I work with animals in medical research. AMA

[wokeupinnewyork]

Name changed for this, mainly to keep it separate from my usual name in case it gets nasty as this topic occasionally can.

I've worked with animals in research labs in both research and pharmaceutical settings for 6 years. My job is still controversial and secretive, despite attempts to change this, and people I tell always seem to be curious and have lots of questions. I'm happy to answer anything.

I can't honestly see how someone can call themselves an animal lover and do the job that you do. I do understand however, that treatments need to be tested to save lives.

When I started typing I realised I had more questions than I thought, so sorry if this sounds like an interrogation Op!

Where do the animals come from? Are they bred specifically for your research or does your company buy them from various private sellers? Is there certain criteria to be met when acquiring them?

Also, how are they looked after before and after research? Eg are they kept in cages, do you have specific staff for feeding them/ cleaning etc?

Finally, what happens to them once you have finished with each bit of testing?

(Sorry, I'm on the app so it's a bit tricky to keep up with who's asked what as I can't flick back and forth so I'm trying to answer all)

I truly hope we can move beyond using animals in research but no I don't see it happening soon. Perhaps with more of the research side, once we have a better understanding of the way systems work we could use less when it comes to pharmaceutical testing. But we'll see.

All procedures carried out on animals that cause pain are licenced. You have to hold a licence to do them, which you obtain from the home office after completing courses. You then have to be trained by someone. All procedures to be performed have to be pre approved when the project is initially proposed which also goes through the home office and an ethics committee. You have to prove that it's the only way to carry out the proposed work and prove that the work is for the benefit of many. So yes, we definitely limit pain as much as possible.

No I don't work for GSK.

I personally haven't been targeted (although it looks like I might be now). I have friends that have been asked to get out of taxis and been spat on in the past. My DH used to work somewhere where animal rights activists regularly picketed so has had abuse thrown at him. He says the one thing that stood out to him was one summer, it was weather like we're having now. He drove into work and got shouted at about torturing animals, whilst there was a dog in an activists turned off car with the window cracked only slightly.

It's so difficult, I hate the idea of animals suffering, I would never ever buy cosmetics tested on animals, there is no need to do research for that. I don't know how I would feel if I or a loced one needed insulin made from animals, hrt from horse urine, a skin graft from a piggy. I don't understand how a human treatment can be tested on a tiny animal like a mouse, I hope gene therapy, stem cells, all put an end to animal research.

You limit pain as much as possible??

So those poor animals are crying out and no one gives a shit!

😢

Sorry Alison I missed the second part of your question. I've never really had much to do with primate use, I think I'd struggle with it to be honest. I know people that have done it and they love working with them. It seems to be mostly behavioural work now so generally very minimal suffering. And their carers love them so much. One of them actually ended up getting a licence to keep some of them as 'pets' once a study was finished.

Lastgirlontheleft so you would refuse drugs if you got cancer? Sepsis? I call bullshit.

Why do,the animals,suffer pain, that has really upset me. Please say you don't deliberately inflict pain on them to test painkillers or other drugs or cut them without anaesthetic

I'm sorry you feel that way owl. I'm well aware they feel fear and pain and we do as much as we can to minimise that as much as possible. I just have to remind myself every day how much good this is doing in the long run. So many advancements are being made every day because of work with animals.

Sorry, xenotransplantation! I haven't really come across it too much. So I don't really feel I can say much without risk of making a mistake.

Well, I'd like to thank you for being involved in research. For being there to ensure that animal research is carried out as ethically as possible. I know I couldn't do it. I work further along the product development path. It's a shit job, but we need people who are willing to do their best to ensure that the animals are looked after as well as possible. That only essential studies are done, on as few animals as possible.

People who say they take no pharmaceuticals ever, wait until you have a life threatening condition that can't be cured by caffeine enemas.

You’re equating a dog kept (possibly for a very short while) in a hot car with what you do? Seriously? One dog? One time? How many animals had your DH been responsible for harming? Killing?

If it’s medicines you are testing then there may well be no other way right now (there is no excuse ever to test toiletries on animals) but please don’t downplay the suffering to sentient creatures that you cause.

Look it's very simple....test the drugs on humans. Isadora?

We can't just use and abuse animals. For you all thinknit is ok to do this....volunteer!

Animals tests that case pain, I really couldn’t do that, not at all. Why if you have to are they subject to pain? Awful, a lab about an hour of so from me often has protests, they experiment on dogs.

Hiding this thread.
OP - don't conduct your research/torture in my name.

are you scared of any animals? what would you do of you had to work with an animal you are scared of? is there any risk that you will catch the diseases you are working to cure? is it true that pharmaceutical companies don't want to cure illness any more because there is more money in keeping people on long term medication?

Gary I would volunteer for drugs to be tested on me rather than animals. Call bullshit all you like...just because you don't care, doesn't mean I do!

What an interesting post. Have you been involved in testing that has either led to or is a has the potential to lead to a medical breakthrough?

Would you feel happier to have the research carried out on yourself, your family and your own pets.

Slipper, I love animals. I currently only have a dog and two cats after losing our third cat last year. We had rats in the past, I grew up with cats and my DH grew up with dogs and mice. I really want chickens but having not long had a baby I think I'd be putting too much strain on myself. I have two vet nurse friends at the moment hand tearing kittens and it's taking everything for me to not take them in!

Holey, a lot of the research needs to look at the life line, mice have a short lifespan so we're able to look at the longer term effects. Also, a lot of mice used are bred to have or not have a particular gene that is being looked at. You can't do this with humans. A data sample of 1 isn't very conclusive.

LastGirl I do care, believe it or not. But I will always care about my fellow man more. I've watched family and friends suffer from various cancers, MND, Parkinson's and HD off the top of my head. I want to see those cured. So I say thank you to people like the OP who do a brave and important job that helps mankind.

I don't take meds of any kind.

Lucky, lucky you.

I have worked on the fringes of medical research. The mice in the labs were treated with a damn sight more respect and humanity than the mice under the floorboards in our office building, who were baited with poison then left to rot. I would think that’s the case for most workplaces across the country.