Laboratory mice actually have quite a soft life compared to house or field mice. In fact, a big problem for researchers is keeping wild mice out of the laboratory, where there is plenty of food and warmth. Research facilities place humane traps all over the grounds to capture invaders to be released in the wild later. Without a doubt mice are the unsung heroes of research. They seldom get the recognition they deserve for the role they play in medicine.
Some animals achieve instant fame in the annals of scientific research.
Others, like the lab mouse, toil on without glory. Yet without earlier contributions by mice, Dolly would still be only a gleam in a scientist's eye. Let mice have the whole 21st century. Given the tremendous past and likely future contributions of mice to our health and well-being, they deserve it. Susan E. Paris is president of Americans for Medical Progress, a national nonprofit research advocacy group.