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Guest Editorial, September 16-18, 2009

Carina Wells, Park City

In our nation, animals are cruelly used for experiments, entertainment, food, fur, and more. In addition to the premature fate most of these animals share death the life they spend before it is not humane. Animals can feel much like humans, but we take advantage of their inability to speak. It is up to us to provide rights to those who don’t have them yet and deserve them as much as we do.

About 70 to 100 million animals suffer annually from animal testing. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) states, "Many household products and cosmetics companies still pump their products into animals’ stomachs, rub them onto their skin, squirt them into their eyes, or force animals to inhale them as aerosol sprays … New research methods, such as computer models, cell cultures, and human studies are more accurate, less expensive, and much more humane."

Factory farming is a practice where animals are kept crammed in crates with no room to move or lie down and are fed an excess of hormones, which make the animals grow really fat at a young age. Many chickens’ legs actually break because their bodies get so heavy, and they eventually die because they can’t reach their food. These hormones remain in our meat and can cause cancer and other diseases. We need to ban these practices not only for the welfare of animals, but for humans’ health as well.

Fur industries exist for the sole purpose of clothes, which is nonsensical as fake fur is now realistic-looking. According to PETA, "animals on fur farms spend their lives in tiny cages only to be killed by anal or genital electrocution, which causes them to have a heart attack."

Surprising though it may seem, animals used in circuses usually lead miserable lives. Animals don’t want to balance on their heads, ride bicycles, or jump through rings of fire! Trainers often use whips and electric prods to force the animals to do their bidding. Also, many circus animals suffer from loneliness since they’re locked in small cages most of their lives.

If you have a pet, it is likely he comes from a puppy mill, factories where females are forced to remain pregnant their whole lives. These dogs are kept in tiny wire cages and frequently receive no love or affection. When they become too old, females are callously disposed of, along with unwanted puppies. There really are dumps full of unwanted dogs! Also, the thousands of puppy mills in the U.S.A. undermine independent breeders’ businesses, which tend to be much more humane than puppy mills.

Across our nation, animals suffer tremendously. They are unnecessarily and cruelly tested upon, packed in crowded confinement and fattened up for meat, kept in tiny cages for use of their fur, forced to do ridiculous tricks against their will for the entertainment of humans, and kept pregnant their whole lives in puppy mills.

Many other countries have realized that our booming industry has gotten the better of us and has, in result, forced cruelty upon animals. The European Union has banned many cruel practices, yet the U.S.A. hasn’t altered theirs. It is crucial we each keep these forms of animal abuse in mind and take steps forward to change them. In order to help stop the cruelty against animals, you can take these simple measures:

  • Never buy products that are tested on animals
  • Either become vegan/vegetarian or buy all your animal products (meat and dairy) from cruelty-free brands.
  • Don’t buy clothing from companies that sell real fur.
  • Don’t support circuses with animals.
  • Never purchase from a pet store that sells dogs and cats, as puppy mills most likely provided them.
  • Furthermore, you can sign on-line petitions and make donations to animal advocate groups such as PETA and the Humane Society of the U.S.

    Albert Schweitzer once said, "Until he extends the circle of his compassion to include all living things, man himself will not find peace."

    Carina Wells is a sophomore at Park City High and a member of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. She has also created a short film entitled "Stop Animal Cruelty Video (by cew230)" that you can look up on You Tube.

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