what is a thesis statement for animal testing

Animal Testing Thesis Statement

Animal experimentation has been a controversial topic for many years. Some people believe that it is necessary in order to advance medical research, while others argue that it is cruel and inhumane.

There are pros and cons to both sides of the argument. On one hand, animal testing can be vital in developing new treatments and medications for diseases. Without animal testing, many life-saving drugs would not be available today. On the other hand, animal testing is often criticized because it can be cruel and inhumane. Animals in experiments are often subjected to pain and suffering, and sometimes they do not survive.

Ultimately, the decision of whether or not to support animal experimentation is a personal one. There are valid arguments on both sides of the issue, and it is up to each individual to decide what they believe is right.

There has been a dispute between animal rights activists and scientists about the morality of using animals in laboratory testing. It is also contentious whether utilizing animals for such research aids in the discovery of cures. If there are no other options and if it is probable that this will advance medical research, I believe that animals may be used for experimental study.

Animal testing is the use of animals in experiments and development projects to determine the toxicity, efficacy or side effects of substances such as drugs, chemicals, cosmetics, vaccines and other products. In many countries around the world animals are still suffering in laboratories with little hope for relief. According to the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), federal law regulates the treatment of animals in research, exhibition, transport, and by dealers.

The AWA does not extend to birds, rats of the genus Rattus, and mice of the genus Mus, which together account for more than 95% of all animals used in research.(1)Animal Experimentation Up 80 Percent In Last Decade) There has been an increase in the use of animals in experiments, although the number of rats and mice used has decreased slightly.

While animal rights advocates argue that people and animals are equivalent, I believe that people and animals cannot be compared; as a result, the death of an animal can never be the same as that of a person. As a result, causing animals to die for science in order to save human lives may be considered ethical to some extent if it aids scientific progress and is beneficial to humanity in general.

Animal testing has been a controversial issue for many years. Some people believe that animal testing is cruel and inhumane, and that it should be stopped immediately. Others believe that animal testing is necessary in order to continue making progress in medical research.

There are pros and cons to both sides of the argument, but I believe that the pros of animal testing outweigh the cons. The main reason I believe this is because animal testing has led to significant medical advances over the years, and has helped save countless lives.

One example of how animal testing has led to a medical breakthrough is the development of penicillin. Penicillin is an antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections, and it was first discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming. Fleming’s discovery of penicillin was accidental; he was studying bacteria in a petri dish when he noticed that a fungus had contaminated the dish.

Fleming observed that the bacteria were not growing near the fungus, and he realized that the fungus must be producing a substance that was inhibiting the growth of the bacteria. He isolated this substance, which we now know as penicillin, and found that it was effective at killing bacteria.

Fleming’s discovery of penicillin was a major medical breakthrough, and it would not have been possible without animal testing. In order to test whether or not penicillin was effective at treating bacterial infections, Fleming injected it into mice. He found that the mice who were injected with penicillin survived, while the mice who were not injected with penicillin died.

This experiment proved that penicillin was effective at treating bacterial infections in animals, and it paved the way for further research into the drug’s effects on humans. In 1942, penicillin was used to treat a patient with a serious bacterial infection for the first time, and it was found to be effective.

Since then, penicillin has been used to treat millions of people with bacterial infections, and has saved countless lives. Animal testing played a vital role in the development of this life-saving drug, and without it, we would not have the medical advances that we do today.

Animal testing has also played a role in the development of vaccines. Vaccines are used to prevent diseases, and they work by causing the body to develop immunity to a particular disease.

The first vaccine was developed in 1796 by Edward Jenner, and it was used to prevent smallpox. Jenner observed that milkmaids who had contracted cowpox (a mild form of smallpox) were immune to smallpox. He vaccinate people with cowpox in order to give them immunity to smallpox, and his experiment was successful.

Since then, vaccines have been developed for many other diseases, including polio, measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox. Animal testing has played a vital role in the development of these life-saving vaccines.

For example, the polio vaccine was developed in 1952 by Jonas Salk. In order to test whether or not the vaccine was safe and effective, Salk injected it into monkeys. He found that the monkeys who were injected with the vaccine did not develop polio, while the monkeys who were not vaccinated developed the disease.

This experiment proved that the polio vaccine was safe and effective, and it paved the way for further research into the vaccine. In 1955, the polio vaccine was declared safe for use in humans, and it has since been used to vaccinate millions of people around the world.

Furthermore, animal rights advocates accuse scientists of being ” barbarous” for causing animals to die in medical research, yet they do not object to people, particularly farmers, who kill animals for food. Even though they are aware that 99 percent of deaths are caused by farmers and only 1 percent by scientists, the reason for that is that they find scientists simpler to attack and have no strategy against farmers who are organized and powerful.

Animal testing has been a controversial issue for many years. Is it necessary? Does it save lives? These are the questions that people ask when they think about animal testing. Animal testing is the use of animals in experiments and development projects usually to determine toxicity, dosing and efficacy of test drugs before proceeding to human clinical trials (1).

Approximately 26 million vertebrate animals are used for research each year around the world (2). The animals used in research vary from mice and rats, which make up 85-90% of all laboratory animals, to larger mammals such as dogs, primates and farm animals.

The United States currently uses the most animals for research, with approximately 1.2 million animals used per year. This is followed by China, Japan, the United Kingdom and Canada (3).

Animal testing has been used for centuries to test products before they are made available to the public. It is only in recent years that animal rights groups have started to question the necessity of animal testing.

Animal testing is necessary in order to ensure the safety of products before they are made available to consumers. Without animal testing, many products would be released that could potentially be harmful to humans. Animal testing allows scientists to test the safety of products before they are used on human subjects.

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How To Write An Animal Testing Essay?

Table of Contents

Animal testing is a long-standing problem, which bothers people all around the world. It is also known as in vivo testing or animal research; it’s the use of animals in experiments to explore the reactions of their bodies and biological systems to various irritants.

From the beginning of the scientific revolution, this method was often used in medical and biological studies. However, nowadays it is also used in commercial facilities and pharmaceutical companies to test cosmetics, hygiene products, and foods before selling them to people.

Animal testing essay approaches

Basically, there are two approaches to writing essays on animal testing.

You may choose a topic that considers the historical context, as methods of testing and other aspects that don’t require your personal point of view. When writing such an essay, remember that you need to be unprejudiced and objective, to explore the topic as a scientist.

The other approach is an argumentative essay. There’s also a vast quantity of sides to choose from but you’ll need to express your point of view or compose the topic for an essay sticking to it. Here you will have to be persuasive to convince the reader in your rightness.

Position against animal testing essay

If you are an opponent to animal testing, you may want to choose the topic, that would highlight the negative sides of the issue. Here are some arguments against animal testing for you to start off:

• Experiments on animals are inhumane and cause animal suffering.
• There are different alternatives for testing, that can replace animals.
• People differ from animals. Thus, the results of animal testing might be unjustified.
• Some products that have passed animal testing were dangerous to people.
• Alternative methods of research are cheaper than animal testing.
• Lots of failed experiments are useless to expend of animals’ lives.
• Religion induces us to be merciful to all living creatures including animals.

Position pro-animal testing essay

In case you support the idea of animal testing and decided to prove that it is needed in the modern world, you’d need to be very persuasive. There are thousands of people who won’t share your opinion.

Below you can find some ideas to support animal testing:

• Animal testing produced dozens of treatments and saved millions of people’s lives.
• There still are no equivalent alternatives to test a fully functioning organism.
• Some animals are similar to the human organism.
• Animal testing prevents dangerous and harmful experiments on people.
• There’s legislation which aims to prevent animals’ mistreatment.
• The majority of scientists endorse the practice of animal testing.
• Some of the products must be first tested on animals to prove humans can use them.
• Religion establishes human domination.
• Animals’ lives is a small price for scientific and medical progress.

Ideas on animal testing essay structure

Each essay has to be well-structured and animal testing essay is not an exception. As a rule, an essay consists of three parts: introduction, main body, and conclusion.

In the introduction , you present the problem and the topic of your essay. Provide your reader with some definitions and background information for a better understanding.

In the main body , you represent all the information, ideas and statements for your topic. Don’t forget to structure the text and break it into paragraphs, this will make your essay more readable. Ideally, you write each idea or statement in the new paragraph.

The conclusion is put at the very end when everything is already said. Here you make an inference of the whole essay without adding any new information.

Here is an example of the outline for a pro-animal testing research paper:

Introduction

• Hook sentence.
• Thesis statement.
• Transition to Main Body.
• History of the animal testing practice.
• The role of legislation in preventing mistreatment.
• Great discoveries, which would be impossible without animal testing.
• Why alternatives to animal testing won’t work?
• Transition to Conclusion.
• Unexpected twist or a final argument.
• Food for thought.

Writing an animal testing essay introduction

To write a successful introduction, and the whole essay as well, you need to be aware of the topic. So first of all, you need to do a lot of research work for a good start.

Searching for some animal testing essay examples might appear to be a great idea. Once you gain some background you will surely get to know what is needed to be said.

Here are some hints on what to include in your introduction:

• Definition of animal testing.
• Statistics.
• Description of the problem.
• Experts’ point of view.
• Society’s position.
• Some catchy facts.
• Thesis statement – the main idea of your essay.

Best animal testing essay titles

Lack of ideas for a good title? Here’s a list of topics for the essay on animal testing.

Choose any. Each of them is catchy.

• Pros and cons of animal testing.
• Animal testing in cosmetics.
• Great discoveries of animal testing.
• Alternatives to animal testing.
• Animal testing in your country.
• The ethical side of animal testing.
• Positive and negative outcomes of animal testing.
• Horrors of animal testing.
• Future of animal testing.
• Animal testing and animal rights.

Crafting an animal testing essay hook

When it comes to writing, the introduction is almost a half of success. If you manage to write a good beginning, the reader will surely have a more positive vision of the whole work.

… How to grab the reader’s attention and compose a catchy beginning?

These two basic techniques are often used by speakers, but can also be applied when writing:

• Rhetorical question. Make the reader think, ask something ambiguous or nippy, like: “Is morality valuable when it comes to medical progress and saving lives?” or “Would you kill an animal with your own hands?”
• Shocking fact. Something like: “More than 100 million animals are abused and killed in the US yearly” or “88% of Nobel Prizes in Physiology and Medicine involved animal testing.

