Playful pups. Force fed poisons. Cold metal cages. Bitter pain. Unseen convulsions. Unheard cries. A SILENT DEATH

The use of dogs in testing is unscientific, needless and inhumane.

This in short is the life of a laboratory beagle used in toxicity testing. In the picture above, you see frightened and immobilized beagles forced to inhale noxious fumes. While some will drop dead, others will break into convulsions, as they linger on for days and months in excruciating pain and bleeding ulcers. They will die – slowly – surely- silently.

The “SOUND OF SILENCE campaign” is an endeavour of enlightened and compassionate human beings led by a group of students (The Techfest team of 2016) who - needless to say - are highly intelligent and deeply compassionate, studying at one of India's most prestigious institutes - The Indian Institute Technology, Mumbai -to stop the use of dogs in testing. Our petition seeks that the laws that necessitate the use of dogs in testing which were promulgated more than half a century ago be revoked /revised in keeping with the latest of scientific findings and existing laws that govern the use of animals in experimentation,

More than 200,000 dogs – even as young as 9 month old pups are used in toxicity testing in laboratories across the world and thousands more remain locked in cages, waiting to be tested on.

Every pain killer and pesticide, drug and deodorant, air freshener and fumigant, repellent and roll-on , hair spray and heart valve - have all been tested by way of horrific experiments in dogs, albeit being proven futile , inhumane and needless. Helpless and defenceless, with no relief from the bitter pain, they are forced to endure and millions of beagles die in laboratories across the world. If you walked into a laboratory, you will see them cowering on the cold floor in cages, cringing in fear and pain, shying away from human touch. For weeks and months on end they will writhe in agony as the poison from the chemical tests destroys their already frail and frightened bodies. Slowly and surely they will turn moribund as their livers cease to function. Yet, some linger fighting death but only to be killed at the end of the study and their bodies hacked to pieces as they are autopsied. In some studies the same dogs are tested over and over again - hundreds of times or more - until they collapse and die.

Beagles in a laboratory will never have known the warmth of sunshine, the feel of green grass, the taste of freedom or the happiness of a home. Masked faces and rubber gloved hands is what they know of a human being.

The use of dogs in testing continues despite recent research that has proven dogs provide an insignificant 2% percent more information than rodents in toxicity testing. In India, The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 Rule 17 (2) e says that “experiments on larger animals are avoided when it is possible to achieve the same results by experiments upon small laboratory animals like guinea pigs, rabbits, frogs and rats” and hence this, in the light of the recent findings, makes dog testing ILLEGAL in India. The use of dogs is also inhumane as scientists have also recently demonstrated with MRI data that dogs are as sentient, that they understand and feel, as a human infant. Their intelligence is also comparable to a 2-2.5 year human child.

Not surprising that beagles make the most adorable and loving pets. Click here to see celebrity and actress Gul Panag with her adorable pet beagle VEGAS & GINA

Even as you read this, hundreds of beagles are being tested upon with terribly poisonous agrochemicals and drugs. Playful pups are being wrenched away from their mothers, stashed in little crates to be transported to laboratories across the world from China, USA and UK to be experimented on.

But we can stop this. As the use of dogs in testing today- is unscientific, inhumane and illegal.

If you have also heard their silent cries and would like to lend your voice to the SOUND of SILENCE campaign, please sign the petition and share - For you will agree that the Laboratory is no place for ‘Man’s best friend!’

Our petition with a 100,000 signatures will be presented to:

Secretary General , OECD

Administrator and Head , US EPA

Commissioner US FDA

Members of the Indian Parliament

Drug Controller General of India

Chairman, Central Insecticides Board

Secretary, Dept. of Health Research, Ministry of Health

Director General, Indian Council of Medical Research.

…………………………………………………….

मौन की ध्वनि - बीगल बचाओ अभियान! याचिका को सिग्न करें.

भारत में कुत्तों पर परीक्षण पर प्रतिबन्ध लगाने के लिए!

३००० से अधिक बैगल्स हर साल भारत में दर्जन से अधिक प्रयोगशालाओं में विषाक्त परीक्षण और पिंजरों में बंद रहते हैं, और हर दर्द और कीटनाशक, दावा और दुर्गन्ध, क्रीम, स्प्रे और भी सभी चीज़ों के द्वारा परीक्षण किया जाने का इंतज़ार कर रहे. आप सहमत होंगे की आदमी के सबसे अच्छे दोस्त के लिए प्रयोगशाला में कोइ जगह नहीं होनी चाहिए!

मुसीबत का इशारा अभियान के बारे में अधिक पता करने के लिए कृपया यहाँ जाएँ: http://techfest.org/savethesouls/ अगर आप इन्हें इनकी पीड़ा से बचाना चाहते हैं, तोह अभी सिग्न करें!

१००,००० हस्ताक्षर के साथ हमारी याचिका को प्रस्तुत किया जाएगा:

भारतीय संसद के सदस्य

ड्रग कंट्रोलर जनरल ऑफ़ इंडिया

चेयरमैन, सेंट्रल इंसेक्टिसाइड्स बोर्ड

सेक्रेटरी, डिप्टी. ऑफ़ हेल्थ रिसर्च, मिनिस्ट्री ऑफ़ हेल्थ

डायरेक्टर जनरल, इंडियन कौंसिल ऑफ़ मेडिकल रिसर्च.