Every year, nearly one hundred million animals die in research laboratories at the hands of curious scientists who perform outdated and inaccurate tests that prove no benefit to humans or animals. I believe vivisection, medical testing on animals, should be banned.

Before these animals die they are routinely burned, scalded, poisoned, starved, given electric shocks, and deliberately inflicted with deadly diseases. Their eyes are surgically removed, and their brains and spinal cords are damaged; this is completed without any kind of anesthesia. Despite all of this cruelty, not a single disease has been cured through vivisection in this century. The overall cancer rate has risen in the past forty years, and a fatal heart attack strikes a person every forty-five seconds. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimate that seventy to eighty percent of the common diseases killing Americans can be prevented by a responsible lifestyle and diet. Drug testing on animals is not accurate and has no advantage to animals or people.

Animals including dogs, cats, mice, pigs, monkeys, horses, deer, and cattle are commonly used for these senseless experimentations. The other

remaining misfortunate animals come from places a little closer to you and me. Some of them come from animal shelters, some from the free to a good home ads in the newspaper, or, even worse, some have been stolen directly from their own yard. Imagine your pet being crammed into a cage with ten other animals waiting to die in these cruel and heartless experiments.

The current system of drug testing places consumers in a dangerous predicament. For example, some drugs passed safe in animal experiments but proved tragic consequences in humans. Conversely, many drugs that are beneficial to humans are dangerous or even fatal to animals. This is obvious proof that testing on animals is unreliable, but sadistic tests still go on every day.

If animal experimentation was eliminated, it could save up to 6.8 billion dollars. This money could be used for medical assistance programs for low-income individuals, helping the many Americans who can not afford insurance, rather than killing animals or making them sick.

There will be nearly 275 thousand animals dead this time tomorrow that were not dead right now. The numbers are real and this is happening in

our world daily because it means a multibillion-dollar income for some people and is legal in the U.S. The problem that we are faced with today is not a difficult one to fix. The technology is available for us to use, and we should take advantage of our advanced alternate methods instead of allowing the lives of innocent and helpless animals to be stolen.