All in all, animal testing is newsworthy and up to date topic to discover and highlight. There are many aspects of the problem to explore and what is important – you can’t be right or wrong with your point of view.

This coin has two sides and it is for you to decide which one to stick to. Remember that your essay will benefit from honesty with yourself and the reader.

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Animal Testing Essay Guide + Topics

Whether you are taking a position for or against animal testing in your essay, here are some helpful hacks, tips, and tricks you can use to ace your paper.

Animal testing is a controversial issue of global scope. However, with pandemics and outbreaks being a common phenomenon and the rise of the cosmetics industry, many animals are used in scientific research. Also known as in-vivo, animal experimentation, or animal research, animal testing entails using animals in different levels of experiments to investigate the reactions, performance, and potency of various medications, drugs, cosmetic products, and foods.

Use in both biological, medical, and now beauty studies, animal testing has gained comprehensive coverage. When writing persuasive or argumentative essays, you are likely to be given an animal testing research topic for your essay. The interest of commercial bodies and pharmaceutical companies and the ethics surrounding everything that occurs around us makes writing an animal testing argumentative or persuasive essay interesting.

When we asked 100 students who had ordered custom persuasive or argumentative animal testing essays from our website, they confessed that writing the essay only seems easy at its face value. However, it becomes complicated as they plan, conduct research, and write animal research papers. Do not fear, though because, you can either get an argumentative essay expert to write your essay or a model essay for you. Alternatively, use this guide to write a paper that will check all the boxes that your professor or instructor supposes you cannot.

What to include in your introduction?

When writing an animal testing introduction, avoid wasting too many words. Instead, write an introduction that attracts your readers, piques their interest, and keeps them glued to the end. This means that you should have: (a) hook , (b)background statement (where you explore the problem at hand), and (c) your animal-testing thesis statement.

Most of the top essay writers on our website revealed that they usually search for animal testing essay examples online for inspiration : it helps get a general atmosphere surrounding a controversial topic. With such a background, they can develop a thesis statement that defines their stance and the scope of their animal research essay.

Here are some excellent ideas for your first sentence or the hook:

• Statistics of animals killed annually for research
• Facts on animals are mostly used
• The position of the society
• Catchy facts
• Controversial statements on animal research
• Shocking facts about animal testing, e.g., Surprisingly, as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animal reports, almost 100 million animals are killed in just the laboratories in the U.S. for research such as biology lessons, experimentation, food, drug, and cosmetic testing. Imagine how the statistics will skew upwards if we considered the entire world's population of animals killed every hour.
• Rhetorical questions : you use this to make the reader intrigued to read more about the topic. For example, Would you rather use a drug tested on a volunteer human or other animal-safe alternative research approaches, and one that is effective or use a drug tested on animals whose failure rate is slightly high? or Do you believe that morality should be enforced in medical research, especially when animal rights are infringed?

The background of your animal testing research paper introduction can include:

• Definition of animal testing
• The extent of animal testing.'
• The historical context of animal testing
• Breakthroughs of animal testing
• Expert opinion over animal testing
• Description of the problem
• The debate surrounding animal testing

Animal Testing Essay Outline/Structure

Your outline will depend on whether you are writing pro-animal testing or against animal testing research paper. Here is a generalized example of the outline for an animal testing essay.

A well-structured animal testing essay will automatically earn you marks. In most cases, it follows the conventional five-paragraph essay format divided into the introduction, main body, and conclusion.

The introduction and conclusion are each 10% of the word count, while the main body is 80%. You have to format your paper in APA, MLA, or Harvard format as your professor requires. To understand the formatting requirements, read the prompt and rubric of the animal testing essay keenly.

Remember to maintain a single idea per every body paragraph. That idea must reflect in the topic sentence of the paragraph to enable your audience to distinguish your major arguments.

The contents of the body paragraphs must also support the thesis. If there is a counterargument, make it known in your second last paragraph that precedes the conclusion.

Introduction

• 10% of the word count
• Begin with a stellar hook sentence
• Provide background to your chosen topic
• Have an outstanding thesis statement
• Transition to the main body of your essay
• Comprises 80% of the word count
• It can be three paragraphs for short essays or more for a long-form research paper
• Provide the history of animal testing, if necessary.
• Look at the roles of regulation and legislation in preventing animal cruelty.
• Explore the different bodies involved in preventing or lobbying against animal testing.
• Explore the breakthroughs of animal testing
• Explore the different alternatives to animal testing: why they can work or why they cannot
• Each paragraph should have its idea
• Transition to your conclusion
• Provide a summary of the paper
• Highlight your significant arguments and counterarguments
• Offer recommendations, if necessary
• Rephrase your thesis statement and show how evidence has supported it in your essay.

Alternative Methods to Animal Testing to include in your paper

Cruelty-Free International argues that non-animal testing methods are cheaper, reliable, and more effective. You can recommend some of these alternatives in your animal testing research paper or essay, considering they elongate the discussion on this seemingly controversial topic.

• Computer modeling
• Cell cultures
• Human tissues
• Volunteer studies
• Use of egg embryo
• Use of unicellular organisms
• The LAL tests
• In vitro methods

Now, when writing an argumentative essay about animal testing, especially if you take a stance against it, listing these alternatives can strengthen your arguments. Look at this model animal testing essay and craft yours along the same line.

Tips for Concluding your Animal Testing Essay

There is no different way to end an animal testing essay, as it is the same as ending any essay. Thus, when you read our cheat sheet for ending an argumentative essay , you will understand that the main thing is to have a definitive conclusion.

The conclusion is not the place to introduce new ideas. Instead, you will summarize the main points of the essay and restate the thesis in a revamped version. Show your writers the connection between your main arguments and the recommendations you are making. If there is a counterstatement, explain your rationale for it.

When writing the conclusion, make it clear, concise, and coherent. For example, an excellent animal-testing essay conclusion will have the introduction sentence, the summary of the main body, and the closing sentence.

Strive to leave your reader yearning for more : you get to tickle the best grades even from that stingy professor. Weave together the concluding paragraph with appropriate sentence transitions and do not overdo it. Keep everything simple, and you will win the main marks assigned to a reasonable conclusion.

Now that we have everything explained, we can look at some of the main topics you can use as titles for animal testing papers.

Examples of Controversial and Latest Animal Testing Essay Topics

We asked our top writers to suggest some topics they think fit well for an animal testing essay. We got a total of fifty entries that you can select and write something about. If you are stuck and want an essay sample urgently, we can write such an essay for you in a few hours, thanks to our website that helps students write essays ASAP . You can choose from these animal testing essay titles:

• Animal testing should be banned
• Animal testing is not ethical
• Pros and cons of animal testing
• Alternative methods to using animals in drugs development
• Controversy in using animal testing in medical and cosmetic research
• Neglected interests and inhuman practices during animal testing
• The cruelty of animal testing
• Horrors of animal testing
• Accidents during animal testing
• Ethics of transporting caged animals for animal research
• The future of animal testing, given the advancement in biotechnology
• Medical animal testing should be banned
• Should guinea pigs be used for lab work research?
• New, better, and innovative treatments for humanity
• Using animals in medical research is ethical and essential
• Science and the murder of one hundred million animals annually
• Importance of animals in clinical trials
• Importance of animal testing in vaccine development
• Is animal testing necessary for human survival?
• Animal testing as an experimentation industry
• Effectiveness of animal testing
• Exploring the role of Cruelty-Free International Organization
• Role of religious bodies in advocating for animal-testing-free society
• The Americans for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) organization
• Ethical issues in animal experimentation
• How animal cruelty affects the ecosystem
• Animal models in vaccine development
• Defining animal cruelty
• Treatment versus rights of animals
• Are animal model results safe for humans?
• Migraine Treatment and Animal testing
• Dinitrophenol drug for overweight and Animal testing
• Anti-arthritis Treatment and Animal Testing
• Animal use in unmanned war drones
• Positive and negative outcomes of animal testing
• Role of media in influencing animal testing
• The politics of deception in animal testing
• Problems associated with animal testing
• Animal testing should be controlled and not stopped
• Licenses that are required for one to conduct animal testing
• Role of Big Pharma in advancing animal testing.
• Can plants be used as an alternative to animal testing?
• Impacts of animal testing on ecology
• How does animal testing affect the economy?
• Can animal testing result in bioweapons?
• Use of technology to predict diseases and outcomes rather than animal testing.
• Are the rights and feelings of animals considered in animal experimentation?
• Are animals used in tests free?
• Reasons rats, rabbits, and pigs are widely used in animal testing
• Can volunteer human beings replace animals in medical research?
• The best approach to take care of animals used in experimentation
• Breakthroughs after animal testing
• Animal testing and the cosmetics industry
• History of animal testing
• Role of CDC in animal testing research
• Role of WHO on animal testing authorization

Where and how to get help with your Animal Testing Essays?

In our article, we have extensively referenced our custom essay writers who can help you ace your animal testing essays. If you feel that the guide cannot help you break down the essay or are short of time, you can pay someone on our website to write one for you. When you buy an argumentative essay from our website, we assign it to a pro writer who will research, draft, and write the paper from scratch.

Our bespoke essay service ensures that every paper is done as though you would have done it. This means that the writer cites every animal testing journal article, credible website, or relevant scholarly resources as you would have done. They do this when they summarize, paraphrase, or quote from the sources.

Therefore, you are guaranteed 100% original and plagiarism-free animal testing essays. Furthermore, whether you are for or against animal testing, we have a writer who can write your argumentative essay outline, annotated bibliography, research paper, and essay.

They can take an ethical stance or argue based on what society or professionals/experts think about the issue.

Trust us with your paper because we have done this time and again : written untraceable papers for students. Our writers are fast, accurate, respectable, and experienced. They know how to score the top grade on the rubric. All the papers we have done have been used as best argumentative essay samples on should animal testing be banned? yours could be the next one.

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How to Write an Animal Testing Essay: Tips for Argumentative & Persuasive Papers

• 🦮 Things to Know About Animal Rights Essay

📜 Animal Testing Argumentative Essay

🗣️ animal testing persuasive essay.

