When is animal testing truly necessary for pet and human health?

Question

Hello! Regarding the subject of animal testing, do you, as a vet, think it should still be relevant in your profession as well as in modern scientific and medicine research that benefits or focuses on humans? In what situations can animal testing be considered as "necessary"?

C. Rathjens, DVM · Accepted Answer

I'm not a researcher so I'm not going to be able to provide detailed examples, but I think this is very important question with no clear answer. There are definitely going to be times when animal testing is needed to find cures/treatment that are vital to people, but think we need to very very selective in when we use testing that will cause any harm to animals. Veterinarians and researchers are all morally and ethically bound to limit and relieve suffering, so the idea is that by the time we get to animal testing it can be done in a controlled fashion. I also think taking the time to work on behavioral enrichment for animals involved in research (and all captive animals, including our dog and cat pets) is very important. In short, I don't think we can get away from it, but need to make sure it's really necessary before using this step.

When is animal testing truly necessary for pet and human health?

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