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Bad News for People Who Love Animals

SUNDAY DECEMBER 30 2007 4:00 AM

Submitted by Rahodeb. Edited By Rahodeb.

You check your soap, shampoo, and moisturizer to make sure it's not tested on animals. You carefully read the ingredients on your vitamins to make sure they're not derived from animal sources. You think you're doing your best to boycott companies that test on animals, and then you read something like this.

The trend for healthier eating has led to an increase of more than 300% in the number of laboratory experiments conducted on animals for food additives, sweeteners and health supplements over the past year.

Three hundred percent? That is insane. From 2005 to 2006, figures cited showed an increase from 862 to 4,038 experiments on lab animals. And for what? For shit like Teavigo. And what the fuck is Teavigo? It's a green tea supplement, marketed as an "ancient remedy for a modern sense of well being."

Dogs force-fed huge doses of Teavigo - which is marketed as “green tea in its purest form” and a choice for “health-conscious consumers” - died or had to be put down.

Gerhard Gans, director of regulatory affairs at DSM Nutritional Products, which produces Teavigo, said: “In some cases it is necessary to use dogs, they are in some aspects more similar to humans than rats . . . where it is possible to use alternative methods validated by the authorities we will use [them].”

I don't know about you, but the idea of dogs being force fed huge doses of this shit, and then either dying or being put down doesn't fill me with a sense of well being. The only thing it fills me with is the desire to force feed the people who produce Teavigo huge doses of their own crap ass supplement until they known the same kind of pain and horror these dogs experience.

This is just the kind of supplement that most consumers would assume is animal friendly. It promises to "help put your mind and body in balance" and get this tasty marketing nugget:

By introducing Teavigo® into your life, you will feel rewarded for doing something that’s good for you (Which is much better than doing nothing at all).

Gosh, thank you, Teavigo, for those wise words. I will take your advice and make sure not to do "nothing at all." I'll start by not doing "nothing at all" about the way you torture innocent animals. These animals were not (surprise!) put on this planet for you to make an opportunistic buck, and I will make sure to let all of my health-conscious friends, family, and acquaintances know to avoid your totally unnecessary, cruel supplement.

Gosh, I feel better already.

Teavigo, of course, is only one of many health food and supplement companies using animals such as guinea pigs, rabbits, rats, and dogs for lab testing.

Michelle Thew, chief executive of the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, said: “The rise in testing of food on animals in the race to find the next lucrative ‘super-food’ is a hidden scandal. People are unaware of the animal suffering behind the headlines.”

If you prioritize animal welfare over the next passing heath craze, think twice and do some digging before coughing up your cash.

24 Comments

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powergirl5000

I'm lost

November 2007

DEC 31, 2007 10:00 AM

I am thiiis close to just saying fuck buying the things I need and living out in the woods living off of the bounty of the earth. You can't go ANYWHERE or do ANYTHING without wondering, "Okay, what had to suffer for THIS?" Sadness dude, sadness. If you need me, Ill be out back chewing on bark and making clothes out of plant life.

PointBlank

New York, NY

November 2004

DEC 31, 2007 10:10 AM

powergirl5000 said:
I am thiiis close to just saying fuck buying the things I need and living out in the woods living off of the bounty of the earth. You can't go ANYWHERE or do ANYTHING without wondering, "Okay, what had to suffer for THIS?" Sadness dude, sadness. If you need me, Ill be out back chewing on bark and making clothes out of plant life.

Don't forget your smokes!

SarahFlower

USA

September 2007

DEC 31, 2007 10:17 AM

Fucking aye.

justvix

Los Angeles, CA

December 2007

DEC 31, 2007 10:57 AM

is it seriously necessary to test a green-tea supplement on a dog?

give me a break.

thousands of companies pledge to not use animal testing... to send the right message, don't support the companies that do.

you can click here to visit caring consumer to find a list of hundreds of well-known companies that refuse to test on animals.

hectorgarcia

I'm lost

June 2003

DEC 31, 2007 11:03 AM

The only thing it fills me with is the desire to force feed the people who produce Teavigo huge doses of their own crap ass supplement until they known the same kind of pain and horror these dogs experience.

Clearly, you're insane.

ohash

Columbus, OH

May 2007

DEC 31, 2007 11:19 AM

I do not use any of the new "substitutes" or "supplements"...no experimental herbs for me...that just makes me nervous. No sweeteners or margarines or anything of that sort. It has nothing to do with animals...it has to do with the fact that they are all TERRIBLE for you. Splenda literally makes my insides explode (apparently the large amount of chlorine in it are bad for you...who would have thought?)...many of the margarines are one-step away from being plastic. I cook the way people cooked 50 years ago. With lots of fresh foods and real butter and sugar in moderation.

Ms_Magdalena

Minneapolis, MN

February 2007

DEC 31, 2007 11:31 AM

PointBlank said:

Don't forget your smokes!

You win.

sitar

Philadelphia, PA

June 2004

DEC 31, 2007 11:46 AM

"No Eat Not Food"

a heartwarming story about an alien bug who teaches a little girl the difference between food (apples and oranges) and not food (cheezy poofs, teavigo). Available wherever heartwarming stories about aliens are sold.

Tiger_Fodder

Marshfield, MA

June 2007

DEC 31, 2007 12:15 PM

Another "It makes me wanna holler!" story. It is hard to stay positive somedays.

punk

Phoenix, AZ

January 2004

DEC 31, 2007 01:41 PM

People need to stop with the supplements, the ancient Chinese secrets for vitality in pill form, the ultimate sources of energy and just eat a fucking balanced diet.

Luscious

SUICIDEGIRL

Canada

DEC 31, 2007 01:56 PM

Why don't they just test on death-row, murdering, child-rapists already?!!! FUCK.
Leave the poor ratties alone!

P.S-
there is a list of all companys that test on animals available in the SG rat group, and also tons and tons of pages of companys that don't.

BrightRedScream

Stoney Creek, ON

April 2005

DEC 31, 2007 02:03 PM

Luscious said:
Why don't they just test on death-row, murdering, child-rapists already?!!! FUCK.
Leave the poor ratties alone!

P.S-
there is a list of all companys that test on animals available in the SG rat group, and also tons and tons of pages of companys that don't.

I'm with you on that.

Dovanna

Minneapolis, MN

March 2007

DEC 31, 2007 07:59 PM

Testing on animals has saved millions of lives. Many medications use animal by-products. Take an insulin shot? What about the flu shot? Use an inhaler? All use animals products in some way, and some people would die without them.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with being boycotting products that test on animals. You just really gotta do you research so that no one can call you out on it, and you can shove it back in there face. Always have an alternative approach in mind.

If someone tells you to boycott dihydrogen monoxide because it part of nuclear waste from nuclear power plants and can potentially kill you, stop, think, and then react.

ToyMachine97

Glendale, CA

May 2007

DEC 31, 2007 08:16 PM

The point is that we are technologically past the time of animals being needed for experiments. There are many alternatives such as in-vitro testing and computer modeling that are actually cheaper and more accurate than using animals. These animals are suffering and dying needlessly.