• ⚖️ Animal Testing For & Against Arguments
• 🦥 Animal testing Essay Sample
• 🐾 15 Awesome Titles for Animal Testing Essay

🦮 Animal Rights Essay Writing Guide

Here’s an introduction to animal testing essay writing. This topic is full of controversies and nuances that you need to know.

1. Animal Testing Essay Challenges

It might seem complicated to stay professional while writing about a sensitive topic. What should you consider before you start to write an animal testing essay?

Be ready to:

• Provide trustworthy facts and numbers. As this topic is debatable, you need to choose scientific data sources. All the evidence that supports your thesis should be credible and accurate.
• Keep your writing ethical. Avoid using biased information, overly emotional language, and stereotypes . Instead, use inclusive language without ambiguous interpretations.
• Regard an opposite opinion. It is essential to understand the issue from different perspectives. Include an opposing point of view to show your competence and the depth of your research.
• Overcome a moral dilemma. There is a lot to debate about animal testing, and you might not find a perfect solution. Therefore, be prepared to find the middle ground.
• Keep up with the scientific progress. As so much research constantly updates, you need to be aware of the last changes. It will help you to include only relevant data in your paper.

2. Animal Testing Essay Tips

Here are some tips to make your writing experience easier:

• Use academic research databases to look for evidence.
• Study the background and the development of the issue.
• Don’t hesitate to verify your data using other publications.
• Be objective when providing your arguments and evidence.
• Create an outline before writing your first draft.
• Create several versions of your essay to select the best one.
• Read papers that cover the same topic.
• Study the opposite point of view.
• Spend some extra time on proofreading and editing.

3. Animal Testing Essay Strategies: Argumentative Vs. Persuasive

Argumentative and persuasive essays on animal testing might seem somewhat similar. Here, we will describe the differences between these two types.

Argumentative Essay

An argumentative essay’s primary purpose is to convince the audience that your position is valid and worth attention.

• It requires profound research. You need to study the terminology and updates while exploring the issue.
• Its main bases are logic and evidence. Avoid emotional appeals even if they make your arguments sound stronger.
• It implies research of both sides. You will need to include an opposing argument and show its relevance.

Persuasive Essay

A persuasive essay convinces its audience using both facts and emotional response of the readers to prove one’s opinion.

• It is less formal. The tone is more relaxed. Choose facts that instantly appeal to your audience.
• Its primary basis is opinion. You will rely on the choice of words and strong arguments rather than on evidence.
• It focuses on one perspective. You have to convince readers that your way of thinking is the only option. Reviewing other positions is optional.

Now that you know the differences, we will look at each type. Here, we will explain how to prepare for writing and create an animal-testing argumentative essay outline.

What Is Animal Testing Argumentative Essay About?

An animal testing argumentative essay discusses the pros and cons of animal testing giving preference to one of the sides. You should state whether animal testing is necessary in your thesis and provide at least two arguments to support your claim. Then you will need to include at least one counterargument to show another perspective.

Animal Testing Argumentative Essay Outline

There are several types of organization for an argumentative essay: classical, Rogerian, and Toulmin. Rogerian is the most suitable one for this topic. This type of organization requires drawing attention to different opinions while promoting your arguments.

3 Tips for Animal Testing Argumentative Essay

Follow these tips to make your essay better:

• Choose an arguable topic. Something that is not obvious. It should puzzle your readers and make them interested in what you say.
• Stick to your thesis. It is the basis of your paper. You need to support every word of your thesis in body paragraphs.
• Think about your audience. Knowing who your readers are will help you choose the writing tone. It also determines the need for more or fewer explanations and background information.

Here is another pattern for developing your animal rights essay . Read the paragraph below to figure out how to write an excellent animal testing persuasive essay.

What Is Animal Testing Persuasive Essay About?

An animal testing persuasive essay is focused on one side of the issue. Here, you choose if you are for or against animal testing and prove your opinion. Appealing to conscience, sense of intelligence, or your readers’ emotions is your best instrument. You need to sound convincing to make your audience accept your perspective.

Animal Testing Persuasive Essay Outline

In this case, you need to focus on solid arguments supporting your viewpoint. It will determine the way your audience reacts to your writing.

3 Tips for Animal Testing Persuasive Essay

What do you need to do to write a better persuasive essay?

• Show your empathy. It will affect your readers’ experiences and create an emotional bond between you.
• Repeat yourself. Work with paraphrasing and figures of speech. Strategic repetition is an effective tool to remind your readers about the message you are trying to convey.
• Use rhetorical questions. Puzzle your audience by asking them something controversial. At the same time, your argumentation should promote your position as an answer.

⚖️ Animal Testing Essay: For & Against

Here, you will find the pros and cons of animal testing . You can use these arguments in argumentative and persuasive essays.

I. Arguments FOR Animal Testing

Here is why animal testing should be allowed:

• Many life-saving medicines rely on animal testing . According to the California Biomedical Association, animal research helped almost every medical breakthrough in the last century . Millions of human lives depend on animal testing. It helps treat breast cancer, tuberculosis, leukemia, and many others.
• There is no alternative to testing vaccines . Scientists needed animal testing to ensure that a vaccine doesn’t make a virus more dangerous. During the global pandemic of 2020, researchers used genetically modified mice to develop vaccines. There was no other way to ensure people’s safety.
• Animal testing prevents risking lives of human volunteers . If we test medicine or cosmetical products on toxicity, we can’t use people. Human trials also possess risks of side effects, but it could be worse without animal testing.
• It ensures the safety of the products we use . China does not even allow to put cosmetical products on the market before animal testing. We use more and more cosmetical products every day. There are more and more of them on the market. That is why we need to ensure that every product we use is safe for us.
• We need animal testing to make drugs for animals as well . Scientists use animal testing to develop medicines, vaccines, and medical devices.

II. Arguments AGAINST Animal Testing

The reasons why animal testing should be stopped:

• Not all of the testing results apply to people . Many anatomic, cellular, and metabolic differences make animals poor models for us. So some drugs that pass animal testing can eventually fail on people.
• There are alternative testing methods . Skin-producing technologies such as tissue bioprinting and human skin cells growth can replace animal testing. Of course, it is not possible for all the products, but these technologies can significantly reduce the use of animals.
• It does not guarantee 100% safety . Human bodies might react differently to the same ingredients. When drugs do not show any side effects or harmful consequences on animals, they still might be dangerous for humans.
• The demand for cruelty-free products increases . People know about the inhumanity of animal testing and choose to buy cruelty-free products. Politicians are also concerned and take measures against animal testing. European Union, Australia, and South Korea banned cosmetics tested on animals. That is why cosmetical brands give up animal testing and switch to other options.
• Inhumane treatment and bad conditions . Animals suffer from food and water deprivation, inflicted burns and other wounds, and CO2 asphyxiation. Also, many of them have their eyes open for hours to test cosmetic products. Animals deserve ethical treatment as they cannot protect themselves from humans.

🦥 Animal Testing Essay Sample

Read an animal testing argumentative essay example below. You can use it as a reference to your writing.

Should Animal Testing Be Banned Essay

As technological progress moves on, we need to move on too. Some practices that were considered normal should be reviewed in the 21st century. We need to choose animal welfare and moral standards over inhumanity. Animal testing should be banned because it is cruel, expensive, and inefficient.

Animals suffer when scientists use them as test models. Some live in small cages and do not have enough space for motion. Others are forced to eat or drink something unnatural for them. It is common for animals to experience pain because of skin and eye burns, itching, or other side effects in the worst cases. For example, during the Draize test, researchers put chemicals into rabbits' eyes to see the reaction.

Keeping and breeding animals need money. It implies costs for space, food, and other maintenance expenses. As animal tests are not always reliable and need several attempts, the price for developing a successful drug can exceed one billion dollars. Every time you buy a pill or a cosmetic product tested on animals, you pay for animal testing.

Animal testing does not guarantee identical results for humans in most cases. The failure rate for animal testing is higher than 95%. There are also many controversies because the reactions of animals and people to certain ingredients can be opposite. For example, penicillin can kill guinea pigs but helps people. Aspirin is dangerous for pets but relieves human headaches.

To put it all together, animal testing is immoral in the 21st century. It is inhuman, not accurate, and pricey to the companies. It would be better if they invested the money in new technologies to replace animal experimentation. All in all, we pay for these products as customers. We have a right to choose whether or not we want them to be tested on animals.

🐾 Titles for Animal Testing Essay

Last but not least. Below we’ve collected some of our best animal testing essay examples. Use them for inspiration, or try our free research title generator .

• Is Animal Testing Really Needed?
• Animals in Research, Education, and Teaching.
• Animal Experiments: Benefits, Ethics, and Defenders.
• Animal Experimentation: Justification Arguments.
• Animal Testing Ban: Counterargument and Rebuttal.
• Genetically Modified Animals and Implications.
• Animal Research, Its Ineffectiveness, and Amorality.
• Equal Consideration of Interests to Animals.
• The Ethics of Animal Use in Scientific Research.
• Animal Testing Effectiveness: For and Against.
• Animal Testing: The Controversies.
• Debates of Using Animals in Scientific Analysis.
• Animal Testing in Scientific Experiments.
• Cosmetic and Medical Animal Testing.
• Pavlov’s Dog Experiment.
• Animal Testing for Medical Purposes .
• Duties to Non-Human Animals .
• Animal Testing in Biomedical Research .
• Animal-Based Therapy Overview and Analysis .
• Psychologist Perspective on Research Involving Animal and Human Subjects .
• Qualities That Humans and Animals Share .
• Effects of Animal Companions in Psychotherapy .
• Red Fluorescent Protein Transgenic Dogs Experiment .
• The Use of Animals for Research .
• Human and Animal Experiments in Psychology Studies: Implications for Society .
• “The Kingdom of Dogs” Article by Adams: A Different Perspective on Pavlov’s Dog Experiment .
• Animal Studies: The Role in Behaviorism Development .

