We need to stand together against animal-abuse in America

Vidu said:

I saw this video about researchers using a dog to play with his genes to make his nails glow and stuff, and they still use rats/mice in research, and what else. Animals have same feelings and needs as us, it sits in a lab all day and needing to give blood, vets are abusing animals today also with forcing operations on them. We need to stand together against animal-abuse, we can`t use them to find cures for diseases, what is the point of curing people if other beings are suffering?

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Except we do use animals in research to understand treat and cure human diseases.

Vidu said:

I saw this video about researchers using a dog to play with his genes to make his nails glow and stuff, and they still use rats/mice in research, and what else. Animals have same feelings and needs as us, it sits in a lab all day and needing to give blood, vets are abusing animals today also with forcing operations on them. We need to stand together against animal-abuse, we can`t use them to find cures for diseases, what is the point of curing people if other beings are suffering?

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If research using mice ultimately means potentially millions of human lives being saved, then as much as I might feel bad for mice, the price of the lives of mice is incomparable to the value of human beings.

Ultimately, yes, I do believe that the lives of sentient, sapient beings--humans--is more important than that of mice.

If it were possible to achieve the same goals without using living things for research, then I would enthusiastically support that alternative. But unless you are aware of an alternative, then it is ultimately suggesting that we should allow for the potential deaths and sufferings of millions of human beings in order to assuage our guilt over mice.

-CryptoLutheran

ViaCrucis said:

If it were possible to achieve the same goals without using living things for research, then I would enthusiastically support that alternative. But unless you are aware of an alternative, then it is ultimately suggesting that we should allow for the potential deaths and sufferings of millions of human beings in order to assuage our guilt over mice.

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My understanding is that the combination of advanced computers with detailed knowledge of the various biochemical mechanisms that occur within cells make it possible to replace much of the research with accurate simulations. And you don't have to clean up the poop afterwards. I am not aware of the full scope of this alternative, but it likely has practical advantages in addition to the elimination of the abuse that troubles @Vidu (and me, and you).

Vidu said:

I saw this video about researchers using a dog to play with his genes to make his nails glow and stuff, and they still use rats/mice in research, and what else. Animals have same feelings and needs as us, it sits in a lab all day and needing to give blood, vets are abusing animals today also with forcing operations on them. We need to stand together against animal-abuse, we can`t use them to find cures for diseases, what is the point of curing people if other beings are suffering?

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IMHO, it is deeply immoral to cause the suffering of another being for frivolous reasons. People who cause little bunny rabbits to go blind just to create yet another mascara need to be considered criminals.

It becomes more complicated when the vivisection helps reduce human suffering and deaths. For example, it was the vivisection on dogs that directly led to the development of heart-lung machines. I think that compassionate, intelligent people can have different opinions on this.

For myself, I do not want to benefit from the suffering of an animal. In fact, even though I will eat meat, I want laws against the cruel treatment of the factory farm animals, and I want their deaths to be pain free.

There are many verses in the Torah that require the compassionate treatment of animals. For example, you cannot yoke two different animals to the same cart, because one will pull more strongly, causing suffering to the other. Even the emotions of animals are valued--you just chase away the mother bird before you take her eggs so that she will not experience alarm and anxiety.