Toxicologists, Become Vegan Biologists, To Find Alternatives To Animal Testing
Save The Animals Tip
Toxicologists helped create the food labels, so care enough read them, to save animals.
Alternatives to Animal Testing?
A people problem, not a science problem!
If anyone can do it, Toxicologists can!
Ever watch a chicken lay an egg? It’s painful!
Imagine my surprise. I was a teenager, working on a local farm. Busy carrying the egg basket, opening the back of one nesting box after another. To pick up shiny, white or brown, fresh, warm eggs. I opened one particular nesting box, to be greeted by the rear end of a chicken. Out of which protruded the tip of a white, shiny, slimy egg.
The chicken was kicking up a real racket. I’m not surprised. You would think the poor thing might split in half. Then the the massive object made it’s way into the world. Massive compared to a chicken’s rear end. Then it was over! A freshly laid egg. Steaming slightly in the early morning light.
I never took an egg for granted ever again.
But there are worse things!
Trying living in a small cage. Like a lab rat. For your whole life. And being in the cage is the ‘best of times.’
People love to say, stop doing animal testing. It’s not that easy. Animal testing is built into our legal system. And as my favorite lawyer, Margaret, said, “Mr. Morgan, I don’t have e-mail, because the law moves VERY slowly.”
I was a researcher, in the field of Toxicology. I killed lots of rats and mice. Eventually, I migrated to other methods. Especially Applied Mathematics. I like rats and mice. Not in my larder, of course.
Remember!
It wasn’t fancy science that save the USA from Thalidomide.
It was a person with good judgement. Francis Oldham Kelsey.
I was a member of The Society of Toxicology, for many years. The people who use lots of rats and mice, to assess chemical and drug safety. I was working on the issue of alternative methods. For a recent consultancy.
Within a few hours of starting this work, I realized that I couldn’t earn money, working to save rats and mice, while eating pigs and chickens.
My research led me to an important conclusion.
Creating alternatives to animal testing, for chemical safety assessment, is a people problem.
Not a science problem. There will never be enough science!
We have lots of scientific techniques. We’ll soon have more. But they’ll never replace wise human judgement. Just consider the story of Ignaz Semmelweis and his battles to save women from puerperal fever!
Applying new methods is intellectually challenging. It’s much easier to poison some rats. Plus, you have to fight the battle to have the results accepted by regulatory agencies, such as the FDA and EPA.
I did a ‘back of the envelope’ calculation. Based on my recent vegan experience. Then I added these calculations to a website, The Thoughtful Toxicologist. Take a look, and see what you think. I calculated that the Toxicology community could save many more animals by going vegan, than they could ever hope to do working to reduce animal testing!
This is does not mean they shouldn’t do both. Those who use, or eat, animals owe it to the animals to do so consciously.
Why should all Toxicologists consider becoming vegan biologists, at least for one month!
Based on personal experience, becoming vegan biologists, for only a few weeks, changes one’s perspective, when it comes to animal use and abuse. I hadn’t noticed before.
People eat so much meat. Rats and mice are trapped in cages, to support expense accounts that are used to consume even more animals. Business dinners.
At least the veterinarians should consider becoming vegan biologists. We swore an oath to help the animals.
Come on! One month as vegan biologists, abstaining from meat, eggs and dairy, won’t kill you.
Why did it take me so long! Lack of awareness!
You say you’re too busy? Being vegan isn’t time consuming or expensive. It’s healthy and caring. You can always prepare or buy easy vegan meals – it takes a lot less time than it does to become a Toxicologist.
—ooOoo—
FitOldDog’s Vegan Cuisine
Vegan biologists can eat breakfast out of a box!
There are lots of delicious meals that you can make with prepared foods, in boxes and bottles. A little exploration of local food markets, combined with careful reading of the labels, and you’ll be vegan biologists before you know it. Saving lots of animals.
Today I had Nostalgia, combined with the warmth of hot soup, for a cold spring day.
It was easy. Vegan, portobello mushroom soup (don’t boil, it spoils the flavor). To dip in the soup: Sourdough bread, toasted, and liberally coated with butter alternative and Marmite (I’m still a bit English).
Followed by another slice of toast, with English marmalade.
Plus, of course, a cup of Yorkshire Tea, with soy creamer.
Now I’m ready for another exciting and busy day on our lovely planet.
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