🔗 References

• Suggestions for Developing Argumentative Essays
• 8 Persuasive Writing Tips and Techniques
• Animal Testing – Pros & Cons – ProCon.org
• The Debate on Animal Experimentation – Sather Health
• Importance of Animals in Human Lives | Sciencing
• Are There Any Benefits to Animal Testing? Get the Facts | PETA

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Argumentative Essay The Ethics of Animal Testing

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Reproduced with permission from student

January 26, 2004

Public Speaking 220

Katherine E. Oleson

Title: “The importance of understanding the controversy around animal testing”

Topic: animal testing

General Purpose: to inform

Specific Purpose: to inform the audience about what animal testing is, and explain the alternative practices to it

Thesis Statement: Animal testing is a highly controversial topic that has divided people into group that either support animal testing or oppose it altogether, and another one that advocates the use of alternatives.

Organizational plan: Categorical

I. Introduction

• Attention getter: How many of you use here use razors to shave? How many of you wear makeup? How many of you have been on antibiotics at some time in your life? If you raised your hand or answered “yes” in your head to any of these questions, then this speech concerns you. Animal testing has been used as a mechanism in the advancement of medicine, household products, and the cosmetic industry in the United State s for nearly 60 years. With between 17 and 70 million animals killed each year in U.S. laboratories, the growth in animal experimentation has sparked much debate.
• Thesis: Animal testing is a high controversial topic that has divided people into groups that support animal experimentation, oppose it altogether, or advocate the use of available alternatives.
• Preview: Today I am going to tell you about some of the main ideas that are involved in the debate surrounding animal experimentation. Along with providing you a background about animal testing, I will educate you with information about both the benefits of animal testing and the disadvantages of animal testing.

<Transition> I will start out by illustrating the historical background of and the legislative reasons behind its use.

• While there is a law in effect that regulates the condition of animals used in experiments, the legality of these tests is not enforced.
• The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) is the federal law that governs the humane care, handling, treatment, and transportation of animals used in laboratories (PETA, 2004).
• No law requires animal testing for cosmetics and household products, and both the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Food and Drug Administration does not require any particular product test.

<Transition> Even though there is not strict regulation that can force companies into using animals as their means of testing, proponents of animal testing support its use for the efficiency it offers that other types of testing do not.

• Supporters of animal testing feel that because the animals are handled in a civilized manner, their use in making medical breakthroughs and guaranteeing product safety justifies animal testing.
• Various medical advances have been made thanks to animal testing that would otherwise have not been achieved.

a.        Barbara Davies, deputy director of the Research Defense Society, reports that “All you have to do is think of any major medical advances of the last 100 years to see the benefit of animal testing,” (Morrison, 2001).

b.       Because of animal research we have anesthesia, hip replacement, kidney dialysis, and a vaccine for acute Hepatitis B, and without animal testing doctors would not have the chemotherapy to save 70% of children who now survive acute lymphatic leukemia (Americans for Medical Progress Educational Alliance, 2002).

• Advocates of animal experimentation argue that laboratory testing is not as common or cruel as it is conveyed by the common public.

a.        Of all the areas in animal use, including agriculture, pet, sports, and animal research, the standards of welfare and veterinary care laid down are the highest for animals kept in labs for research (Haugen, 2000).

b.       In 1999, 57 percent of vertebrate animals in labs covered by the Animal Welfare Act experienced no pain or distress, and of those that do undergo moderate to severe pain, 34 percent were relieved by anesthesia or analgesia, and only 9 percent tested suffered from unrelieved pain or stress. (The Center for Laboratory Animal Welfare, 2004).

3. Product testing is crucal to guaranteeing consumers that they can securely use everyday products without experiencing side effects.

a. Scientists defend testing on animals because they are conducted in the name of protecting consumers, while manufacturers rely on animal testing to verify the safety of the product and protect them from lawsuits (McCoy, 1993).

b.  Researchers call attention to the fact that only 20 percent of animals used in laboratories are used to evaluate the safety of consumer products (The Center for Laboratory Animal Welfare, 2004).

c. If no testing is performed on a product, the producer is legally responsible to print a warning on the product label reading: THE SAFETY OF THIS PRODUCT HAS NOT BEEN DETERMINED, which may turn away potential buyers and in a snowball effect the manufacturers, scientists, and researchers are left without jobs (McCoy, 1993).

<Transition> Although I have presented several reasons in support of animal experimentation, there are also a number of strong arguments that oppose it.

• Those against the current means of animal testing undermine it as a malicious procedure of yielding inaccurate results that could be more effective and scientific with the use of alternatives.
• Opponents allege testing on animals leads to unreliable and unscientific findings that harm or kill humans 61% of the time after being deemed safe (Americans for Medical Progress Educational Alliance, 2003).

a.        Plavix, which is taken by more than three million patients, passed all required animal tests and was considered safe for humans. Now it is causing bleeding, anemia, and kidney failure in some clients (Cohen, 2001).

b.       Medications such as aspirin kill cats, and penicillin kills guinea pigs, yet guinea pigs can safely eat strychnine, one of the deadliest poisons for humans that is safe for monkeys to consume (Haugen, 2000).

• Animal testing is a vicious process that inflicts stress and physical pain that can very well be avoided.

a.        The Eye Irritancy Test involves immobilizing rabbits from stocks where only their heads project and dropping different substances into their eyes usually with no anesthesia to test the damage to the eye tissue over a course of generally 72 hours (PETA, 2004).

b.       With the Acute Toxicity Test a substance is usually forced by tube into the animals stomachs or through holes cut into their throats to determine the amount of a substance that will kill a percentage, even up to 100 percent, of a group of test animals (PETA, 2004).

• Challengers of animal testing say alternatives are the future, and that since they are available they should be persued.

a.        A study by the American Medical Association found that 75 percent of Americans are against using animals to test cosmetics (Haugen, 2000).

b.       While the expansion and recognition of using alternatives is slowly growing, over 500 companies have already shunned animal testing (PETA, 2004).

i.                      Colgate-Palmolive is one of the largest companies that’s reduced its use of animal testing and their research facility has reduced the use of animals for experimentation by as much as 90 percent (McCoy, 1993).

c.        Through epidemiology (population research), in vitro experimentation, and clinical studies we have discovered our most valuable information about the origins of cancer, the efficiency of treatments, and the prevention of cancer (Cohen, 2001).

<Transition> Both sides of this debate have valuable arguments that should be taken into consideration when shaping your opinion and when deciding the future of animal testing.

III. Conclusion

• Signal: Considering how detailed and supported the statements of the challengers and advocates of animal testing are, the outlook of animal testing will take much time and deliberation to make an educated decision. It is important that we the public stay informed and active as we are the consumers of these products.
• Summary/Review: As you have seen, those who agree with animal testing cite the medical breakthroughs, the necessity of animal testing in determining safety, and the humane treatment of animals as reasons to support their position. In contrast, those who disagree with animal experimentation see it as unreliable and unscientific, cruel physical harm, and want alternative practices to be more widely used.
• Closure: Billions of dollars are funded each year in the animal testing industry, so next time you go to the store to buy makeup, medication, or even toothpaste, make a well-informed decision about whether or not you support animal experimentation.

Americans for Medical Progress Educational Alliance. (2003). Animal Research . Retrieved

January 25, 2004, from Americans for Medical Progress Educational Alliance Web site: http://www.amprogress.org/Issues/issuesmain.cfm

Cohen, M. (2001 April). Human lives not saved by lab animals . Seattle Post-Intelligencer . A19.

Retrieved January 22, 2003, from UMI Proquest Direct.

Haugen, D.M. (2000). Animal experimentation . San Diego: Greenhaven Press.

McCoy, J.J. (1993). Animals in research, issues, and conflicts . United States: Impact.

Morrison, N. (2001, February). Animal rights and wrongs. Northern Echo . 08. Retrieved January

21, 2004, from UMI Proquest Direct database.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). (2004). Factsheets . Retrieved January 21,

2004, from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Web site: http://www.peta.org/mc/facts.html

The Center for Laboratory Animal Welfare. (2004). Laboratory Animal Welfare . Retrieved

January 21, 2004, from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Web site: http://www.labanimalwelfare.org/

The Debate on Animal Testing Essay

Factors attributed to the rise in animal experimentation, animal rights debate, animal liberation, recommendations, works cited.

Animal testing is described as a procedure involving vivisection and/or In vivo testing of animals for experimentation or research. In the pursuit of what is known as scientific progress, animals have fallen victims of distress in the process.

Throughout history, human has employed animals in carrying out various activities as beasts of burden, for companionship and food. However, animal testing was particularly developed along with medical inventions. It dates back during the ancient Greece, applied by Hippocrates and Aristotle, who established the structural and functional component of human body through animal dissections (Athanasiou & Darzi 208).

During the Cartesian philosophy at around seventeenth century, animal testing was employed with hardly any ethical issue arising as a result. Rene Descartes for instance, maintained that man possessed a mind and could feel pain while animals had none and therefore, could not feel pain. However, these perceptions were later opposed by Jeremy Bentham (Office of Technology Assessment, Congress 75).

The topic of animal testing has continued to trigger several ethical and legal issues in pursuit of questioning its legitimacy. Following the fulfillment of the procedures on animals, they are euthanized in efforts to reduce their suffering. Animals, like human can feel physical, psychological and emotional pain, and therefore, it is morally incorrect to facilitate their suffering due to continued experimentation with them.

Even with advocacy of humane way of treating these animals by animal rights groups, it is never enough since these experiments always causes them to suffer, which infringe on their rights. The purpose of this paper is to define animal testing within a historical context, establish ethical and legal issues surrounding the acts, discuss animal liberation movements, arguments in support and against the act of animal testing as part of the debate on animal rights and most importantly, alternatives to animal testing.

Generally, this paper shall try to question the legitimacy of animal testing and give a recommendation of alternative non-animal approaches.

Animal experimentation heightened when anesthetics were introduced in the medical field. Besides, the Darwinian Origin of Species defended the biological resemblances between animals and human hence resulting to a rise in animal experiments. Today, there has been a rise in demand for sophisticated animal models as well as rising controversial debates regarding animal experimentation.

These aspects contributed to the establishment of Laboratory Animal Science during the nineteen fifties, guided by 3R principles (Baumans pr.1). This is a multidisciplinary approach in the field, which has enhanced the animal testing standards and their welfare. There has been a rising concern in relation to animal welfare that has resulted to various legislations in various nations, with the UK approving the initial legislation on animal experimentation dubbed, the Cruelty to Animals Act, 1876 (Athanasiou & Darzi 209).

