PETA

By Jessica Sandler and Kate Willett, Ph.D.

If anyone out there is still wondering about the superiority of alternatives to animal tests, look no further than what is happening right now in the Gulf of Mexico. In its efforts to assist the devastated region, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is saving time, money and the lives of countless animals—those suffering in laboratories—by using efficient and effective non-animal methods to study the endocrine effects of chemical dispersants that could be used to clean up the oil gusher.

In fact, using non-animal testing methods is the only way that the EPA can get information about these chemicals in a short period of time—a few weeks as opposed to years. Without such sophisticated methods, the EPA would have to rely on crude and cruel animal toxicity tests that date back to the 1930s, and we would be waiting years to know anything at all about these chemicals. Considering the dire conditions of the region, waiting years for an answer is simply not an option.

The modern in vitro tests that the EPA has on hand to study the endocrine effects of eight oil spill dispersants are rapid and automated, in contrast to what the EPA calls “time consuming and expensive” animal tests. Testing one chemical on animals can cost millions, versus the EPA’s estimated $20,000 using in vitro testing. And while cost considerations are important, turn-around time is even more essential as ecosystems totter on the brink of disaster. The EPA states that, on average, it would take a researcher “eight hours a day, five days a week, for 12 years” to conduct these studies using traditional animal tests. The computer-driven in vitro tests deliver results in three days. The EPA has already completed the first round of toxicity testing on these dispersants.

The situation in the Gulf highlights the necessity of toxicology testing reform. Most of the tests used in standard chemical screening today were developed in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s. They are heavily reliant on animals, are slow and costly and have yielded inaccurate information about the effects of chemicals on humans. And they have allowed dangerous chemicals such as benzene and arsenic to enter and remain on the market—even after millions of animals have been killed in decades of testing.

Our current system is overloaded and incapable of accurately screening the tens of thousands of chemicals reportedly in the environment already, with more entering every day. Scientists and government agencies are now recognizing that “it is simply not possible with all the animals in the world to go through new chemicals in the blind way that we have at the present time, and reach credible conclusions about the hazards to human health” (Dr. Joshua Lederberg, Nobel laureate in medicine).

Indeed, Congress and the EPA are now looking to overhaul the Toxic Substances Control Act to bring chemical regulation into the 21st century. The EPA and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) are among the scientific organizations calling for toxicity testing methods that are human-relevant, faster and cheaper and that use fewer or no animals.

In its 2007 report, the NAS confirmed that scientific advances can “transform toxicity testing from a system based on whole-animal testing to one founded primarily on in vitro (non-animal) methods.” Such an approach will improve efficiency, speed and prediction for humans while cutting costs and reducing animal suffering. As it should, the newly introduced legislation supports the continued development and implementation of this shift toward non-animal methodologies.

As the case in the Gulf demonstrates, non-animal testing is the stuff of science—not “science fiction” as critics often contend—and it is surely the future of ensuring chemical safety.

Jessica Sandler, director of PETA’s regulatory testing division, is a former government safety and health official. Dr. Kate Willett is PETA’s science policy adviser.

By Lindsay Pollard-Post

The arrival of Hurricane Alex and Tropical Storm Bonnie is just the beginning of what experts have predicted will be one of the most active hurricane seasons on record. Up to 23 named tropical storms and hurricanes are predicted, and emergency planners are concerned that a storm surge could carry oil from the Gulf spill inland. We can’t control the weather, but we can help our loved ones weather this year’s hurricane season safely by making emergency plans now to protect all the members of our families, including our animals.

As the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the earthquake in Haiti and the tragic Gulf oil spill have shown, animals aren’t any better equipped to survive disasters than humans are. Cats and dogs can’t phone for help, row a boat or open a can of food, and emergency shelters for humans often refuse to accept animals. People who leave their animals behind during an evacuation often learn the hard way that even if their homes haven’t been damaged, downed power lines or impassable roads may prevent them from returning home for weeks, leaving their animals stranded without food or water. Click to continue »

By Chris Holbein

You probably don’t need anyone to tell you that Americans are losing the battle of the bulge. Two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, and obesity rates among children have tripled in the past 30 years. The problem is so alarming that earlier this year, a nonprofit group called Mission: Readiness, fronted by senior retired military leaders, issued a report titled “Too Fat to Fight,” which concluded that 27 percent of all young adults “are too fat to serve in the military.”

So it’s heartening to see that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s new dietary guidelines take aim at the obesity epidemic in part by recommending a shift toward a plant-based diet. Going vegetarian (or better yet, vegan) is a proven way to lose weight—and keep it off—as well as to improve your overall health. Click to continue »

By Paula Moore

Anglers across the country are being encouraged to take advantage of states’ license-free days by introducing friends and family members to their favorite blood sport.

Sorry, does that sound harsh? We don’t like to think about it, but there’s no longer any doubt that fish can feel pain. We should stop pretending that hurting animals for “fun” is an acceptable way to spend an afternoon.

I haven’t always felt this way. Like most people, I grew up thinking that fishing was a normal pastime. My father fished, and when I was a kid, I often accompanied him on fishing trips. I loved talking to my dad on the long drives to the lake and back—although, admittedly, my favorite part of these outings was stopping by the bait shop, because the man who owned the shop had a “pet” skunk. I played with the skunk while my father purchased items for our trip.

