Animal Welfare and ethics in research
what is animal welfare
assessing welfare
principles guiding ethical research
Key issues in animal research
animal ethics committees
3 areas of concern
Physical
Mental
aspects of naturalness
able to perform natural/species typical behaviours that are thought to be important to them (eg. feeding)
functioning well (in good health)
feeling well (not in pain etc)
optimising welfare is not always straightforward
what animal wants isn't always what is best for it (lots of food)
Migratory restlessness in birds
can be difficult tradeoffs between different aspects of welfare ie. wildlife reintroductions
some Physiological indicators
blood glucocorticoid conc
faecal metabolites
blood leucocyte profiles
oxytocin
some behavioural indicators
approach/avoidance behaviour
distress vocalisations
stereotypes
behavioural tests
preference tests
strength of motivation tests
assessing needs through motivation/cost research
Cognitive bias
novel way of measuring animals emotional or 'affective' state
cognition = mental capabilities including judgement, memory and attention
emotional state influences cognition, so investigating cognition can allow us to infer emotional state
primarily evaluates emotional valence (is it positive or negative)l not intensity
Judgement bias in rats
morals are personal views
we all differ due to cultural and personal background, attitudes and core values
ethics are a collective acceptable approach
agreed to by teh community of animal scientists. Consensus of what is appropriate and informed by broader community attitudes
the 3 R's
Replacement
techniques that replace the use of animals must be sought and used where possible
Reduction
each project must use no more than minimum number of animals necessary, share samples and data to reduce number used
Refinement
projects should be designed to minimise or avoid pain & distress in animals. Use anaesthesia, analgesics etc as appropriate
The 5 freedoms
Hunger & thirst
discomfort
pain, injury or disease
express normal behaviours
fear & distress
in research we often breach these and are given the privilege to do so in the interests of the greater good.
safe + appropriate handling
operating w/ approval
being prepared to stop
special issues for wild animals
safe capture
biology often not fully known
mishaps, unpredictable events, environmental extremes
unknown status at capture eg. in drought may be dehydrated
Examples
Mistnetting birds
black swan neck collars (negative welfare impacts?)
known risks: skilled handling & extraction (permits), extreme weather (cold)
discovered risks: sudden precipitation, predation at unattended nets, prolonged extraction process due to double pocketing, tongues
Background: done in other species + studies
cannot know how swans feel about neck collars, but we can evaluate aspects of their physical health & behaviour
time spent doing behaviours did not dffer between collared and un collared
did not affect body mass, length ratio and body conditioning
did affect time spent doing different foraging behaviours
must approve all research on vertebrates
who should be on the AEC? (composition mandatory)
Vet
scientist (active in animal research)
animal welfare representative
independent community representative
animal house managers
also: chair + secretary
Superb Fairy wren Case study
study mating system of superb fairy wrens
Capture + branding
blood sampling (obtain DNA for genetic profiles)
attachment of tracking devices
project justification and the 3 R's
is this study really necessary? why is it important
could we find out another way
how do we know what is enough in terms of sample size for the study
minimise disturbance
during study
follow up and monitoring