Progress in the biomedical sciences resulted to a rise in animal testing in the twentieth century. However, this decreased in 1980s when the public became aware, strict laws were introduced and there was a rise in animal rights groups.

All the same, animal experimentation has risen in the twenty-first century attributed to the progress made in genetic engineering of animals. Currently, seventy-five to a hundred million vertebrates are used annually for scientific research as well as testing of drugs, vaccines, cancer research, diagnostics, among others (Baumans pr. 2).

According to Baumans, “Averagely, 50% of the laboratory animals experience minor discomfort (e.g., single blood sampling), 30% moderate (e.g., recovery from anesthesia) and 20% severe (e.g., toxicity tests)” (pr. 2). Animal tests have been criticized by questioning the right of man to use them for his benefits even when they have been proven unreliable.

Animal rights activists have opposed the act on the grounds that it is immoral and violates the rights of these animals. However, the morality of the procedure is downplayed since it is outweighed by the fact that these procedures are ethically approached through carrying out a self-analysis of the motives involved, either personally or scientifically.

The process incorporates recognizing that animals suffer and therefore, this should be minimized as much as possible in relation to ethical values employed. Animals have their own rights and if a procedure infringes on these rights, it forms the ground to criticize its morality. The case of morality should not examine the benefits incurred by humans since a violation of rights is by its own an independent concept to rule out the procedure on moral basis.

This is where the supporters of animal testing fail since they don’t base their morality argument on violation of rights but on its consequences. This implies that the benefits incurred by humans are a justification of animals to suffer. They insist that the benefits to humans outweigh the detrimental effects caused to animals, which is a consequentialist argument since it emphasizes on the impacts of the action under the question.

However, some procedures are so inhumane such that the benefits incurred by human cannot justify the harms caused to the animal research subjects. Consider the following argument; if a procedure is more harmful when conducted, it is morally incorrect to conduct it.

More so, Singer maintains that “whenever experimenters claim that their experiments are important enough to justify the use of animals, we should ask them whether they would be prepared to use a brain-damaged human being at a similar mental level to the animals they are planning to use” (76). In the recent past, ethical debates regarding animal testing are common regarding the principles to impose on different animal species.

However, many have agreed that animal testing in medical as well as scientific research is beneficial to man when animal suffering is minimized. On this note, peter singer maintains that there lacks basis to employ animals for them to suffer, which is a utilitarian perspective. Researchers have pointed out that the biological differences that exist between human and animals results to unreliability of such tests. Animal tests have a lower quality and must be conducted hand in hand with clinical trials on human (Athanasiou & Darzi 210).

On the other hand, those in support of animal experiments claim that almost all medical accomplishment and breakthrough in the recent past, is based on animal testing. In addition, some have gone ahead to argue that computer simulations cannot define the association amid different cells and environment, which calls for animal experimentations since they are able to achieve this.

However, critiques of the procedure points out that these results could be misleading even in animal tests and this impedes scientific progress. Similarly, imposing regulations against animal testing would imply that animals would no longer be used for toxicological experimentation of new drugs.

It could also imply the application of human to determine their safety. Animal tests are agued to assist in determining if a certain drug should be tested on humans and not the efficacy of the drug. If the drug proves lethal to animals, it means it cannot be used on humans. If it proves otherwise, clinical trials can be initiated on humans. These are some of the reasons that those who support the idea of animal experimentation put forward to justify the act, often triggering a conflict of interests.

It is generally agreed that animal’s life is valuable and should not be mishandled. This aspect has led to regulations being imposed to regulate the issue. It has thus, been a controversial issue for policymakers, some of who states that animal suffering is inhumane and therefore, they put forward euthanasia as mean to minimize animal suffering.

It is clear that most, during the scientific experiments and studies, animal suffering is inevitable and in turn ends up dying. Therefore, euthanizing these animals has been seen as a means of reducing depression, pain and infections that may result since some of these animals can neither respond to medication nor feed or breed, which makes them useless.

Euthanizing these animals is meant to trigger a swift unconsciousness, followed by death with little or no agony or suffering. These methods include use of gases like carbon monoxide, decapitation, cervical dislocation, maceration, irradiation, electrocution, captive bolts, pithing, quick freezing and air embolism with or without anesthesia (Athanasiou & Darzi 212).

Animal liberation or animal rights regards to the notion that animals have to be considered similar to human with respect to their interests. The issue has been approached from contrasting philosophical stances. The protectionist Peter Singer emphasizes a utilitarian aspect of suffering and its effects and not on the idea of rights.

Conversely, the abolitionist Gary Francione maintains that animals require just a single right i.e. a right to property. All the same, animal liberation advocates come to an agreement that animals have to be considered as non-human individuals belonging to a certain moral setup and not as foodstuff, research subjects, source of entertainment or even for clothes. Peter Singer initiated the animal liberation movement in which he overlooked the theoretical explanations of rights with regard to animals (Office of Technology Assessment, Congress 76).

In his book, Singer maintains that animals’ interests have to be prioritized since they can feel pain and distress, arguing that the impression of rights is meant to express the importance to put animals into consideration. Singer made popular the application of the concept of speciesism in his description of oppressive handling of animals.

Speciesism is described as “unjustified bias that favors one’s own species over the other” (Singer 287). The utilitarian approach; ‘the greatest good for the greatest number,’ can only be the sole way to quantify ethical behavior. He maintains that there lacks any justification as to why this should not be applicable to animals.

Singer disregards rights as an ethical idea, which is not dependent on the utilitarian idea founded on interests. He embraces rights as a derivative of utilitarian principles, especially that of decreasing suffering in animals. According to him, animal rights currently differ from those of human in his view in Animal Liberation (1975).

Here, he insists on speciesism in that there is discrimination of animals as a result of their having to be associated with a different species. He ascertains that any being, which can suffer should be considered equally (Office of Technology Assessment, Congress 83). Failing to do so can be likened to racism and gender justice (Singer 85).

According to his arguments, animals should possess rights since they have a potential of feeling pain more in comparison to their intelligence. This is to say that animals depict a much less intelligence as compared to an average man, while individuals who have a severe intellectual challenge likewise portray a reduced mental capacity.

It is even possible that particular animals such as primates portray intelligence in learning symbolic languages almost similar to infants. As a result, intelligence is not justifiable on the grounds of awarding animals a lower thought than the mentally challenged persons. Singer also rejects the notion of taking animals as the source of food and advocates for a vegetarian diet.

More so, he disregards vivisection, particularly when the benefits incurred are less than the harm inflicted on the animal subject. Singer ascertains that there lacks moral basis for failure to award equal consideration with regard to animal and human interests of having a potential to suffer. Animal’s research has shown that animals are capable of feeling pain and suffering, but they lack a language to express their distress, unlike human (Singer 286).

However, these aspects are criticized by Carl Cohen, who rules out the concept of personalizing animals. He maintains that holders of rights have to be in a position to understand rule of duty governing them. They have to comprehend probable conflicts amid their own interest and justice during application of such regulations. It is solely on the society of ‘beings’ with potential to self-restrict ethical judgments, when the notion of rights is properly invoked (Cohen & Regan 27).

He, therefore, opposes Singer’s argument, which implies that mentally retarded persons cannot come up with moral judgments. Then, it should not be applied as the distinctive trait to determine whether animals should be given rights. Cohen argues that to examine an ethical judgment, it should not be applied to each person but rather, to a potential of all members of the overall species (Cohen & Regan 41).

Animal experimentation has composed a huge industry, which comprises of the chemical, pharmaceutical, learning institutions as well as other scientific oriented industries. Animals used in these experiments are subjected to physical pain and psychological trauma during different procedures such as toxicological testing.

Moreover, in learning institutions, veterinary practice and medical research incorporate use of animals for educational purposes. Computer programming, In vitro approach, statistical approaches, application of cell cultures in research, or even clinical research using humans are some of the alternatives to use in experimentation. However, these alternatives have proven futile due to reluctance in embracing them, inadequate funding or simply being against change.

These alternatives, when embraced in this scientific research as well as for education purposes, animal rights are safeguarded. May be, the most important question to ask is if these animal experiments are really reliable. This is because they could give different responses to that of human body.

It is, therefore, important to note that their suffering during the testing could even compromise the results. Consequently, the essence of having to make animals suffer to benefit human is questionable if there are other alternatives that could be used instead, and give even more accurate results.

Food Drug Admiration enacted FD&C Act, which was a promulgation of other interrelated laws. The Act allowed cosmetic manufacturers to do everything within their power to guarantee the safety of the product for human before they are put in the market.

These companies have employed animal testing to achieve this aim of ensuring safe ingredients in their products. FDA however, advocates that the benefits extracted in the animal tests should be optimized by using the least number of animals, which should be handled humanely in whatever way possible.

The agency has collaborated with others to draft alternative means of toxicological tests within the American nation thus advocating for Refinement, Reduction as well as Replacement of animal experimentation (Athanasiou & Darzi 210). Reduction means using the least number of animals possible to reach the desired results by researchers, enhancing experimentation procedures and analysis as well as sharing the results with different researchers.

Refinement involves minimizing animal suffering by refining procedures involved, through less invasive procedures, improved medical attention, and living conditions. Replacement entails the use of alternative techniques, which includes testing on cell cultures, clinical tests on human volunteers, computer programming and epidemiological research studies when similar results can be achieved if animal subjects were used (Baumans pr.3).

Although beneficial, animal tests are not always accurate since they might give a different response in humans to that of animals (Athanasiou & Darzi 210). Therefore, an ethics committee should be established in every nation to determine the ethical aspects of animal testing in relation to research proposals put forward.

From this perspective, animal tests should only be embraced when the benefits incurred outweighs their suffering. Moral review of the procedures of animal testing is important in enhancing the standards of animal experiments since their welfare is crucial to attaining a reliable outcome.

It is often assumed that animal experiments are integral to scientific and medical progress. As a result, the current debate over animal testing is characterized by cacophony of views. However, there appears to be an agreement that animals should be treated humanely.

They have been awarded the same stance as human by Singer while critiques like Cohen refute the stance. In my opinion, animals should possess similar rights as humans and if they are capable of suffering like human, then it is an obvious call that the cause of suffering should be withdrawn.