And my least favorite part? Fishing. Hooking worms was gross, and I always felt uncomfortable when we’d pull a fish out of the water. Adults said that fish don’t feel pain, but that was hard to believe while watching a fish struggle and gasp for air Click to continue »

By Lindsay Pollard-Post

Dogs are suffering and dying in puppy mills across the country, but the agency in charge of regulating animal breeding facilities is doing next to nothing to help these dogs, according to an eye-opening report just released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s inspector general. In one Oklahoma puppy mill, inspectors found five dead dogs lying among other dogs who were so starved that they were cannibalizing their cage mates. The USDA didn’t rescue the survivors, and 22 more dogs perished.

Dogs in other puppy mills were found living on piles of feces. Some dogs were crawling with ticks and suffering from open wounds, but puppy mill operators were rarely penalized for first offenses—even serious ones—and repeat offenders were frequently let off the hook. Click to continue »

By Ingrid Newkirk

Right now, in laboratories across North America, dogs, cats, monkeys, mice, rats, rabbits, and other animals are being subjected to crude, painful, and ultimately deadly experiments. PETA’s fight for animals in laboratories began with our founding in 1980. And after winning a groundbreaking victory for them in 1981, we have been making major strides for these animals ever since. But our work for them is far from over.

With the ever-growing popularity of cruelty-free products, it’s easy for some consumers to think that product testing is rarely done anymore. They are wrong. Unilever, Dial, Clorox, Johnson & Johnson, and many other companies continue to fund cruel animal experiments even though superior non-animal test methods are available.

For example, a lethal poisoning test developed nearly 100 years ago — in which animals are force-fed increasing doses of a chemical until they die — is still the single most common animal test in use today. When you consider that government-mandated tests kill more than 2,000 animals every single time they are conducted, you’ll understand just how much suffering animal experimentation produces. Click to continue »

By Debbie Leahy

The recent death of an animal groom at a Shrine-sponsored circus in Pennsylvania is a tragic end to an already tragic situation. Elephants have been beaten, battered and broken by the circus industry. Is it any wonder they snap from the stress?

Bullhooks look like a fireplace poker—they are batons with a sharp metal hook on the end. They are the standard tool that circuses use to break and manage elephants. These ugly devices are designed to cause pain and can rip and tear skin and leave bloody wounds.

Longtime elephant trainer Tim Frisco was caught on videotape viciously attacking terrified elephants with bullhooks and electric prods during an elephant training seminar. Frisco instructs other trainers to hurt the elephants until they scream and to sink the bullhook into their flesh and twist it. He also cautions that the beatings must be concealed from the public. The elephant who killed the groom in Pennsylvania is believed to belong to Terry Frisco, Tim Frisco’s brother. Click to continue »

By Ingrid E. Newkirk

April 22 marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Founded by former Sen. Gaylord Nelson, the original Earth Day put environmental protection on the national radar, leading to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and passage of the Clean Air and Clean Water acts. Forty years later, Earth Day has gone global. One billion people are expected to participate in Earth Day celebrations this month, from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Tokyo, Japan.

That’s all well and good. But planting trees and cleaning up rivers won’t mean much in the long run if we continue to trash the planet with our meat habit. To truly “go green,” we must start with what’s on our plates.

Raising and killing animals for food wastes so many resources and causes so much destruction, it’s hard to know where to begin. Click to continue »

editor’s note: Before you read Paula’s piece, please remember to watch the amazing movie “Food, Inc,” a scathing indictment against America’s farming “system” and the food we eat. It was at many cinemas last year (in Worcester for a week or two). So in case you missed it, turn to channel 2 or 21 and watch this great documentary. We promise you will be eating less meat immediately! (and feeling so much healthier!)

By Paula Moore

Eating out is becoming a blood sport.

According to recent news stories, food adventure clubs — whose members sample “gross-out” dishes such as sautéed lamb’s brains and duck embryos — are springing up across the country. During one recent outing at a Korean restaurant in New York, a group of gastro-warriors dined on freshly vivisected lobster and live octopus. The lobster’s head watches as you consume the body, and the octopus writhes as a chef clips off his tentacles—which diners eat quickly while the limbs are still wriggling.

Apparently, it’s not enough that we eat all manner of dead animals — now we have to eat live ones too. But consuming live animals doesn’t just push the boundaries of good taste: It’s animal abuse. Click to continue »

PETA is constantly under vicious and vigorous attack by people who have two goals in mind: to do all that they can to stop us from winning animal rights victories and to cripple our ability to expose animal abuse. But we are not about to let them succeed.

Industry giants and their sleazy front groups are going after PETA for one reason: We’re making tremendous progress in our campaign to end cruelty wherever it occurs, from slaughterhouses to laboratories, the exotic-animal trade to the fur trade, and sleazy roadside zoos to miserable circuses. Our opponents are very upset about the effectiveness of our investigations, including the one that we conducted on turkey farms owned by Aviagen Turkeys, Inc., in West Virginia. That investigation led to the first cases in U.S. history in which factory-farm employees faced felony cruelty-to-animals charges for abusing birds. And that scares them! Click to continue »