Life Sciences Commons^™

The Animal Slave Trade: Brutality On The Road To Research

Close Up Reports

The HSUS is working on several fronts to stop the exploitation of our nation's pets. In January, we were instrumental in establishing a coalition to abolish pound seizure-the practice of relinquishing pound and shelter animals for research purposes. Consisting of 11 of the country's leading animal welfare organizations, The National Coalition to Protect Our Pets will be working with local groups to outlaw pound seizure on a state-by-state basis. HSUS investigators will continue to trace the road to research, and we'll be taking legal action against both dealers and research centers whenever necessary. In our effort tore- r duce the …

Alternatives To Aversive Procedures With Animals In The Psychology Teaching Setting, Jeffrey A. Kelly

Experimentation Collection

In this paper, we will consider the treatment of laboratory animals in psychology instruction and will focus on practical alternatives to traditional practices that cause pain and distress to animals. While the discussion will draw on psychology for examples, many of the issues apply equally to the instruction of students in other courses of study, including medicine, veterinary medicine, biology, and physiology.

Animal Pain, Bernard E. Rollin

Experimentation Collection

Some time ago, I received a telephone call from an eminent primatologist asking me to give the keynote address at a scientific seminar on animal pain. My first response was to express surprise that they were inviting a philosopher. His reply was remarkable, if only for its rarity among scientists: "The truly interesting and important issues concerning pain in animals are not scientific ones," he said. "They are moral, philosophical, and conceptual ones. And the total failure of science to engage or even acknowledge these issues discredits biomedical science and weakens its conceptual base." I hope to show you that …

The Imbalance Between Experiment And Theory In Biology: The Need For Theory-Directed Modeling, M. L. Fidelman, D. C. Mikulecky

Experimentation Collection

In biological and biomedical research, the vast majority of resources are focused on conducting experiments. Most of these experiments utilize animals. Only a tiny amount of resources is spent on theory and modeling. It is our contention and the basic theme of this paper that the imbalance between theory and experiment in biology produces very poor science. The implications of which are that many of the experiments conducted have little real scientific meaning or value and, therefore, go hand-in-hand with unnecessary animal use and suffering. Given the finite resources available for research, the redirection of significant resources from an almost …

Three Blind Mice, See How They Run: A Critique Of Behavioral Research With Animals, Michael A. Giannelli

Experimentation Collection

Animal research has been a traditionally accepted and respected part of modern psychology from its earliest days. The prevalent view of animals in contemporary psychology has origins far more basic than the scientific method. Its roots are deeply imbedded in Judaeo-Christian culture, a tradition which postulates a wide gulf between humankind and the animal world. The Darwinian revolution and the ethological outlook it fostered, while of immense biological significance, has for the most part been neglected by modern American comparative psychologists in favor of a positivistic-behaviorist orientation with a heavy reliance upon laboratory experimentation.

In recent years, opposition to animal …

Anthropomorphism Is Not A Four-Letter Word, Randall Lockwood

Experimentation Collection

Most animal scientists are directly or indirectly instructed to avoid any hint of anthropomorphism, yet it is an approach that is invariably applied by scientists and lay people alike. Science may have gained some objectivity in discarding this common view of animals, but it has gone overboard in its rejection of the concept of the continuity of human and animal experiences. I hope to outline how an anthropomorphic perspective can be applied in ways that are a service to science and the animals themselves.