An Army exercise intended to train Iraq-bound troops in battlefield care of critically wounded patients came under fire from animal rights group PETA. The reason: the Army was using live pigs as stand-ins for the soldiers and shooting them. The troops then learned how to treat the gunshot wounds on the anaesthetized pigs.  

The bloody exercise, held at Hawaii's Schofield Barracks, was the best available way to conduct the necessary training, an Army spokesman said. Proper emergency care in the first hours after an incident is crucial to saving lives, he added.

But PETA urged a halt to the practice, saying that more advanced and humane options exist. The animal rights group was notified by a "distraught" solder from the unit, the 25th Infantry Division, who shared the plan to shoot the animals with M-4 carbines and M-16 rifles. 

The exercise is difficult for soldiers because they sometimes associate the animals with their own pet dogs, said a PETA spokesperson, according to an AP report.

Isn't the point of this training to be a little difficult, so that when Army soldiers in the heat of battle must help their brothers, they can do so clearheadedly?  (For a peek at Army trauma training concepts, check out this presentation posted at ArmyStudyGuide.com.)

Is there a better way to conduct the training than shooting live animals? Let us know in the comments below.