Those in the field of laboratory animal medicine come to this job with love for animals, but a special kind of love—one that understands that we will be separated, but agrees to love anyway. We give these research animals the best we can give; so they play and are healthy and can serve science and society. Because we understand that a rescued pet is a healthy old dog today thanks to the vaccines and heartworm medication developed using lab animals. We understand that my mother-in-law is healthy today thanks to the surgery, chemo, and radiation developed using lab animals. And we dream that someday, hopefully sooner than later, cancer and diabetes and heart disease will all be diseases of the past, thanks to lab animals. Read more