Animal testing. To what extend do you agree or disagree?

Everything has two sides and animal testing is not an exception. In recently years, it has been a controversial topic in scientific field. However, I concur with the people taking issue with others on that point.

On the one hand, there are several reasons why many proponents support animal testing. Firstly, it has yielded substantial benefits for humanity. All mammals, including humans, are descended from common ancestors, and all are biologically similar. Therefore, they probably share the same disorders. In reality, conducting research on animals is frequented in the pharmaceutical industry, and contemporary animal research contributes demonstrably to major advances in medical field. For instance, experiments in which dogs had their pancreases removed led to the discovery of insulin, critical to the safeguarding against the side-effects of diabetes. Secondly, animal testing has also been instrumental in stalling endangered species from extinction. If vaccines were not tested on animals, millions of animals would have succumbed to rabies or distemper diseases.

On the other hand, I would argue that researching on animal has some drawbacks. Firstly, animal testing is cruel and inhumane. Discriminating against animals because they do not have the cognitive ability is the same as we do with human beings having mental impairments. According to Humane Society International, animals used in experiments are commonly subjected to forced inhalation or even prolonged periods of physical restraint. Therefore, while suffering is undesirable, it is speciesism to experiment on them but refrain from doing like that on humans. Additionally, alternative testing methods now exist that can replace the need for animals. With the prevalence of advanced technology, research methodologies have changed fundamentally in many fields. To elaborate, computer models, such as virtual reconstructions of human molecular structures, can predict the toxicity of substances without invasive experiments on animals.

To conclude, while it is true that there is some merits in animal testing, I am inclined to the idea that we should show restraint for what we have done.