However, unlike humans, animals can neither assume duties nor possess discretion, which awards rights an idiosyncratic role in ethics. On this note, consistency maintains that animals should be awarded rights once they are awarded to infants or mentally retarded individuals who have no discretion, a concept asserted by Cohen.

Singer, however, disregards the idea of man alleviating himself over other species and therefore, condemns his exploitation to animals. Besides, animals have a potential to suffer, and therefore, they should be relieved their suffering just as humans, which comprise of a utilitarian approach to the issue.

Considering human suffering, while neglecting that of animals is a violation of the canon of equality. This is a simple concept of humane treatment of animals as their moral authorization, which has continued to raise a conflict of interest all over the world (Office of Technology Assessment, Congress 83).

Athanasiou, Thanos & Darzi, Ara. Key Topics in Surgical Research and Methodology . Heidelberg: Springer, 2010. Print. Baumans, Van. Use of animals in experimental research: an ethical dilemma. Gene Therapy, 11, S64–S66. doi:10.1038/sj.gt.3302371. Nature Publishing Group, 2004.

Cohen, Carl & Regan, Tom. The Animal Rights Debate . Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2001. Print.

Office of Technology Assessment, Congress. Alternatives To Animal Use in Research, Testing, and Education . Washington, D.C: DIANE Publishing, 1986. Print.

Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment of Animals . New York: Random House, 1975. Print.

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Bibliography

IvyPanda . "The Debate on Animal Testing." April 6, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/testing-on-animals/.

• Experimentation on Animals
• Utilitarianism for Animals: Testing and Experimentation
• Ethical Problems in Animal Experimentation
• Ethics Problems in Animal Experimentation
• Genetic Experimentation and Development
• Ethics and Self-Experimentation Argument
• Medical Research on Animals Should be Forbidden by Law
• Laboratory Experiments on Animals: Argument Against
• Criminal Justice Experimentation: Threats to Validity
• Animal Testing: Why It Is Still Being Used
• Singer’s Views on Voluntary Euthanasia, Non-voluntary Euthanasia, and Involuntary Euthanasia
• Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide
• Tuskegee Experiment: The Infamous Syphilis Study
• Ethical Issues in the Health Sector
• Elements of Negligence and Their Effects

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Essays on animal testing – write them like a pro.

Animal testing essays are often required by instructors due to the controversial nature of the topic. Over the years there has been a long-standing debate about animal testing. One camp thinks that animal testing is inhumane while another camp suggests that it is essential for the advancement of research. If you’ve been asked to write animal testing essays for the first time, you may be conflicted about the topic. While you can always seek out a professional to write an animal testing essay for you, some tips can help you write it yourself. Keep reading to find out more.

Top Tips For Writing Perfect Animal Testing Essays

• Understand The Requirements Of Your Animal Testing Essay

First of all, you need to understand the requirements. This is the only way you can figure out what you’re expected to write. What is animal testing? Animal testing involves using animals for experiments. It could involve injecting them with harmful substances and observing how their body reacts. They may also inject these animals with antidotes while trying to find the cure to diseases. Irrespective of how you feel about it, you need to do the animal testing research paper according to the requirements. If you’ve been asked to write a descriptive essay, your job will be to describe what the subject is without being against animal testing or for animal testing. If it an expository essay, you need to state the facts. If it’s a persuasive essay, you need to convince the reader of what your opinion is on animal testing. If you’ve been asked to write an argumentative essay on animal testing, speak for or against. Make sure you know what you’ve been asked to do and stick to it.

• Research The Topic

When you’re asked to write an animal testing research paper, you need to do your homework to make sure that the content you provide is accurate. Your research should come from credible sources only. Thanks to the Internet, you don’t need to go to a library when you want to work on your animal testing thesis. There are many online libraries with detailed information about the subject. You can also check reliable news archives online to get statistics when necessary. Make sure that the information you use is up to date and verifiable.

• Prepare Your Animal Testing Thesis Statement

Your thesis statement is an important part of your essay. It should come just before the animal testing essay introduction. You can also make it part of the introduction. It should be one or two sentences that serve as a premise for your essay. By reading the thesis statement on essays on animal testing, your reader should be able to know what type of essay you’ve been asked to write and what direction you’re leaning towards.

• Stick To The Topic And Type Of Essay

Whether some animal research topics are assigned to you or you pick a topic yourself, make sure that you stick to the topic from the beginning to the end. If you’ve been asked to write a particular kind of essay, make sure you stick to it. For example, if you’ve been asked to write a why animal testing should be banned essay, this means that you’re writing an against animal testing essay. In this case, you need to give animal testing facts and examples that will persuade the reader that animal testing is not a good idea and it should be banned. You can offer alternatives to animal testing in your essay. You can search for an animal rights research paper to get an insight into the subject. If you’re asked to write an essay that supports animal testing, make sure you use facts to convince your audience. You can state how animal testing has been used to produce treatment for several illnesses over the years.  

• Stay Objective From Start To Finish

Remaining objective when you’re writing your animal rights research paper might be challenging if you have a soft spot for animals. You need to do everything you can to remain objective. Providing emotional writing when you’re working on animal experimentation essays is only going to irritate your reader. This is especially so when there are no facts included. When you want to appeal to emotions, make sure you use facts and examples to get the reader’s attention.

Expert Help Is Always Here For You

Writing an animal testing essay is like writing any other essay. Make sure that you follow the basic principles of essay writing, stick to the facts. Apart from sticking to the facts, make sure your content is free of grammatical and typographical errors. Your content also has to be free of plagiarism. You can use premium tools to verify that the content is ideal for submission. However, you can ask a professional writer to proofread the content for you. These experts can give your essay a professional touch. Better still, they can write an essay for you from the beginning to the end.

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Writing Animal Testing Argumentative Essay & Thesis Statement

writing animal testing essay

Animal testing is a global debate, not only in science but also in the ethical concerns of the general public. Understanding this is important in writing an animal testing argumentative essay and formulating the appropriate thesis statements and arguments.

Animal testing is the practice of using animals to conduct tests and experiments to control variables affecting both the behavior and the biological system being studied.

It is also known as Vivo testing or animal experiment and is a problem that has bothered people worldwide.

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How to Write an Animal Testing Essay?

When writing essays on animal testing, there are specific approaches that you need to consider. These approaches are:

1. Consider the Historical Context

In this approach, what you write about in your essay does not require your own point of view.

Methods of testing and other aspects of the experiment can be borrowed from different sources.

In order to write a good essay in this approach, you need not have a prior opinion or judgment before knowing the facts involved in the experiment.

You should have objectives when searching for relevant information and explore animal testing as a scientist.

2. Take one side of the Argumentative Debate

In this approach, you need to make your own point of view known and convince the reader to be in line with your essay. You can also come up with your own topic on animal testing and stick to it.

When writing an animal testing essay, there are several sides concerning animal testing that you may wish to write on. These may include;

Arguments that can be made in an essay on animal testing

This can be done by writing essays that strongly oppose animal testing. You have to choose an argument showing the bad side of animal testing.

These arguments may include the following.

• Not all testing requires the use of animals.
• Killing animals for unsuccessful experiments is inhumane.
• Products made or approved by animal testing are harmful to human beings.
• This experiment method is far more expensive than the natural one.
• Most of the testing causes animal suffering.
• Most religions are for the notion that we should take care of our animals.
• You can also support animal testing in your essay by being persuasive in your arguments that the modern-day world needs animal testing. You can choose to support your views by:
• Arguing that animal experiments prevent people from going through the experiment.
• It shows that using an animal with similar organisms to humans is preferable to the human himself.
• Arguing that successful animal testing has saved a lot of people by providing the needed treatment.
•  Proving that testing products new to humans are more dangerous than using animals.
• Arguing that scientists prefer animals in doing tests and that humans have complete authority over animals.
• You can argue that scientist sees medical progression as more important than the life of a mere animal.
• Arguing that it is very hard to find other ways of testing an organism that is fully functioning.

3. Formulate a Thesis Statement

You will need to formulate and write a good thesis statement that will present your main idea. This statement is your stand and is what will guide the writing of the animal testing essay introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusions.

How to Write an Animal Testing Thesis Statement

The sentence(s) capturing the main point or central message, in this case concerning the animal experiment topic, is a thesis statement. In order to write a good thesis statement on animal testing, you have to consider the following:

• Be specific

You need to be very specific when writing a thesis statement in your animal testing essay. Focus on the main points of discussion. Your thesis statement should not be too general.

• Announce the topic

This is a very critical aspect of a thesis statement.

This is where you should present your view and position of the animal testing issue you are writing about.

• Be original

Make sure that the thesis statement is your real work. A thesis statement plays a huge part on the reader of your text.

Do not rely on or quote the thesis statements of other peoples’ animal testing essays because the reader is likely to get uninterested.

Write a thesis statement in a language that the reader can easily understand. Avoid vague and abstract words to give the reader a clear meaning of the animal testing topic you have written about.

4. Write a Good Introduction to Animal Testing

In the introductory part of an animal testing essay, you define the topic of your essay and give any further background information related to the topic to make the reader understand better.

Apart from the definitions, you can provide statistics, describe a problem, talk about some important relative facts, and include the thesis statement, the position of the society, and the views from experts in the introduction of the animal testing essay.

A hook sentence and a sentence linking the introduction to the main body must also be in the introduction. You can check a comprehensive essay guide on writing introduction paragraphs for your essays.

5. Write Proper Body Paragraphs with Points on Animal Testing

This is where you present all the ideas and information on the topic, with each idea in its own paragraph. Ideas and information on animal testing topics may include:

• Great discoveries on the topic of study.
• What is the historical background of the animal testing topic?
• What are the effects and benefits of animal testing in detail?
• Intensive explanation of ethics that govern animal testing.

After writing down several paragraphs, make sure you include a statement that will link the body to the conclusion. This is the main part of the essay, which gives people problems.

6. Write a Good Conclusion on Animal Testing Points

This is the part where you draw deductions on the content of the essay without suggesting anything new that has not been talked about in the introduction and the body.

In this part, you write a brief summary of your work that can include a final argument, an unexpected twist related to the work written, and anything that warrants serious consideration.

Writing good conclusions is one of the challenges in writing essays , and you can check how to solve it in that article.

