Assessing animal welfare and suffering

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Assessing animal welfare and suffering (A guide to defining and implementing protocols for the welfare assessment of laboratory animals) provides guidance on implementing effective protocols for assessing the welfare of laboratory animals, including taking a constructive team approach, refining assessment systems, record keeping and training in welfare assessment.

This guide was produced by the UK Joint Working Group on Refinement (JWGR) comprising of the British Veterinary Association Animal Welfare Foundation (BVAAWF), the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments (FRAME), the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) and the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW. It is published in the journal "Laboratory Animals" Hawkins et al (2011) Laboratory Animals 45: 1–13. Copyright is retained by the publisher.

This guidance is intended for all staff required to assess or monitor animal welfare, including animal technologists and care staff, veterinarians and scientists. It will also be of use to members of ethics or animal care and use committees.

Undergraduate and Taught Masters Research Animal Sciences curricula

This resource could be used in the delivery of the following Learning Outcome:

• The intervention mechanisms to protect the welfare of research animals
• The need for assessment of the welfare of research animals

It could be used to inform discussions about how you would monitor the welfare of animals, what would you look for and how would you record it. It could be utilised alongside Pg 71-79 of the Guidance on the operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which provides details of the responsibilities of Named Persons, individuals with identified responsibilities under the Act).