Recently, I did a Fun Fact Friday on my Instagram and Facebook pages where I told my followers that whenever possible, I purchase cruelty-free products. But, what does that mean? This week I wanted to dive a little deeper into the topic. 

Up until 2 years ago, I was completely ignorant to the fact that many of the products I use on a day-to-day basis were tested on animals. Everything from my personal and household cleansers, fragrances, medicines, hygiene products, and even the majority of the cosmetics I used; came from big corporations that practice animal testing. It came to my attention when my sister had adopted the cutest beagle mix there ever was, Owen, and in doing research about his breed my sister and I learned that laboratories test their products on beagles for skin, hair, and cosmetic products due to their calm demeanor.  After doing further research, and seeing some awful pictures of what happens to these beagles when they are tested on, I was even more horrified to learn that the laboratories euthanize these beagles after their research because they are considered too damaged to be adopted. (Rescue Freedom Project). Being an animal lover, I thought I knew about all the atrocities that humans do to animals, but this one was new to me. I soon learned through animal activist groups that there was something I could do to help the situation: educate myself and change my brand choices for my every day products. 

One group making an impact for animal rights and on the issue of laboratory testing is The Rescue Freedom Project. This amazing organization is pioneering the way in not only educating the public about animal testing, but they are also working with laboratories to help find homes for the animals that are victims of the testing. What is even more amazing is they are working with legislators as well.  Their Beagle Freedom Bill mandates laboratories offer up those healthy survivors of experiments for public adoption. The Rescue Freedom Project is also offering a total of $250,000 in grants for applicants looking for funding of research whose goal is to change animal testing in research to other methods, such as in-vitro and in-silico methodologies (Rescue Freedom Project).

Beagles are not the only animals that these laboratories test on. They also test on rabbits, cats, pigs, goats, and guinea pigs. I feel tremendous guilt that it took me so long to become aware of this issue but I try to tell as many people as I can about my journey to bring awareness to this problem and how I use my dollars both with my purchases and with my donations to the Rescue Freedom Project to put an end to animal testing.

Additionally, this issue is multifaceted. Some companies don’t test all products on animals, but if they test some, you may choose to not purchase from that company at all. Some companies claim they do not test on animals, but only because they have sourced their ingredients from other companies that already performed the testing. 

Personally, the more I know, the more motivated I am to find new ways to help—like this article! If you want to become more conscious about the products that you purchase, you can download a variety of apps that help you understand what companies and products are tested on animals. I use the Cruelty Cutter app. 

While I know that going entirely cruelty-free may seem like an overwhelming task, I suggest making small changes at a time. I started with my cosmetics. I am slowly beginning to incorporate more animal friendly choices into my purchases, and as the culture is becoming more aware of these facts, more companies are coming to the forefront offering a kinder alternative. 

I hope you enjoyed this look into why I choose to go cruelty-free! Let me know what you think in the comments below! Thank you!

Edited by Tara Rico