Once a good conclusion is done, you will be safe to proofread your paper and submit it confidently to get a good grade. Read more tips on how to write good essays on any topic in our more general guide.

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35 Topics for Writing an Animal Testing Essay

Animal testing is a broad area of study. The following are some of the 15 best topics that one can write animal testing essays about:

• The history of animal testing.
• Ethics that guide animal experiments.
• Alternatives to animal testing.
• How to take care of and use animals in animal testing?
• Advantages and disadvantages of animal testing.
• What are the best discoveries of animal testing?
• The practice of animal testing in your country.
• Comparison of animal testing in your country with neighboring countries and the world.
• The rights of animals in the context of animal testing.
• Changes in animal testing with the recent advancement of technology.
• What does the future of animal testing hold?
• Good and bad outcomes of animal testing.
• Horrors associated with animal testing.
• Relation of animal testing with cosmetics.
• Contribution of research in animal testing.

Other Good Topics for Animal Testing Essays Include

• Why animal testing should be stopped.
• Human diseases and animal testing.
• Is animal testing free from external control?
• Which animals, between vertebrates and invertebrates, are suitable for animal testing?
• The truth about animal testing.
• Should scientific reasons be the reasons for animal testing?
• What role does the media play in spreading the message about animal experimentation?
• Problems associated with animal testing.
• Do animals really have feelings?
• Can testing on plants be an alternative for animal testing?
• How can animal testing be made more animal-friendly?
• Why are rabbits and rats the most used animals in animal testing?
• Should we stop taking medicines to save animals from animal testing?
• Do scientists have an obligation to respect the animals they are experimenting on?
• How can we improve the lives of the animals that experiments are done?
• Impact of animal testing on the economy.
• What are the side effects of testing on animals?
• Is animal testing the leading creation of human viruses?
• Are there better alternatives to animal testing than animals?
• How can scientists use technology to reduce the impact of animal testing?

Check some of the recent debates and news regarding animal testing, experimenting with monkeys

With over 10 years in academia and academic assistance, Alicia Smart is the epitome of excellence in the writing industry. She is our managing editor and is in charge of the writing operations at Grade Bees.

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• How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

Published on January 11, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on August 15, 2023 by Eoghan Ryan.

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . It usually comes near the end of your introduction .

Your thesis will look a bit different depending on the type of essay you’re writing. But the thesis statement should always clearly state the main idea you want to get across. Everything else in your essay should relate back to this idea.

You can write your thesis statement by following four simple steps:

• Start with a question
• Write your initial answer
• Develop your answer
• Refine your thesis statement

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Table of contents

What is a thesis statement, placement of the thesis statement, step 1: start with a question, step 2: write your initial answer, step 3: develop your answer, step 4: refine your thesis statement, types of thesis statements, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about thesis statements.

A thesis statement summarizes the central points of your essay. It is a signpost telling the reader what the essay will argue and why.

The best thesis statements are:

• Concise: A good thesis statement is short and sweet—don’t use more words than necessary. State your point clearly and directly in one or two sentences.
• Contentious: Your thesis shouldn’t be a simple statement of fact that everyone already knows. A good thesis statement is a claim that requires further evidence or analysis to back it up.
• Coherent: Everything mentioned in your thesis statement must be supported and explained in the rest of your paper.

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The thesis statement generally appears at the end of your essay introduction or research paper introduction .

The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education. The use of the internet in academic contexts and among young people more generally is hotly debated. For many who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. This concern, while understandable, is misguided. The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education: the internet facilitates easier access to information, exposure to different perspectives, and a flexible learning environment for both students and teachers.

You should come up with an initial thesis, sometimes called a working thesis , early in the writing process . As soon as you’ve decided on your essay topic , you need to work out what you want to say about it—a clear thesis will give your essay direction and structure.

You might already have a question in your assignment, but if not, try to come up with your own. What would you like to find out or decide about your topic?

For example, you might ask:

After some initial research, you can formulate a tentative answer to this question. At this stage it can be simple, and it should guide the research process and writing process .

Now you need to consider why this is your answer and how you will convince your reader to agree with you. As you read more about your topic and begin writing, your answer should get more detailed.

In your essay about the internet and education, the thesis states your position and sketches out the key arguments you’ll use to support it.

The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education because it facilitates easier access to information.

In your essay about braille, the thesis statement summarizes the key historical development that you’ll explain.

The invention of braille in the 19th century transformed the lives of blind people, allowing them to participate more actively in public life.

A strong thesis statement should tell the reader:

• Why you hold this position
• What they’ll learn from your essay
• The key points of your argument or narrative

The final thesis statement doesn’t just state your position, but summarizes your overall argument or the entire topic you’re going to explain. To strengthen a weak thesis statement, it can help to consider the broader context of your topic.

These examples are more specific and show that you’ll explore your topic in depth.

Your thesis statement should match the goals of your essay, which vary depending on the type of essay you’re writing:

• In an argumentative essay , your thesis statement should take a strong position. Your aim in the essay is to convince your reader of this thesis based on evidence and logical reasoning.
• In an expository essay , you’ll aim to explain the facts of a topic or process. Your thesis statement doesn’t have to include a strong opinion in this case, but it should clearly state the central point you want to make, and mention the key elements you’ll explain.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

• Ad hominem fallacy
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• Appeal to authority fallacy
• False cause fallacy
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A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

The thesis statement is essential in any academic essay or research paper for two main reasons:

• It gives your writing direction and focus.
• It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.

Without a clear thesis statement, an essay can end up rambling and unfocused, leaving your reader unsure of exactly what you want to say.

Follow these four steps to come up with a thesis statement :

• Ask a question about your topic .
• Write your initial answer.
• Develop your answer by including reasons.
• Refine your answer, adding more detail and nuance.

The thesis statement should be placed at the end of your essay introduction .

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Ethical care for research animals

WHY ANIMAL RESEARCH?

The use of animals in some forms of biomedical research remains essential to the discovery of the causes, diagnoses, and treatment of disease and suffering in humans and in animals., stanford shares the public's concern for laboratory research animals..

Many people have questions about animal testing ethics and the animal testing debate. We take our responsibility for the ethical treatment of animals in medical research very seriously. At Stanford, we emphasize that the humane care of laboratory animals is essential, both ethically and scientifically.  Poor animal care is not good science. If animals are not well-treated, the science and knowledge they produce is not trustworthy and cannot be replicated, an important hallmark of the scientific method .

There are several reasons why the use of animals is critical for biomedical research: 

••  Animals are biologically very similar to humans. In fact, mice share more than 98% DNA with us!

••  Animals are susceptible to many of the same health problems as humans – cancer, diabetes, heart disease, etc.

••  With a shorter life cycle than humans, animal models can be studied throughout their whole life span and across several generations, a critical element in understanding how a disease processes and how it interacts with a whole, living biological system.

The ethics of animal experimentation

Nothing so far has been discovered that can be a substitute for the complex functions of a living, breathing, whole-organ system with pulmonary and circulatory structures like those in humans. Until such a discovery, animals must continue to play a critical role in helping researchers test potential new drugs and medical treatments for effectiveness and safety, and in identifying any undesired or dangerous side effects, such as infertility, birth defects, liver damage, toxicity, or cancer-causing potential.

U.S. federal laws require that non-human animal research occur to show the safety and efficacy of new treatments before any human research will be allowed to be conducted.  Not only do we humans benefit from this research and testing, but hundreds of drugs and treatments developed for human use are now routinely used in veterinary clinics as well, helping animals live longer, healthier lives.

It is important to stress that 95% of all animals necessary for biomedical research in the United States are rodents – rats and mice especially bred for laboratory use – and that animals are only one part of the larger process of biomedical research.

Our researchers are strong supporters of animal welfare and view their work with animals in biomedical research as a privilege.

Stanford researchers are obligated to ensure the well-being of all animals in their care..

Stanford researchers are obligated to ensure the well-being of animals in their care, in strict adherence to the highest standards, and in accordance with federal and state laws, regulatory guidelines, and humane principles. They are also obligated to continuously update their animal-care practices based on the newest information and findings in the fields of laboratory animal care and husbandry.  

Researchers requesting use of animal models at Stanford must have their research proposals reviewed by a federally mandated committee that includes two independent community members.  It is only with this committee’s approval that research can begin. We at Stanford are dedicated to refining, reducing, and replacing animals in research whenever possible, and to using alternative methods (cell and tissue cultures, computer simulations, etc.) instead of or before animal studies are ever conducted.

Organizations and Resources

There are many outreach and advocacy organizations in the field of biomedical research.

• Learn more about outreach and advocacy organizations

Stanford Discoveries

What are the benefits of using animals in research? Stanford researchers have made many important human and animal life-saving discoveries through their work. 

• Learn more about research discoveries at Stanford

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Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing

The primary goal of antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) in a clinical setting is to assist veterinarians in optimal antimicrobial selection for their case. This may be done as part of individual patient management or applied to a population, like a herd or flock. Outside of individual case management, AST is used for antibiogram development to guide empiric therapy and surveillance and monitoring programs contributing to our understanding of how bacterial populations vary regionally and change over time.

What is AST?

AST evaluates inhibition of bacterial growth after exposure to an antimicrobial drug in a liquid media or on an agar plate.

How is AST performed?

It is important to remember that an appropriate specimen from an animal with a suspected bacterial infection is essential to accurate test results. The general in-laboratory AST workflow includes:

Testing can be divided into diffusion-based and dilution-based methods. In both cases, live bacteria must first be isolated and identified through culture methods.

Diffusion Method

A known concentration of bacteria are exposed to antimicrobial-impregnated disk which diffuses through the agar at a predictable distance. The size or location of the inhibitory zone (aka: zone diameter) is measured in millimeters and is unique for each drug/bacteria combination. Examples: Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion, Etest® gradient strip method.

Dilution-based

Dilution based methods are performed by incubating a known concentration of bacteria with serial two-fold dilutions of antimicrobial drug. This can be performed in a semi-automated system with microtiter plates, in test tubes, or in agar. At WADDL we perform broth microdilution. The lowest concentration without visible bacterial growth is the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and is usually reported as mg/ml.

What can impact the quality of AST?

