Were Dogs and Cats Tormented for Your Animal’s Flea-and-Tick Products?
Were dogs and cats tormented for your companion’s flea-and-tick treatments? Most animal guardians don’t know that numerous companies are actually performing painful experiments on the very animals they purport to help.
In an article published in the peer-reviewed journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, PETA scientists described methods to replace the use of animals in flea-and-tick solution testing.
In experiments conducted or commissioned by major animal companion supply companies, dogs and cats are infested with fleas or ticks and used to test experimental treatments. For just one flea-control solution, more than 400 dogs and cats were used in toxicity tests, often being force-fed the test chemical daily for up to nine months before being killed. In dozens of efficacy tests for another treatment, more than 300 dogs were infested with fleas or ticks for up to 73 days. In addition to the pain and distress of severe flea-and-tick infestations, dogs and cats used in these experiments suffered from the side effects of being force-fed chemicals, including vomiting, diarrhea, and seizures—all while caged alone in laboratories.
Many other animals are used as living machines to feed fleas and ticks between experiments. Restrained from scratching or removing the fleas and ticks from their shaved skin, animals—such as this rabbit—endure dozens of bites and blood loss.
We’re working to expose these cruel experiments and to have them replaced with modern, humane methods. In 2010, a PETA eyewitness revealed the horrific abuse of dogs and cats being used in experiments at Professional Laboratory and Research Services, Inc. The laboratory was contracted by industry giants to test flea-and-tick control treatments and other chemicals on dogs, cats, and rabbits. The animals there suffered from untreated illnesses, injuries, and burns, and some were violently abused by employees—that is, until our exposé caused the facility to shut down, four employees to be indicted on felony cruelty-to-animals charges, and the animals to be rehabilitated and placed up for adoption into loving families.
And just last month, a PETA investigation revealed that workers at Liberty Research, Inc., a contract laboratory that tests veterinary supplies, tormented animals, denied them adequate veterinary care and a humane death, cut corners to increase profits, and fostered a pervasive culture of animal neglect.
The companies that sell you goods for your animal companions must do better. Animal-free methods to test flea-and-tick control solutions and to feed fleas and ticks are available now. One such method is an artificial membrane system that essentially acts as skin, allowing fleas or ticks to attach and feed on blood through the membrane. With further development, additional non-animal methods will be available to replace animal use in this area entirely.
Flea-and-tick control solutions constitute a multibillion-dollar industry. PETA is calling on companies that profit from the sales to use currently available non-animal methods and to prioritize further development of test methods that don’t cause animals to suffer.
What You Can Do
Be kind to your best friends by purchasing goods that are kind to all animals, with PETA’s list of cruelty-free animal care products. For the flea-control needs of dogs and cats, check out Dr. Goodpet and Fleabusters.
