Ethics of Research involving animals
Why should the use of animals in research be acceptable in cases where it would be unacceptable to use humans?
3.18 Several respondents to the Consultation expressed their concerns about the view that convenience or scientific necessity are sometimes seen as sufficient reasons for using animals in research: ‘I feel that any living creature should be given the same level of compassion as any other.
Thus if it is unacceptable to conduct research on a human being, I feel that it is also unacceptable to conduct said research on any other living creature…’
Gaynor Armitage
‘We believe that all living things have the same moral status.’
Claire Hardman and Tom Schoeffler
‘a) Animals are not like us. But then the information gleaned from research conducted involving them would not be useful to humans, so
b) Animals are like us. Which makes it ethically wrong to involve them in research.’
Kate White
‘When we consider a type of cost that both humans and animals are capable of bearing, such as the experience of suffering, do they count the same? If not, what is the justification for counting animals’ interests less – and how can this be done without begging the question against the growing ranks of people involved in this area who believe that the comparable interests of humans and animals are equally important?’
Professor David DeGrazia
3.19 Those who accept the use of animals in research where the use of non-consenting human participants would be unacceptable could seek to develop and set forth a number of arguments supporting their case. For example, they could argue that animals are somehow morally less important than humans; that, when compared to humans, it matters less to animals to be used in research in certain ways; or that, although it would be preferable for animals to be free to live their lives, some research questions are so significant that the use of animals can be justified although this constitutes a wrong. Clearly, these options require us to consider a wide range of issues, ranging from abstract discussions about the moral status of humans and animals to more concrete comparisons of how animals are treated in other contexts. We discuss these in more detail below.