Confidence in the accuracy of any laboratory results is directly related to quality control, and AST is no exception. Starting with a quality specimen is key to isolating only those bacterial species that are involved in the disease process. Contamination by environmental or commensal bacteria will limit the utility of AST. 

Deviations in laboratory protocols may lead to erroneous AST results. For example, in disk-diffusion, the agar thickness can impact the diffusion of the antimicrobial agent. In broth microdilution, loading microtiter plates with too much or too little inoculum can lead to a resistant bacterium being called susceptible or vice versa. Following standardized procedures is crucial to accurately perform AST.

How are AST results reported?

The AST results are reported as susceptible, susceptible dose-dependent, intermediate, and resistant using clinical breakpoints to interpret minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) or zone diameter data obtained from in vitro testing. These interpretive categories are defined:

• Susceptible (S) – isolates with an MIC at or below (or a zone diameter at or above) the susceptible breakpoint are inhibited by the usually achievable concentrations of antimicrobial agent when the dosage recommended to treat the site of infection is used, resulting in likely clinical efficacy.
• Susceptible dose-dependent (SDD): isolates with an MIC at the SDD breakpoint require a dosing regimen that achieves higher drug exposure which is different then the regimen used to set the susceptible breakpoint.
• Intermediate (I) – isolates with MICs (or zone diameters) within the intermediate range that approach usually attainable blood and tissue levels and for which response rates may be lower than for susceptible isolates; NOTE: The intermediate category implies clinical efficacy in body sites where the drugs are physiologically concentrated or when a higher-than-normal dosage of a drug can be used. Additionally, this category accounts for lab technical variability.
• Resistant (R) – isolates with an MIC at or above (or a zone diameter at or below) the resistant breakpoint are not inhibited by the usually achievable concentrations of the agent with normal dosage schedules and/or that demonstrate MICs that fall in the range in which specific microbial resistance mechanisms are likely, and clinical efficacy of the agent against the isolate has not been reliably shown in isolates with similar phenotypes.

What is a breakpoint and how is it determined?

Breakpoints are established by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) to predict clinical outcomes. A “susceptible” isolate predicts a likely clinical success using the dose, route and frequency of administration used to develop the breakpoint. A “resistant” isolate predicts a low probability of success following treatment.

Breakpoints are developed by the CLSI through evaluating:

• Concentrations of drug needed to inhibit growth of bacteria with no acquired resistance (pharmacodynamics)
• Achievable plasma drug concetrations in the animal (pharmacokinetics)
• Knowledge of drug properties (concentration vs time-dependent, protein binding)
• Clinical outcome trials.

They may be developed for individual bacterial species, genera or bacterial families and are specific for an animal species. Some may be specific for an anatomical site. All breakpoints are developed using one antimicrobial dosing regimen (dose, route, frequency of administration). In situations where antimicrobial treatment regimens deviate from the clinical breakpoint dosing regimen (ie: increased dose, different route of administration, etc.), AST interpretation may not be as predictive.

What does the lab do if no breakpoints exist?

Successful antimicrobial therapy relies on the antimicrobial agent reaching the site of infection at a concentration that inhibits growth or kills bacteria. Much of the ability of a drug to reach a site is animal species specific and the concentration needed at the site must be relevant to a specific bacterial species. For example, cefovecin can be highly bound to plasma proteins with considerable animal species variability, therefore the cefovecin breakpoints of dogs and cats should not be used for other animal species. Thus, breakpoints developed for one animal species, bacterial group or anatomical site may be inappropriate to be used for a different species of animal, bacteria or anatomical site. Extrapolation must be made with caution to not over-estimate efficacy of therapy. Common extrapolations may be:

• Canine breakpoints used for feline infections
• Bovine breakpoints used for small ruminant infections
• • Equine skin/soft tissue breakpoints used for respiratory infections

Often human specific breakpoints are used to interpret AST results due to lack of any veterinary-specific information. While these breakpoints may indicate resistance (generally align with mutational resistance detection) the clinician should be aware that the susceptibility interpretation may not confidently apply to their case due to large differences in pharmacokinetics. Ideally, laboratories should indicate what breakpoints were applied if alternatives are used. Many knowledge gaps still exist in veterinary-specific resistance breakpoints and extrapolations are not uncommon. It is important to be aware of this situation and to evaluate AST data accordingly. Further research in animal-specific breakpoints is urgently needed.

Should I choose the antimicrobial agent with the lowest MIC on my report?

No. The PK/PD of the antimicrobial will be different for individual drugs which changes the range of dilutions tested to account for this difference.   

One of the laboratories I submit samples to reports more antimicrobials than another. Am I receiving more value from my submission to have more antimicrobials reported?

Not necessarily.

When labs perform a broth microdilution AST, a panel of antimicrobials are being evaluated. The antimicrobials included are dependent on the manufactured commercial plate. Typically, a panel of approximately 20-24 antimicrobials are evaluated. The commercial plates have been developed to test antimicrobials with dilution ranges that reflect the PK of antimicrobials within an individual species. While some labs choose to report the entirety of the panel evaluated, other labs will selectively report only those antimicrobials that could be useful for the case. If the entirety of the panel is reported, the prescribing veterinarian must understand the factors that would limit the use of a particular antimicrobial for their patient, and what antimicrobial AST results can be used to predict activity of other antimicrobials not directly tested. Labs reporting only those antimicrobials that have an effect against the identified bacterial isolate have done this work for the submitter.

Why does the AST report say the isolate is susceptible, but the patient is not responding to treatment?

Many factors account for successful treatment outcomes beyond susceptibility of the bacteria to antimicrobials. Disease effects such as chronicity of the disease process or presence of other infectious agents may decrease antimicrobial therapy response. Antimicrobial tissue penetration may be reduced by decreased blood flow as in shock or in abscesses. Infection of protected sites like the central nervous system or prostate gland may preclude antimicrobial activity due to poor tissue penetration. Other local effects may prevent antimicrobial effectiveness such as biofilm in a surgical implant, cellular debris like pus and necrotic tissue, local pH, and oxygen concentrations. Compromised organ function of the patient can affect the target site antimicrobial concentration. The immune status of the patient also plays a significant and often overlooked component of a therapeutic success. All these factors are not assessed through AST and can affect the outcome for the patient.

Why is the patient responding to treatment when the AST report says the isolate is resistant?

Many veterinarians will have marveled how animals can have successful treatment outcomes despite lack of therapeutic intervention. For individual cases a specific bacterial isolate may have resistant AST results, however a patient’s immune system has amounted a robust response and antimicrobial therapy was not a factor in the treatment outcome. This can be common when foreign material or underlying factors are corrected, aka “source control”. Secondly, the significance of the bacteria isolated may be over interpreted and we are dealing with colonization and not infection. Finally, antimicrobial therapy may be targeting an bacterial species not recovered on culture that is clinically relevant. This is not an exhaustive list.

Why is AST not performed on all bacterial growth from a culture?

Bacterial isolates must first be cultured and identified and clinical significance determined. Depending on the source of the specimen, environmental or commensal bacteria may be cultured. Deciding which bacteria in mixed growth are significant, especially within the presence of commensal bacteria (ie: skin, vaginal or gastrointestinal microflora), can be difficult. Performing AST on all isolates can overemphasize the importance of the bacteria as they may be normally present at the site or reflect contamination rather than be involved in the disease process. Communication with the laboratory regarding interpretation of culture growth is highly encouraged when these issues arise.

Should AST be performed in all cases prior to antimicrobial therapy?

Much consideration needs to be given to the presenting case in choosing what diagnostic testing to pursue prior to treatment decision making. Factors such as severity and chronicity of the condition, age of the patient, likelihood of deterioration, and cost of care may preclude having AST results prior to initiating antimicrobial therapy. Empiric selection of an antimicrobial based on the clinician’s experience and judgement of the likelihood of a specific bacterial infection can be more prudent than collecting a specimen and waiting for bacterial isolation and AST. Prudent antimicrobial use does not mean withholding antimicrobials from a patient who would benefit from therapy while awaiting AST results. In certain cases, bacterial identification is more useful for guiding therapeutic decisions and AST is unnecessary, for example isolation of β-hemolytic Streptococci. In cases that have failed to respond to empiric therapy, bacterial culture and AST is likely necessary to guide further antimicrobial selection. This can be especially important in cases involving bacterial species known to have acquired antimicrobial resistance (i.e.: Staphylococci, Enterobacterales, Enterococci, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and requires AST to assess the resistance profile of the isolate.

Should AST be performed during antimicrobial therapy?

In general, collecting a specimen from an animal being treated with antimicrobials should be avoided. Residual antimicrobial compounds can inhibit bacterial growth of a clinically relevant organism. However, if therapeutic failure is observed culture may be indicated. Depending on the case, a wash-out period of 3-4 days will reduce the effect of a previously administered antimicrobial on AST. If the patient has been on antimicrobial therapy, including this information as part of the specimen submission can improve case interpretation from a clinical veterinary microbiologist.

Can the results of an AST be used to predict outcomes in other cases?

In a herd or flock setting, monitoring AST profiles of commonly isolated bacteria can be useful in assessing susceptibility pattern shifts in the population. Regionally, labs can collate AST data and present a cumulative antibiogram, summarizing the susceptibility profiles of a particular bacterial species in the form of percentage susceptible to a specific antimicrobial compound. Both of these circumstances use previous AST results to predict susceptibility patterns of bacterial species in a given population and provides a reasonable basis for empiric therapy. When empiric therapy fails for an individualized patient evaluation of the specific AST profile of a clinically relevant bacterial isolate can be very important for targeted antimicrobial selection.

Where can I find more information about AST and its interpretation?

Excellent resources outline the procedures, utility, and limitations of AST testing:

• CLSI. VET09: Understanding Susceptibility Test Data as a Component of Antimicrobial Stewardship in Veterinary Settings. 2 nd ed. CLSI report VET09. Wayne, PA: Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2019.
• CLSI. VET01S: Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Disk and Dilution Susceptibility Test for Bacteria Isolated from Animals. 7th ed. Wayne, PA: Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2024.
• https://clsi.org/all-free-resources/
• Giguère S, Prescott JF and Dowling PM. Antimicrobial Therapy in Veterinary Medicine . 5 th ed. Ames, IA: Wiley Blackwell; 2013.