The debate of whether or not animals should be used to test humans’ scientific advances has for centuries. Opponents of animal testing argue that animals have a capacity to suffer so it is therefore unethical to use them as tools while proponents argue that testing animals is necessary for the advancement of saving human lives, and although it seems a middle ground has been reached for now, extremists on either end of the argument are still pushing their ideology.
Proponents to testing animals argue that it is necessary to continue advancing the sciences and saving human lives, and proponents often attack the argument of opponents of animal testing. It should be noted that this side of the argument does not promote animal cruelty. Proponents
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It should be noted that only a small fraction of opponents to animal testing want to outright ban using animals as test subjects. The majority of opponents advocate for harsher regulations to prevent malpractices on animals and to reduce the amount of animals for testing while searching for alternatives so that, in the future, animals will not have to be used as tools. Most opponents cite the Three R’s of animal testing. The first R is Replacement Alternatives which refers to methods which replace the use of animals in an area where animals would otherwise have been used. The second R is Reduction Alternatives which means that attempts should be made to use fewer animals to gain sufficient data to answer the question presented. The third R is Refinement Alternatives which refers to the husbandry and care of an animal to reduce its pain in the time it is used in the laboratory (http://3rs.ccac.ca/). Opponents argue that although there are regulations on using animals as test subjects, they are either not regulated enough or are not respectful to the rights of the animals being tested. For example, the Animal Welfare Act, the largest animal testing regulation in America, does not regulate testing on birds, mice and rats (Hope Ferdowsian). Therefore only 767622 animals fell under the Animal Welfare Act, and