HONOLULU -- An animal rights group is demanding that the U.S. Army cancel a trauma exercise at Schofield Barracks on Friday that includes the shooting of live pigs.

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People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said distraught base personnel contacted PETA about the scheduled shooting. But despite the pleas, Army officials said they are moving ahead with the trauma exercise, KITV reported.

Maj. Derrick Cheng, a public affairs officer with the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, said the Army does use live animals for trauma training.

"It's something we've identified as a critical skill," said Cheng. "The type of training involved is live tissue training. It really teaches medics how to critically manage injured patients."

A unit within Schofield's 25th Infantry Division is scheduled to shoot live pigs and treat their gunshot wounds in a trauma exercise for medics heading to Iraq, KITV reported.

However, Army officials would not go into details.

PETA described the practice as outdated and cruel.

"The pigs will be released in a field and shot by high powered M-16A2 and M4 rifles and they're likely to bleed profusely and suffer intensely," said PETA member Shalin Gala, in a call from North Carolina.

Gala said the animals will also not be sedated during their trauma.

"They are being shot while fully conscious and they're fully aware of the pain," said Gala.

Gala told KITV that it makes no sense for the Army to use pigs for this type of exercise.

"The physiology and anatomy of pigs is so different from humans that the medics really aren't getting the best quality training that they could," said Gala.

PETA is urging the Army to use advanced human simulators like those seen at the University of Hawaii Medical School.

"It actually works much better than the use of animals and is more human relevant," said Gala.

The Army said simulations are not adequate.

"We understand there's a difference, but at the same time it is teaching those soldiers life saving skills," said Cheng. "A lot of those simulators deal with an intensive care, trauma unit, but not an actual soldier on the ground in the middle of Iraq."

The University of Hawaii Medical School told KITV that U.S Navy medics have used its robot patients for training in the past.