Cruelty To Animals

Remember the time when that ASPCA commercial came on begging you to donate money to their organization? Where did it to the point you didn’t watch or turned it off? Shutting off the commercial won’t save the millions of animals that are killed due to space shortage. Not only that, animals are killed for more reasons than just running out space. Hunting, animal testing, fur and skin industry, and abuse are the big culprits of killing off animals. Although, many groups have formed to protect these innocent animals, some groups who have formed as early as the mid 1800’s. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) was formed in April of 1866 by Henry Bergh. This seemed to change the tone in attitudes in 1890 when scientists

… [animals] continue to be needlessly slaughtered to satisfy the demands of thoughtless people who themselves remain entrapped in unnecessary fashion” (Oleg Cassini, 1999.) Since using the development of fake leather and fur, real fur is commonly prized. You see tons of famous people walking the red carpet with fur draping over their shoulders. Most of the time, that fur is from the red fox kits. These foxes are the most common that are trapped in cages and ranched for their fur. “Some who reflect upon this subject for the first time will wonder how such cruelty can have been permitted to continue in these days of civilisation, and no doubt if men of education saw with their own eyes what takes place under their sanction, the system would have been put to an end long ago.” (Charles Darwin, 1978). To sell expensive fur, you must either break the necks of smaller animals, electrocute them, put up to 50 of them in a gas box, or poison the animal with pesticides. Now, is the skin and fur really worth the death of animals? This fur and skin industry is linked with another animal cruelty, trapping. Trapping may be one of the most painful ways an animal can suffer. They use wire snares that tighten the legs, chest, neck, and arms as the animal is struggling to get away, resulting in a long, painful

“The question is not, "Can they reason?" nor, "Can they talk?" but rather, "Can they suffer?’”(Jeremy Bentham, 1832) .Whether we should use animals for testing or not. Some would say it’s beneficial for the human race while others look at it as a form of cruelty. A high number of people, according to polls, state that they would rather like to see an alternative to testing. While many say that animal testing must be done to guarantee safety, it isn’t actually safe. Products tested on animals may be poisonous to humans but companies use labels stating “may be dangerous” for liability purposes.“Testing cosmetics on animals is a cruel, outdated and unnecessary practice. Our nation’s largest trading partner — the European Union — has banned the sale of animal-tested cosmetics and proven it is possible to produce safe cosmetics without harming animals.” (Bob Barker, 2006). The reason laboratories don’t want to find an alternative is because of the time, work, money, and they take an observation. One alternative that was developed was microdosing. Microdosing is giving humans small doses of the drugs for testing. As for alternatives for fur and skin, numerous companies offer faux fur and leather which is almost exactly the same texture, color, and visual appearance. Overpopulation can be solved by spaying and neuter animals, not intentionally breeding, and adopting animals from a local shelter. By