Sheila Renee Jackson

October 12, 2015

ENG 105
Animal Testing Controversy
Every product that you use on a daily basis goes through an ethics board to decide
whether it should be tested on animals or humans before it is sent to the stores to be sold off of
the shelf. Major companies such as Victorias Secret, Bath and Body Works, Susan Browns
Baby, and Desert Essence make these decisions based off of whether it is morally correct to see
if their newly made product will hurt the skin. They then have to go through a multistep
procedure to see if it is safer to test it on animal skin or to test it on human skin, which is whom
the product will be going to anyways (Procon.org). With this in mind, they make their decision
and the majority of the companies choose to test on animals because it is the safer route. Many
different people have different views on what the choice should come down to. Those people
include: animal activists, the scientists who test these products, companies that sell such
products, our regular citizens on the street that use the products and even the animals themselves.
We have to take into consideration each side before we can determine whether it is morally
correct to test hair and skin products on animals.
Animal activists all around the world do not believe that any products should be used on
animals for one simple reason: No matter the nature of the being, the principle of equality
requires that its suffering be counted equally with the like suffering of any other being(SUBR:
Animal Welfare and Animal Rights). They believe that all animals that suffer any type of
problem should have to be treated like they would treat any human suffering from that same

condition. We wouldnt just go around and burn human skin to see if it a product is bad or not, so
why should animals have to go through the same pain. Activists have been trying to get scientists
to conduct research to find out if animals can feel pain the way that we do. Scientist have been
testing commodities on animals for years, but most recently they have started doing other testing
which involves seeing this animals actually have feelings like us humans do. They soon learned
that animals are sentient (Voiceless: Animal Protection Institute). It is now known that animals
such as mammals, birds, amphibians, fish and reptiles do have feelings! Knowing this, scientist
have changed their views on testing on them. They have realized that since us humans have
feelings, we know what it is like to be hurt, and they do not want to put that on animals either.
Animal activists and scientists now are starting to coordinate their views on the way that we use
animals as lab rats and want to discontinue this practice immediately.
Companies such as Bath and Body Works, Victorias Secret, Sexy Hair, and many more
have been testing the products that they sell on animals since the very beginning. They believe
that it is okay to test on animals because they do not have to do the science to determine whether
or not it is hurting them. Some companies, like these ones, have also switched from testing on
animals to testing on actual human models because they want to limit the animal abuse and make
sure that they are receiving credible results since animal skin is not the same as human beings.
Not all companies have switched though, There are still a couple handfuls of companies that
have not switched over (The Vegetarian Site). Those companies are also ones that have been
around for years and want to continue doing their testing like they have been doing for many
years. Associations such as Johnson and Johnson have been around since the late 1800s and are
ran by an older group so they wont be changing their testing mechanisms anytime soon
(Johnson and Johnson).

We all have pets in our homes that we love as if they were our own children. We feel
happy when we give them treats and they smile back at us, and we feel absolutely horrible when
we step on their feet. So we in fact know that are animals can feel pain and joy like humans
(Voiceless: Animal Protection Institute). This shows the animals perspective on things. No we
cannot determine what they feel all of the time but we can make a good judgement the majority
of the time. Animals do not want to be hurt, just like us so thats why they believe that they
shouldnt be tested on when it comes to product testing. Civilians around the U.S. also believe
that we shouldnt test on animals because they know that it could hurt them in the end with all of
the chemicals we pump into their bodies. This perspective isnt really a big deal because these
people dont really have a scientific background and cannot determine if it is truly safe or ethical
to continue to test in this manner.
Everyone has their own opinion about different controversial matters. In this case, for
animal testing, we have to take into consideration the views of our citizens of the United States,
scientists who test products on animals, the animal activists around the world, the companies that
sell each and every product that needs to be tested on animals, and even the animals feelings as
well. When we take all of these into consideration, we also have to make sure that the facts that
each perspective gives are accurate and credible. This way, we can make the best possible
decision on whether or not it is morally correct to test men and womens beauty products on
different types of animals. Some of them would say, yes it is okay, because animals do not have
feelings and cant determine if what we do affects them. Others would disagree because they do
not see animals and dumbfounded creatures. Instead they see them as someone like us who has
feelings and can feel pain and activists want to stop from us hurting them day in and day out.

Now we just have to determine who is correct. Do animals have feelings, or are they just beasts
who live their days not knowing what comes next.

Work Cited
Allen, Jane E. "Animal Testing - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. N.p., 27 Aug. 2015.

Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"Animal Welfare and Animal Right." States for Bio Medical. N.p., 4 Apr. 2015. Web.
Sherman, Brian. "Animal Sentience." Voiceless. N.p., 15 Nov. 2004. Web.
Gorsky, Alex. "Johnson & Johnson History." Johnson & Johnson History. Johnson and
Johnson Services, 28 Oct. 2015. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.