On Friday UBC released the shocking number of animals that have undergone research testing at UBC in 2010: 212, 000. According to a spokesperson from the University “UBC has maintained over the last year and a half or so that they experimented on about 100,000 animals a year and yet the data released [Friday] for 2010 shows that the number of animals used at UBC has doubled.” According to another University representative 97% of those animals used in studies were rodents, mice, rats, fish and frogs. However, more than 4,000 medium to larger sized mammals were also used in research. In addition, UBC has confessed that 31 animals were exposed to highly invasive procedures which caused that animal stress, severe suffering or even death. The University did say that if the animal was to undergo a painful procedure they were administered anesthesia or pain medication.
I’m sorry but how many animals do we need to test on? How many innocent animals do we need to expose to unnecessary poking and prodding? Not to mention that this outrageous number is only from one North American University Institution! I understand that research aids us in understanding the “laws of nature” but how is it at all ethical to use living creatures that are unable to give any kind of consent (especially if they are exposed to pain, suffering or death). Do we really need to experiment on so many un-consenting beings? To me reading this article provides me with 212, 000 reasons why we should search for new means of doing research. 212, 000 reasons why we should end animal testing.
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