Animal Testing: A Clarification On Which Animals Are Used

Hello everyone,

For today's post, I thought I would focus on the term cruelty-free and what it means, as well as which particular animals are used for testing and experimentation. 

It's a little embarrassing but, when I was younger, I assumed that when a product wasn't tested on animals, it was a bad thing. In my little uninformed head, at the time, I thought that if it wasn't tested on animals, it meant the company didn't care about them and their safety. I thought that if a product wasn't tested on animals, it would hurt my own animals during bath time. 

Oh, how times have changed. 

I'm happy to inform you all that I am now well aware of the cruelty behind animal testing and what it means for a product to be cruelty-free. 

Animal testing is a way for researchers and companies to test their products/drugs before selling them on the market. Researchers also find this practice useful for testing diseases, drugs such as OxyContin, and chemicals. Although there are many humane alternatives, many companies are still involved with this practice such as Avon, Victoria's Secret, Almay, and many others. 

When a company or lab tests on animals, they choose to experiment on:

• Rats
• Mice
• Rabbits
• Guinea pigs
• Cats
• Dogs (like the beagle)
• Primates (like the chimpanzee)

It is widely known that these particular animals are used for animal testing. However, as I read Wikipedia's page on Cruelty-Free, it failed to mention the testing on cats, dogs, and primates. Here is the passage before I entered my addition: 

Animals such as rabbits, rats, mice, and guinea pigs are forced to eat or inhale substances, or have a cosmetic ingredient rubbed onto their shaved skin, eyes or ears every day for 28 or 90 days to see if they have an allergic reaction. Then they are killed and cut open to examine the effects the ingredient has on internal organs. These tests are also done with pregnant animals who, after much suffering, are killed along with the fetus. In more prolonged carcinogen tests, rats are force-fed a cosmetic ingredient over two years, monitored for cancer, and then killed.^[7] 

“Typically a young rabbit is tightly constrained in a box so that he is unable to move... Clips sometimes hold his eyelids open. Anesthesia is not generally administered. A researcher applies a concentrated substance to the outer layer of the eye and observes over a span days or weeks for responses such as blindness, bleeding, hemorrhaging and ulceration. At the end, the rabbits are generally killed.”

— Megan Erin Gallagher, Student Article^[8]

Luckily, Wikipedia allows for us to edit the pages. I quickly added the other animals that are tested on. This is a great way for people to help each other out while educating others on topics. Here is the newly edited passage:

Animals such as rabbits, rats, mice, and guinea pigs are forced to eat or inhale substances, or have a cosmetic ingredient rubbed onto their shaved skin, eyes or ears every day for 28 or 90 days to see if they have an allergic reaction. Then they are killed and cut open to examine the effects the ingredient has on internal organs. These tests are also done with pregnant animals who, after much suffering, are killed along with the fetus. In more prolonged carcinogen tests, rats are force-fed a cosmetic ingredient over two years, monitored for cancer, and then killed.^[7]

“Typically a young rabbit is tightly constrained in a box so that he is unable to move... Clips sometimes hold his eyelids open. Anesthesia is not generally administered. A researcher applies a concentrated substance to the outer layer of the eye and observes over a span days or weeks for responses such as blindness, bleeding, hemorrhaging and ulceration. At the end, the rabbits are generally killed.”

— Megan Erin Gallagher, Student Article^[8]

Primates, dogs, such as the Beagle, and cats are used for invasive experimentation as well. Many laboratories use these species to test drugs, chemicals, and diseases, whether old or new.

I think it's incredibly important for people to know which animals are being tested on in labs. I'm sure if people read about dogs getting tested on, rather than rats, advocacy efforts would increase due to dogs' domestic status. Unfortunately, domestic or not, animals of various species are still being tested on. To learn more about what you can do to help these animals, click here. 

Lastly, if you would like to shop for cruelty-free products, look for a little pink bunny symbol, a black leaping bunny symbol, or simply the words cruelty-free on the back of the product. An easier way to shop for cosmetics and all of your daily needs is with an app. The app I use is called Cruelty-Free from the App Store. 

Until next time! 

Nala