The more the merrier? While research animals are surrounded by laws and people responsible for them, the key question is: are they truly protected?

In this project we will scrutinize the safety net surrounding research animals.

Problem description

Animals used in research are the only group of animals that according to the animal welfare legislation can be subjected to both severe pain and suffering, provided an animal ethics committee approve the use. This unique status renders them particularly vulnerable, raising significant legal, ethical, and scientific concerns. To protect these animals, their use is governed by extensive legislation and involves various core actors with different responsibilities. However, it remains unclear whether this safety net is effective in practice. Could the involvement of multiple actors create uncertainty about who holds ultimate responsibility, potentially leading to animals falling through the cracks and important aspects of their welfare being neglected? 

Objectives

The overall objective of this project is to investigate how the roles and responsibilities of different core actors involved in the protection of animals used in research work in practice. Additionally, we want to illuminate potential gaps in responsibilities between the core actors in order to suggest improvements for the protection of animals used. 

Subprojects and implementation

In this project, we will map the core actors’ different responsibilities, and identify potential gaps and situations where it is unclear what their assignment entails. The project consists of three parts:

Part 1: Focus on the individual core actors 
Questionnaires and interviews will be conducted with core actors (license holders, named officers, designated veterinarians, animal care staff, and members of the animal welfare bodies) to capture their general knowledge about their different responsibilities, how they perceive the responsibilities of other core actors, and how they perceive their working environment.

Part 2: Focus on approved applications
Approved animal ethics applications will be analysed to identify patterns, gaps, or inconsistencies in the ethical justifications and motivations required to approve legal exemptions. 

Part 3: Focus on the official animal welfare inspections
Inspection reports will be analysed, and interviews will be conducted with users and welfare inspectors to identify any gaps between regulatory requirements and actual practices, and to get an understanding of how inspections influence compliance and welfare standards.