to go in understanding the true effectiveness of in-vitro techniques, there have been many positive developments in recent times. In-vitro is Latin for “within the glass”, and refers to performing a procedure in a controlled environment outside of a living organism. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, there is evidence to suggest that in-vitro studies could provide more rapid, precise and relevant information than some animal studies.

In silico testing

Another area where there have been promising breakthroughs is “in silico” modelling. In silico is a term that means “performed on a computer or via computer simulation.” In particular, in silico toxicology is considered to be a useful alternative to animal testing when it comes to analyzing and predicting the toxicity of chemicals.

Human volunteers

What better way to know if something is fit for humans than by testing it on humans themselves? From advanced brain imaging and recording techniques to “microdosing” (where volunteers are given extremely small one-time drug doses) there are many ways we can safely take the place of animals.

XCELLR8

A recipient of the Lush Prize, XCELLR8 offers ethically sound and scientifically advanced alternatives to animal tests for the cosmetics industry. They provide complete replacement tests for cosmetics companies and their raw material suppliers, and train researchers and young students to take these alternative technologies forward.

A future without animal testing

With all these options available to us, there’s simply no need to use animals when carrying out experiments. Imagine a world without needless suffering for defenseless animals, where millions of them get to live a life free from cruelty. Imagine a world where we use the latest and most advanced technologies to give us more accurate and cruelty-free results. If we all work together and advocate for animal-free testing, we won’t have to imagine.

Here’s a list of places that have banned animal testing (three cheers!):

- European Union

- São Paulo, Brazil

- India

- Israel

- New Zealand

- Turkey

- Norway

- UK

If, like us, you feel strongly about animal-free testing, you can make a difference by visiting Humane Society International.

You might also like to learn about our Lush Prize – a fund created to eliminate animal testing from the cosmetics industry.