Establish Alternative for Rats

To the Editors:

I wanted to urge people who are in neuroscience, biology, or any class which does experiments, such as the vivisection rat-lab that is taking place Wednesday November 20, to re-evaluate their participation and the college’s participation in such experiments. I participated in dissections when I was younger, but have come to realize that this was not the course I should have taken. It seems to me that we should reconsider doing labs which seem somewhat redundant (they have been done so many times before) and which we can learn about in other ways that do not harm living animals.
We should also urge the departments to establish alternative, models or videos or simulations. It would be another good beginning to urge the departments to really take care of any animals it feels it must still experiment on. This would mean giving them as much personal attention as possible, as much space as possible, etc.
Finally, we should all consider carefully such choices and what the animals are giving up for our experimentation and, if we, having been informed of alternatives, their success, and the usefulness of the lab, decide to do such labs, treat them and think of them with respect. I think that trying to have respect, listening, and thankfulness — though these are difficult to always have — for each other, all as “beings” would be something special — the word escapes me, perhaps a wonder.

–Kathryn Hessler
College sophomore