holy fuck!
 

Please note: "...to evaluate the safety of new chemicals and drugs."

There are a ton more uses for vivisection besides toxicology studies. This isn't saying it's an end to animal testing. It's saying it's potentially an end to toxicology studies.

Martha Neuringer, who does the maternal deprivation/baby food studies on baby monkeys, for example, does not do tox studies. Judy Cameron (does bullshit behavior studies) does not do tox studies. Many drugs are tested not for tox reasons, but for efficacy reasons. This news could come to pass, and the primate center could remain virtually as-is.

This isn't to throw a wet blanket on the great possibility of this news, but as written, it is not talking about "an end to vivisection," but just ONE TYPE of vivisection. So, it's cool, but it's a bit underwhelming too. What really is needed is a revolution in THINKING about using animals, not a revolution in TECHNIQUES. Because there aren't enough new techniques possible to cover all the twisted idea that people want to use animals for.
 

I wouldn't be so quick to poop on this, the agencies are doing this voluntarily (or with the help of HSUS) and it at least puts the sentiment on the map.

10 years is a long time, but we can only work to continue making small adjustments to a stream that is millions of years in the running until it runs our course, even if not in our lifetime :-)
 

Sure Jeff. I just want to point out that for accuracy the whole context must be noted: "...could lead to the end of animal testing TO EVALUATE the safety of new chemicals and drugs." Which specifically is toxicity testing, not the broad "lead to the end of animal testing."
 

Well I'm hoping every crack in the dam (no matter how small) may break it and cause a flood of good no animal hurty water.

(going back to polishing my metaphors...)
 

I don't want to underplay it either, Jeff...I think most of what Covance
see
http://www.covancecruelty.org
http://www.peta.org/feat/covance/
does is toxicity testing. It is certainly evil, maybe some of the worst of what goes on in animal testing (although that level of torture is hard to quantify).
 

Here's a statistic re. the relative frequency of toxicity testing vs. vivisection as a whole:

"According to the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta), more than 100 million animals are used annually in experiments in the US, of which 15 million are used in toxicity tests."