About Animal Testing

“Currently, nine out of ten experimental drugs fail in clinical studies because we cannot accurately predict how they will behave in people based on laboratory and animal studies.” – Mike Leavitt (US Secretary of Health and Human Services) [1]

All animals (including humans) need to breathe, eat and drink to survive, however every species is very different from the other.

  • chimpanzees are immune to human diseases such as HIV, malaria and hepatitis
  • paracetamol (such as “Panadol”) is toxic to cats
  • penicillin is toxic to rodents
  • aspirin causes birth defects in most species but not humans

So why do we still test on animals?

  • animal testing has become a habit,
  • some scientists are afraid to speak out against animal testing as it could damage their reputation and their career prospects,
  • the majority of consumers are supporting animal tested products.
  • in China and some other countries, animal testing is required by law (resulting in companies such as Avon, who were pioneers in using animal friendly testing methods but later accepted to sell in these countries, being removed from cruelty-free lists).

Animal testing is a term used to refer to experiments involving non-human animals. It is commonly conducted inside a lab and for research purposes.

Animal experimentation, animal testing, in vivo testing or vivisection all refer to same term however they are used for different purposes. The word “vivisection” comes from Latin vivus, meaning “alive”, and sectio, meaning “cutting”. Therefore it refers to the act of cutting a living organism, typically an animal into pieces. This is a term which is generally used by individuals who oppose animal testing as this word implies negative actions such as torture and death, while the term “animal experimentation” is generally used by scientists.

There are two forms of animal research; one is pure observation where one studies the behaviour of an animal species such as field studies and a mouse running in a maze. Another form of animal research is applied research such as cosmetics’ toxicology tests. Our aim is to put a stop mainly to the applied animal research.

Even though most scientists got stuck with applied animal testing, this doesn’t mean that there is no alternative to this form of research. Since the 1920s scientists have been developing and using faster, cheaper, ethical and more accurate forms of testing such as replicating cells, tissues or even virtual organs without having to injure or kill any animal.


About CrueltyFreeMalta.com

CrueltyFreeMalta.com is aimed to anyone who wants to start living cruelty-free. It is the only Maltese online shopping guide that gathers most of the brands that are not tested on animals and are available in Malta.

Before listing a brand on CrueltyFreeMalta.com, a research is done to verify whether the brand is really not tested on animal. This verification is not only based on the brand’s official confirmation but also on other reliable sources such as animal welfare organisations websites. To make sure we stick 100% to what we believe in, in the case where there is a contradiction among the sources, the products from such brand are refused from being listed on CrueltyFreeMalta.com

Hence anyone buying from brands listed on CrueltyFreeMalta.com can clear his or her conscience from any doubts on whether the products bought are tested on animals or not.