Ethics of Research involving animals
Types of research and numbers of animals used
1.6 Research involving animals is varied in both its nature and purpose, in the types of animals involved and in the effect that it has on them. At its least harmful, it takes the form of passive observations of wild animals in their natural habitats. Scientists also observe animal behaviour under laboratory conditions. Such studies may have a negative impact on the animals’ welfare if they are kept in an environment that is incompatible with their speciesspecific needs. Certain invasive laboratory techniques may affect the welfare of animals in relatively mild ways. For example, some pharmaceutical research requires the repeated taking of blood samples. More harmful research, such as testing the safety of novel medicines (toxicology), may cause substantial pain and suffering. Almost all laboratory animals are killed once experiments are complete; in some cases research is undertaken on anaesthetised animals that are killed before they recover consciousness. In the UK, any ‘procedures’ involving vertebrates (and the common octopus) that may cause ‘pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm’ must be licensed by the Home Office. The term ‘procedure’ is a technical term that covers more than just the conditions entailed by an experiment (or series of experiments). Procedures also include specific conditions relating to the breeding, handling and housing of laboratory animals that may affect their welfare.
1.7 Estimates of the total number of animals used annually in research around the world are difficult to obtain and range from between 50 to 100 million animals.9 In the UK, approximately 2.72 million animals were used in scientific procedures during 2003.10 Thirty years ago, twice as many animals were used. However, it is widely expected that advances in genetic research will reverse this decline and lead to a renewed increase in the coming years, mainly in the use of rodents (see paragraph 5.23).
Footnotes9 Orlans FB (1998) History and ethical regulation of animal experimentation: an international perspective, in A Companion to
Bioethics, Kuhse H and Singer P (Editors) (Oxford: Blackwell), p400.
10 See Appendix 2 and Home Office (2004) Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals Great Britain 2003 (London:
HMSO). The Statistics give details about all animals used under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (A(SP)A), i.e. all
living vertebrates and members of the Octopus vulgaris (common octopus) species used in research. They do not include
animals that are outside of these categories, such as insects.