Fields of use

Areas in which animal testing was used in 2005, in the European Union

33%	Basic biology research
31%	Research and Development in human medicine, veterinary medicine and dentistry
15%	Production and product control for human medicine, veterinary medicine and dentistry.
8%	Toxicological and other safety evaluations
2%	Diagnosis of diseases
1,6%	Education and training

8%	Other (virology, immunology for production of monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies, physiology of maternal-fetal interaction in the transgenic mouse genes, cancer treatment, pharmaceutical R & D, combined drug trials , genetics, etc.)

Source: Cinquième Rapport sur les statistiques concernant le nombre d'animaux utilisés à des fins expérimentales et à d'autres fins scientifiques dans les États membres de l'Union européenne

Mice, rats and guinea pigs - "rodents"

Rats and mice are very intelligent and clever animals. They have an excellent memory and are able to analyse problems. These rodents are sociable, affectionate and are able to recognise their name ! Contrary to popular belief they are very clean and don’t smell. Rats are well known for their teamwork and also for the empathy they show to their own.

Most of Laboratory animals are not really considered by the general public. Mice (53%) and rats (19%) are not only called pests in our society but they also stir up a certain repulsion.
This greatly helps vivisectors who can use them to make all kinds of experiments without shocking the general public. That's why we only hear about research done on these particular small animals. Do you think they would show a cat with implants in the brain on the 9 o'clock news?

In the United States, rodents are not even counted within the official figures on laboratory animals.1

File 706 A life is a life, even if the creature is small it can suffer. Yet, rodents are used as laboratory material and then thrown away. There is no need to like rodents to feel empathy towards them.

Because of their small size, vivisectors find these rodents easy to manipulate and they require little space. Also, they reproduce very quickly so several generations get tested on.
Guinea pigs, attract a little more sympathy from the public as they are also pets. They represent 2,1 % of laboratory animals.

Rabbits - "lagomorphs"

The rabbit shows his intelligence in an adapted environment. Like a cat, he can be educated to use the cat’s litter. To be happy, the rabbit needs to play, run, dig and gnaw.2

Another very frequently used animal : the rabbit.

Recently, the rabbit was still used to test the corrosivity of chemicals on the skin. Those tests are now forbidden within the European Union, thanks to the validation of an in-vitro replacement method, using human cells. This method, Episkin, is much more efficient and profitable –probably the main reason for l’Oréal developing the method.

Rabbits are also used to test pharmaceutics/drugs and to study human diseases and among them cardiovascular diseases and disorders of the nervous system. All this without usable results for humans.

The Draize test

The head trapped in a straitjacket, the eyes of rabbits receiving drops or sprays of chemical ingredients used in the manufacture of lipsticks and shampoos. Even worse, sometimes its eyes are kept open using metal clamps continuously. For several days, the progression of ocular lesions is observed: irritation of the cornea, eye perforation, itching and burns.

Dogs and cats – "meat eaters"

A quarter of the dogs and cats come from countries outside the European Union 3(some dogs even come from the U.S.).

The Beagle is a breed of dog commonly used in laboratory research because of its gentle and docile temperament.
It is used for research on the causes and consequences of heart diseases.
Researchers believe they can treat human heart disease - caused by a poor lifestyle - through stopping or damaging the blood vessels of the dog.
Dogs are also used in toxicology, to test the toxicity of chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

Cats are often used for basic research, usually to satisfy a scientific curiosity. Physiology, and especially the nervous system, is of great interest to researchers. Some practice invasive surgery on the brains of anesthetized cats, while others operate on their spinal cord.
There are also experiments on the visual system, once again on the brain and on the balance of cats causing damage to the inner ear.4

A lady once came up to one of our information stalls in Paris and told us that animal research was very important. She told us that she was a researcher studying human sleeping-disorders in... CATS! Even a kid knows that animals don't have the same sleeping cycles as humans. We asked her why she couldn't simply study human beings, at least she would get relevant information with clinical examinations and questionning. All she replied was: "Yes, but we would have to pay the humans." She turned away, not giving us the time to say that we were suggesting REAL PATIENTS!

Non-human primates – « NHP »

The family of Hominidae, like ourselves, includes gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans and bonobos. These great apes are no longer used for animal testing in Europe, but chimpanzees are still extensively used in the U.S.

Each year, about 12,000 primates are used in laboratories for animal testing in Europe. The most used are macaques (rhesus and cynomolgus), lemurs and marmosets.

Researchers and statisticians may well say that only 0.1% of the animals used in labs are primates, it still means that an average of three monkeys die every two days in each european country!
Their close relationship with us constantly raises ethical questions.

They are often used in toxicology testing of chemicals or medicines, research on infectious diseases (HIV), neurology and neurotoxicology in which they suffer excruciating and unnecessary operations on the brain (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's) as well as in basic research.

A PETA investigation recently revealed grotesque abuses to animals in laboratories at Columbia University, such as 5:

Metal pipes are surgically implanted in the skulls rhesus monkeys for the sole purpose of inducing stress... The study concerns the connection between stress and women’s menstrual cycles.
Strokes artificially induced in baboons by removing their left eyeballs to reach and clamp a critical blood vessel to their brains and administer experimental drugs.
Twenty years of pumping nicotine and morphine into pregnant baboons who are strapped into backpacks full of instrumentation and tethered inside their metal cages. Their babies undergo surgery while still in utero.

Here are some examples of NHP experiment failures raised by Dr. Jarrod Bailey. (You will find all the references in the original article Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine)6:

AIDS: With rare exceptions, NHPs don’t develop AIDS when infected with HIV; experimental results cannot be confidently extrapolated to humans. None of 50-plus NHP-tested vaccines (such as “Aidsvax”) has succeeded in humans. Effective anti-HIV drugs were conceived and developed using in vitro and in silico methods, without reliance on animal models.
Hepatitis (HCV): NHP experiments have failed to contribute to elucidate HCV infection, vaccine development, and understanding hepatocellular damage, with most progress relying on in vitro and clinical studies. Significant differences exist in viral infection and disease between humans and NHPs.
Alzheimer's disease: NHP models have failed to inform us of Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Plaques and tangles in the brain are the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease in humans, but not in monkeys. Human and in vitro studies produced the important genetic, biochemical, and lifestyle information and hypotheses that are elucidating the disease. An Alzheimer’s “vaccine”—AN-1792—was well-tolerated in monkeys, but caused strokes and inflammation of the central nervous system in humans.
Parkinson’s disease: Fundamental differences in the symptoms and pathology of Parkinson’s disease exist between NHPs and humans. Major breakthroughs arose through epidemiology, clinical studies, genetic research, human tissue studies, and autopsies.
Stroke: NHPs have artificially modeled strokes for decades, despite critical physiological differences. Significant species and strain-specific differences exist. Of about 150 drugs found to be successful in animals (often NHPs), none has been successful in humans.
Hormone replacement therapy: This therapy was found to be protective against heart disease and stroke in NHPs, but actually increased the risk in humans.