Stop the U.S. Military From Torturing and Killing Animals

Target: Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary of Defense of the United States

Goal: Protect animals from abuse and death for personnel training and research in the military.

Hundreds of thousands of animals are killed for military training every year. And while numerous advanced alternatives are available, the U.S. military continues this barbaric practice even in the face of public outcry.

Live goats and pigs have to endure horrific procedures, including having their throats cut open to practice establishing airways. Most often the animals are intentionally stabbed, shot, burned, mutilated, or worse.

While such training may benefit those medics for agricultural applications, there is little to be learned of rescuing injured humans in the process.

Military officials have been unwilling to adopt more ethical methods, claiming that the abusive ways provide crucial educational elements. Live-tissue training, however, can easily be simulated by synthetic materials and dummies.

Pre-clinical testing for drugs for human use that is conducted on animals is unreliable and inaccurate. The same is true for treatment for trauma and severe injury. Animal testing is most often more costly than the most advanced alternatives available today.

Live animal testing has been banned in countless countries all over the world. The U.S. needs to follow the lead of these countries and end the torture and killing of animals.

Sign this petition to prohibit the U.S. military from using animals for research and training.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Secretary Austin,

The U.S. military is responsible for the torture and killing of hundreds of thousands of animals. The cost of the current use of live-tissue training in the military is much higher than the benefit for soldiers who are preparing for battle.

Stabbing, shooting, and mutilating goats and pigs does not give combat medics and other servicemembers an accurate depiction of emergencies when human lives are at stake. The only result is that numerous animals are killed, and the government pays for it.

Animal-based testing employed to select drugs for human use is unreliable and inaccurate. The same is true for treatment for trauma and severe injury. They are also more costly than the most advanced alternatives available today.

The results of testing with synthetic materials and dummies are far more realistic and provide a better training experience for those who fight on the U.S. front lines. Many countries around the world have banned live-tissue training because the alternative methods are much more cost-effective, and exclude the abuse of innocent lives.

The great public outcry should be a wake-up call for the U.S. military. Ban the use of live tissue training now.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Photo Credit: Steve Berry