[Feature] From bark to bedside
Friday, August 12, 2016 - 12:11
in Psychology & Sociology
Clinical trials in dogs and cats are booming. Over the past decade, researchers have conducted hundreds of studies on pets to discover new therapies and medicines. The idea is that—unlike lab rodents—cats and dogs live in the same world we do, and naturally get many of the same diseases, so they could hold the key to developing new treatments for people at a fraction of the normal cost, and potentially yield a trove of new drugs for pets themselves. But despite some moderate successes, the field has yet to have a dramatic impact on human medicine—and some critics wonder whether it ever will. Author: David Grimm