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Statement From Professor Nicholas H. Dodman on Primate Experimentation
Pain & Suffering March 19, 2008 Mr. Michael Budkie, Executive Director Dear Mr. Budkie, Regarding the primate experiments you brought to my attention, there
is no doubt in my mind that the procedures caused the animals great pain
and suffering and it is questionable whether the protocols should ever
have been approved by the institutional review boards. Specifically,
confining primates to restraint chairs and bolting their heads in place
is a highly stressful maneuver. Also, withholding water for up to
twenty-two hours a day for five days a week in order that the monkeys
are motivated to work for fluid reward is unconscionable. Finally, it is
my opinion that infecting primates with diseases, like SIV, should be
acknowledged as causing pain and suffering in primates unfortunate
enough to be seceded for this type of infectious disease research. lf it is necessary to use primates in research they should be treated
with care and compassion. Their accommodation and social needs should be
met. their environments should be enriched. They should have constant
access to food and water (except for the shortest period of withholding
necessary prior to general anesthesia), and they should receive
round-the-clock care. Personally, I do not think they should be used in
experiments that cause severe pain and suffering and should preferably
not be used in terminal experiments. Any pain that does result from an
experimental procedure should be appropriately treated by someone
skilled in the art of recognizing the signs of pain in a primate and
knowledgeable of when and how to intervene with timely use of sedatives
and analgesics. It is with reluctance that I accept the fad that some primate
experimentation may be necessary but I am totally opposed to the callous
indifference that I have learned about or seen in some laboratories.
Sometimes scientists, who are completely immersed in their own niche
area of research using a protocol they have developed over the years,
lose sight of the fact that their working with sentient creatures who,
at the very least, deserve the benefit of the doubt and the very best
care that comes through the recognition and treatment of pain. distress,
and suffering. Nicholas H. Dodman, Professor NHD/rt
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