“If humans can’t undergo such extreme lab tests, then why do animals have to go through such gruesome process? Are they any less of a human being,” a talented doctor, Sobohi Fatima, shared her thoughts while reflecting on her bitter experience of conducting lab tests on animals.
Many animals and insects including Mice, rats, dogs, monkeys, rabbits and cockroaches have been subjected to cruel experiments for the sake of science in the last two decades.
The animal rights violation is not just limited to being burned, shocked or poisoned but these species had also been forcibly impregnated, decapitated, locked away in isolation during countless lab tests.
As per People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), “In Pfizer laboratories, snake venom has been repeatedly injected into 111 horses and large quantities of their blood have been drawn. These painful procedures can cause horses to fall ill, lose weight, and become anemic, and no pain relief is provided.”
These atrocious experiments raised countless concerns from animal rights organisations from all around the globe.
During an exclusive interview with a 23-year-old talented doctor Sobohi Fatima, who is currently working with Jinnah Hospital, I learned a lot about what goes on behind the curtains of new medical discoveries.
Sobohi recalled her first experience of conducting a lab test during her university days, “When I was in college, we conducted several experiments on animals, primarily for studying anatomy and basic physiological processes. Frogs and worms were dissected to observe their internal structures, but the ethical aspect of these practices was often neglected.”
According to her, the animals were not adequately anesthetized, leading to unnecessary suffering, and after the dissections, they were not properly closed up or treated humanely; instead, they were discarded in bins or sometimes even given to other animals.
She added, “Later, in medical school, animals like frogs and rabbits were used for experiments to study processes like skeletal muscle contraction or drug effects. For these studies, frogs were dissected to expose muscles, and rabbits were often subjected to procedures that caused significant distress.”
While reflecting on violation of animal rights, Sobohi explained, “These experiences made it evident that the ethical rights of animals are frequently violated in the name of education and research, underscoring the urgent need for humane practices and alternatives in scientific training.”
Even though the Universal declaration of animal rights claims that all animals are born with an equal claim on life and the same rights to existence, but sadly what Sobohi has observed throughout her stellar career suggests otherwise.
The esteemed declaration was solemnly proclaimed in Paris on October 15, 1978 at the UNESCO headquarters.
Moreover, Dr. Sobohi gave some suggestions regarding animal rights law to improve ethical codes of scientific experiments, which can at least reduce if not end atrocious lab tests.
She proposed that researchers should not only consider the direct suffering that may be endured during the experiment itself, but also the risk of suffering before and after the experiment.
It is important to note that highlighting this global issues has not gone in vain, but in fact it has brought a monumental change in the world of experiments.
According to PETA, “The world’s most forward-thinking scientists are developing and using animal-free methods (vitro method) that are actually relevant to human health for studying diseases and testing products.”
The animal rights organisation revealed that the new methods of conducting experiments would include sophisticated tests using human cells and tissues.
