U.S. May Stop Using Live Animals in Military Trauma Training

Many Americans are likely unaware that their own military routinely shoots, stabs, mutilates, and dismembers live animals in trauma training drills.  The United States is one of only a few NATO countries to continue these deadly training exercises, along with Canada, Norway, and the United Kingdom. Now, however, an exciting new initiative has been launched through NATO to end the practice in all member nations.

Live animal trauma training “has come under significant scrutiny,” the NATO website reports, “[and] will have to be severely curtailed if not completely eliminated.” The new initiative will evaluate simulation technology in order to replace the use of animals. According to Business Insider, a 2009 legislative letter pointed out that using live animals in trauma training exercises defies a joint U.S. Army regulation. Despite this, the American Army continues to shoot, slice, and kill more than 10,000 animals in the name of medical training.

PETA recently obtained shocking photos of live pigs being “strung up, shot to pieces with AK-47s and sewn back together again” in a Denmark-based training facility. This sparked Danish actor Brigitte Nielsen to urge the Minister of Defense to end live animal-based medical training.

“I am a proud Dane, but like most people around the world, I was deeply shocked to learn that my country’s army still uses live animals in military training exercises,” Nielsen wrote. “Please stop making our noble military shoot, stab and mutilate animals in these exercises.”

The vast majority of NATO member countries, including Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey, do not use animals in military training. These countries instead rely on humane modern simulators to prepare medics and doctors. With such technology readily available, it’s shocking that any nation would opt to continue torturing animals.