CONCEPTS RELATED TO WELFARE OF LABORATORY ANIMALS

CONCEPTS RELATED TO WELFARE OF LABORATORY ANIMALS

Ishmeet Kumar*, Asad Khan, Jayesh Vyas

PhD Scholar Animal Genetics and Breeding

ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, Haryana

*Corresponding author email id: kumarishmeet@gmail.com

            Animals have been used in medical research from as far back as 129-199 A.D. because of large numbers of animals have been used in biomedical and other research. In 1963 the first edition of “The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals” was published, and the United States Public Health Service began to require all recipients of grants in which animals were used to adhere to these guidelines. There is now worldwide interest in welfare issues, and the ethics of using animals for research has been raised in many countries. The study of ethics is the treating of moral questions and is concerned with right and wrong. There will always be differing opinions on the ethics of animal use which may raise dilemmas for workers. In a practical sense this has often been dealt with by drafting codes for the care and use of experimental animals. Adherence to a code, however, does not exclude the experimenter from actively considering ethical and welfare issues. Three important issues in laboratory animal management are the ethics of using the animals for experimentation, the welfare of the animals being used, and the scientific validity of the selected species and number to be used.

Ethical Considerations: – Animal rights organizations promote the complete cessation of all aspects of human “exploitation” of animals (Singer 1976). . Several philosophers have written books on animal rights (e.g., Singer 1976; Regan 1983) which have become the basis for the animal liberation movement. However, Singer (1980, 1985) is very careful to point out that he does not mean that animals have all the same rights as humans. He advocates equality of consideration of interests, not equality of rights. Where animals and humans have similar interests, those interests are to be counted equally, When Singer (1980) commented. Only those experiments which would also be justified if performed on an orphaned, irreparably retarded human being at a comparable level of sentience and awareness.

Animal Experimentation: – Laboratory animals are presently used in a wide variety of experimental situations such as-

1. Scientific research-which studies the basic life processes, the cause of diseases, and the investigation of new therapies and drugs, with an aim to prevent, cure, or alleviate human and animal suffering.
2. Educational processes,

• Experimental work on animal breeding and nutrition,

1. Diagnostic testing for disease in man or animals,
2. Development, production, and testing of commercial products, such as vaccines, antisera, shampoos, food additives, and cosmetics. The British Veterinary Association has recently given a great deal of thought to the need for animal experiments (Seamer 1982) and supports the principle of the three R’s.
3. Replace animals where possible, with valid alternatives.
4. Reduce the number of animals needed for an experiment by the use of a planned design, so a statistically valid result can be obtained with the minimum number of animals.

• Refine the experiment and choose the most appropriate animal model. Criticism of the use of animals for inessential experiments and the large numbers of animals used in experiments has led to questioning the obligations of the research worker to the animals. This has also stimulated the active consideration of alternatives and adjuncts which may be suitable to use in place of, or in conjunction with, some animal experiments.

Alternatives to Animal Experiments: –

1. A wide range of procedures could contribute to a reduction in the current reliance on animal experiments in toxicity testing (i.e., the LDSO test)
2. Mathematical modelling using computer-assisted models of various biological processes are important adjuncts to the use of live animals

iii. Use of vertebrate embryos or lower organisms has the advantage of acquiring rapid results on the general effects of chemicals on complete living organisms. Other alternatives include bacteria, algae, fungi, protozoans, coelenterates, plants, insects, echinoderms, and molluscs. Bacterial tests for mutagenicity are well established and are being used to make early decisions about new product development (quoted in Balls 1983).

1. In vitro techniques have been developed including the use of subcellular fractions, cell suspensions, tissue biopsies, tissue slices, whole organ perfusion, and tissue culture.

Note:- According  to  ethical and conscientious society there should be provision of:

1. provide humane care and treatment,
2. minimize pain and discomfort,

• avoid unnecessary use of animals

The institution should have strict codes for the care and use of laboratory animals, and the funding agencies should require adherence to these ethical codes. Nevertheless, the ultimate responsibility for preventing animal pain and suffering lies with the individual scientist

In the final stage, before they consider publishing the work, editors of journals should make sure that the welfare of the experimental animals has been taken into account.

It should be considered a privilege to use experimental animals, and so their welfare must be assured

Welfare Considerations: – The environment is central to laboratory animal management and the welfare of the animal must be considered throughout the breeding-holding phase and the experimental phase.

Breeding-Holding Phase :-The laboratory animals used for experimental purposes have been selected and bred for many generations under laboratory conditions, and need a well-controlled environment to keep them healthy care should be taken of –

1. Physical environment: –

• Noise can affect animals mating behavior…..noise levels are 42-44 decibels and may rise to 54-68 decibels during feeding and cage cleaning. Sudden noises should be avoided
• The optimum temperature range for most laboratory animals is 19-23° Centigrade
• Humidity up to 30-70%
• Complete air changes per hour to achieve uniform ventilation,
• Lighting cycle of 12 hours daylight and 12 hours darkness

1. Nutritional environment: –

Laboratory animals should have access to a clean, reliable water supply and wholesome, clean, nutritious palatable food on a regular basis to ensure the appropriate intake of protein, fat, carbohydrate, vitamins, salts, minerals, and fiber

iii. Biological environment: –

control Hygiene and quarantine of incoming animals, to avoid communicable disease

• There should be restricted entry of people
• Treatment of infection
• By any mean reduce stress
• Provision of an optimum social environment (The social environment of growing animals is influenced by density)

The Experimental Phase: – The welfare of animals used in the experimental environment is ultimately the responsibility of the research worker. Consideration must be given to handling and restraint, experimental procedures (e.g., anesthesia, blood collection), and euthanasia.

• The techniques of handling and restraint of each species should be followed.
• Selection of the experimental technique and use of anesthesia, analgesic, or sedative agents where necessary to minimization of pain and stress.

Conclusion: – The ethics and welfare considerations in laboratory animal management are multiple and complex, involving animals in all phases of their life cycle. In an intensive laboratory animal colony, the welfare of individual animals within the group is of prime importance and is not adequately reflected by measures of overall productivity Management decisions can be difficult in situations where individual and group welfare interests conflict, e.g., the culling of aged animals from a breeding colony When planning animal management or experimental procedures, the well being of the animal house staff and research workers should not be overlooked.

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