Cruelty-Free

(source: weheartit)

From the toothpaste and shampoo that we use to the charities that we support, our lives are full of daily opportunities to take a stand against cruel experiments on animals. We can save animals from painful experiments by purchasing some of the cruelty-free products that are available in stores everywhere, and only donating to humane charities that help people without hurting animals.

Many people are surprised to learn that some cosmetics, personal care products, foods and beverages and household cleaning products are still tested on animals, or that their local university or hospital torment animals in cruel experiments.

Although modern alternative test methods exist, huge multiproduct manufacturers, including Unilever, Clorox, Church & Dwight, Johnson & Johnson, and others, continue to poison and harm animals in tests that aren't even required by law.Rats, mice, guinea pigs, rabbits, and other animals are forced to swallow or inhale massive quantities of a test substance or endure the pain of having caustic chemicals applied to their sensitive eyes and skin––even though the results of animal tests are often unreliable or not applicable to humans. Even if a product has blinded an animal, it can still be marketed to you.

(source: weheartit)

Luckily, the non-animal tests available today are cheaper, faster, and more accurate at predicting human reactions to a product than the old animal tests ever were. More and more companies are switching to non-animal tests as consumer support for cruelty-free products grows.

Universities and hospitals also imprison millions of animals for use in painful and deadly medical training exercises and curiosity-driven experiments that are funded by tax dollars and health charities.

Monkeys are addicted to drugs and have holes drilled into their skulls, sheep and pigs have their skin burned off and rats have their spinal cords crushed. Tiny mice grow tumors as large as their own bodies, kittens are purposely blinded, and rats are made to suffer seizures. In archaic medical training courses, pigs and dogs are cut open and killed and cats and ferrets have hard plastic tubes forced down their delicate throats.

Most of these barbaric and senseless experiments are funding by the federal government using the public’s tax dollars and by health charities, including the American Cancer Society, the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the March of Dimes who are wasting precious dollars on cruel, irrelevant experiments on animals instead of spending the money on promising human-based research.

And, even though modern and effective alternatives are readily available, millions of animals are killed and mutilated for dissection and biology experiments in high school and college classrooms.

(source: weheartit)

The best way to stop companies, universities and charities from using animals is to refuse to purchase their products or give them donations and to write and tell them that you won't support them until they stop testing on animals.

Take a stand against animal testing by pledging to support only cruelty-free companies and charities. Sign PETA's pledge to be cruelty-free today. Compassionate people can speak out for animals in laboratories in letters to the editor and by joining PETA's Action Team.

You can find out which of your favorite products are cruelty-free by ordering PETA's free Cruelty-Free Shopping Guide and searching their online database of companies that do and don't test on animals. You can also search the full list of Leaping Bunny endorsed brands at www.gocrueltyfree.org and you can see which charities conduct humane research at HumaneSeal.org.

Cruelty-free companies that have been featured on Gaby's Beauty Blog (updated in June 2012):

100% Pure
Abundance Naturally

Adara
AHAVA
Alberto
Anastasia Beverly Hills

Annabelle Cosmetics

Antipodes
Apothecary
Aveda
Avène
Barry M
bareMinerals
Barielle
Bath & Body Works

Batiste

Beautisol

BE Beverly Hills
Benefit
BH Cosmetics
Bioré
Bobbi Brown
Borghese
Burt's Bees
Butter London
Cargo
Carmex
China Glaze
Clarins
Color Club
Deborah Lippmann
Diane Lai
DuWop

EcoTools
Elemis
e.l.f. Cosmetics
Elizabeth Arden
Elizabeth Grant
EOS
Essence
Eucerin
Eyeko

FACE atelier
Figs & Rouge
Freeman
Fruits & Passion
Ganache For Lips
George's Cream
Get Creamed Body
GOSH
Got2b
Grateful Body
Hard Candy
Hawaiian Tropic
h.wood.beauty
I Love... Cosmetics
Jergens
Joe Fresh
John Frieda
Julep
KORRES
LaCoupe
LaRocca
LASHEM
Lucas' Papaw
Luminaze

LUSH
Made From Earth
Make Up For Ever
Marc Anthony

Marcelle
Mitchum
Monave
Montagne Jeunesse

MuLondon
My Lip Stuff
Naturally Upper Canada
NEXXUS
Nivea
NYX

Pai Skincare
Palmer's

Pari Beauty
Physicians Formula

Pink Dandy
Prevage
Pureology
Reviva Lab
Revlon
Shielo
Skin MD Naturals
Sleek Makeup
Stila
St.Ives
Tarte
The Body Shop
Thursday Plantation
Tints of Nature
Too Faced
TRESemmé
Udderly Smooth
Urban Decay
Vivaderm
Wet 'n Wild
XEN-TAN
Yes To...

Some companies that DO test on animals:

• Procter & Gamble (Covergirl, Aussie, Clairol, Fekkai, Gillette, Max Factor, Herbal Essences, Pantene)
• L'Oreal (Maybelline, Yves Saint Laurent, Biotherm, Garnier, Kiehl's, Lancôme, Essie, Kerastase, Matrix, Redken, Cacharel, Ralph Lauren, Shu Uemura, Dermablend, La Roche-Posay, SkinCeuticals, Vichy Laboratories, Ombrelle)
• Johnson & Johnson (Aveeno, Clean & Clear, Johnson's, Lubriderm, Neutrogena)
• Estée Lauder (Clinique, MAC, Donna Karan) 
• COTY (New York Color, Rimmel, Sally Hansen, OPI)
• Unilever (Vaseline, Dove, Ponds, Suave, Sunsilk, AXE, Radox)
• Church & Dwight (Aim, Nair)
• Reckitt Benckiser (Clearasil, Veet)
• Mary Kay 
• Avon

*I hope it's understandable that I can't simply throw away the products I have previously purchased that have unfortunately been tested on animals - believe me, I wouldn't hesitate if I were rich! My goal is to use up those products but not repurchase them in the future. Also, Gaby's Beauty Blog will no longer accept for review purposes products that have been tested on animals. Products that have been tested on animals will always be marked with an asterix.

Text is from PETA.org