The ethics of research involving animals - Nuffield Council on ...

T h e e t h i c s o f r e s e a r c h i n v o l v i n g a n i m a l s
Figure 6: Research using <strong>animals</strong> conducted in the EU in 2002 by study type
(% <strong>of</strong> total number <strong>of</strong> <strong>animals</strong>)
USA
Three bodies oversee the welfare <strong>of</strong> <strong>research</strong> <strong>animals</strong> in the USA: the US Department <strong>of</strong>
Agriculture (USDA), the Department <strong>of</strong> Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Association
for the Assessment and Accreditation <strong>of</strong> Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC).
<strong>The</strong> USDA has in the past produced an annual report on the enforcement <strong>of</strong> the Animal Welfare
Act. This includes statistics on the number <strong>of</strong> <strong>animals</strong> used in <strong>research</strong>. <strong>The</strong> most recent report was
published in 2003 for the fiscal year <strong>of</strong> 2002. As this report relates specifically to the US Animal
Welfare Act, birds, rats and mice bred for use in <strong>research</strong> are excluded. 3
<strong>The</strong> data summarised below relate to the statistics <strong>of</strong> the fiscal year <strong>of</strong> 2002 (October
2001–September 2002). 4
■ Approximately 1.1 million <strong>animals</strong> were used for <strong>research</strong> in US federal and industrial <strong>research</strong>
laboratories.
Figure 7: Animals used for <strong>research</strong> in the USA October 2001–September 2002 by species
(excluding birds, rats and mice; 5 total numbers <strong>of</strong> <strong>animals</strong>)
3 Birds, rats <strong>of</strong> the genus Rattus and mice <strong>of</strong> the genus Mus, bred for use in <strong>research</strong> are not included in the term ‘animal’
under the Animal Welfare Act. This is based on practical difficulties, rather than philosophical objections. Federal Register
(2004) Rules and Regulations Vol. 69, No. 108 4 Jun; House <strong>of</strong> Lords Select Committee on Animals in Scientific Procedures
(2002) Volume 1 – Report (London: TSO).
4 USDA (2003) Annual Report <strong>of</strong> Enforcement for the Fiscal Year 2002 (Riverdale, MD: USDA), available at:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ac/2002ar/ar2002.pdf. Accessed on: 13 Jan 2005.
5 Federal Register (2004) Rules and Regulations Vol. 69, No. 108 4 Jun; House <strong>of</strong> Lords Select Committee on Animals in Scientific
Procedures (2002) Volume 1 – Report (London: TSO).
APPENDIX 2: STATISTICS - RESEARCH INVOLVING ANIMALS IN THE UK, EU, USA AND JAPAN
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