1 Million and Counting: Act Now to Help Animals in EU Laboratories

As of today, 1 million EU citizens have signed the European citizens’ initiative (ECI) calling for an end to animal testing, an enormous political push for animals in laboratories.

PETA entities joined forces with over 100 other animal protection organisations across the EU to launch the ECI to #EndAnimalTesting, which calls for a plan to end animal experiments throughout the EU.

Have You Signed It Yet?

One million signatures is a phenomenal milestone, but animals who continue to suffer in cruel and outdated experiments need more help if this movement is to be successful.

We have built the largest coalition to end animal experiments in Europe and are phenomenally proud of this collaborative effort.

However, the campaign to get dogs, cats, monkeys, rabbits, guinea pigs, and other animals out of laboratories isn’t over yet. We need to keep collecting signatures to ensure that Europe’s lawmakers understand just how important this matter is to EU citizens.

Verification Process

Our ECI will go through a strict verification procedure in which each government checks that every signature is from a real person and that they have only signed the ECI once. Not all signatures will be considered valid, therefore, we must keep going to collect as many signatures as possible in the final month. If even a few of the signatures are found to be invalid, our campaign could fail.

How Will the ECI Help Animals in EU Laboratories?

This ECI aims to change the status quo, in which pregnant rodents and their offspring are murdered, rabbits’ skin may be burned with chemicals, dogs are force-fed pesticides, and many more animals are tormented and killed.

In 2019, Europe’s laboratories used animals in a total of 10.5 million procedures, according to the legislation governing animal experiments in the EU. Out of these 10.5 million uses, 41% were considered by the experimenters to have caused moderate or severe suffering to the animals involved – meaning that animals may have been starved for two days or subjected to a craniotomy (removal of part of the skull to expose the brain) or a lethal dose of radiation, all of which are considered to be moderate procedures. Severe procedures include the induction of painful bone tumours, infliction of bone fractures without pain relief, inescapable electric shock, or forcing animals to run on a treadmill to the point of exhaustion as well as many other unconscionable acts.

A Modern Way Forward

The ECI could bring about a seismic shift in science in the EU. It is estimated that between 50% and 89% of preclinical research is not reproducible, with the use of animal models frequently highlighted as a serious problem area. Yet the weaknesses of animal experiments can’t be overcome simply by improving study design, because inherent species differences mean that animals can’t serve as analogues for understanding the specific biological details necessary to develop safe and effective drugs for humans. Redirecting resources away from unreliable experimentation on animals and instead investing in superior, non-animal research methods will benefit humans, other animals, and the future of science.

Use Your Voice: Take Action for Animals in Experiments

Please join us today and be part of this compassionate movement for animals abused and killed in experiments. If you are an EU citizen and haven’t already signed the ECI, please sign it now to help end their suffering:

Even if you’re not an EU citizen, or if you have already signed, you can still help! Please share the ECI with all of your European friends and ask them to add their names now:

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