Is harvesting part of one animal to cure another ethical?
Dr. Michael Fox
Dear Dr. Fox: We have an adorable corgi-bichon dog, Missy, who is 11 years old. She had a bout with arthritis lately that took her down. She was having great diffifficulty getting up and even had a couple accidents in the house, which she had never done before. After a disappointing appointment with her vet, we stopped at the Natural Pet Center in town and talked to them. They recommended Wapiti Labs Elk Velvet Antler Powder; they said we’d see a difffffffffffference in seven to 10 days. In just a few days, she was getting up much easier; by day seven she was able to go for a walk!
She’s been doing absolutely amazing, and I can’t say enough about this product! It’s given us back our Missy! Have you heard of it, or do you have an opinion on it? We took her back to her vet — they couldn’t believe the improvement. Maybe other readers will fifind help in elk velvet antler products. — E.N., Fargo, North Dakota
Dear E.N.: Even though such “biologics” — products and extracts from various parts of other animals — may have some value as nutraceutical supplements that help alleviate various conditions in us and those animals under our care, there are ethical questions that need to be addressed.
An extreme example is the use of rhino horn and tiger bones for arthritis and impotence in Chinese folk medicine, along with a host of other products from animals domesticated and wild, captive, endangered and poached, that are purported to be of medical benefifit.
I think it is always questionable when parts of one animal are used to improve the health of another. Harvesting krill for their oil as a nutraceutical supplement rich in benefificial omega- 3 fatty acids and as a protein source to feed farmed animals for human consumption robs whales and other marine mammals and birds of an essential food source. Another extreme example is harvesting kidneys from healthy cats to be transplanted into cats with kidney failure.
Other ethical questions need to be raised and answered, such as humane treatment of the donor animals and the environmental impact of raising and “harvesting” them. Harvesting the velvet from captive deer and elk can never be done humanely. Deer farms may be disease reservoirs, putting wild deer at risk, as with chronic wasting disease in Minnesota. There is a vegan source of omega-3 fatty acids from marine algae. For arthritic dogs, chondroitin and glucosamine and derived from such sources as ground chicken cartilage (a byproduct of the poultry industry).