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Animal welfare What is animal welfare and whose welfare is considered? Animals are recognized as sentient beings in New Zealand law. This means they have sufficiently complex nervous systems to support flexible and adaptive behaviour and, importantly, a range of different experiences and feelings that they can interpret as good/positive or bad/negative. In New Zealand, animals considered to be sentient are mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, octopus, squid, crabs, lobsters and crayfish (see Information about animal research in NZ for more information). The welfare of an animal depends on its mental state – the negative or positive experiences it is having at a particular point in time. Negative experiences might include pain, discomfort, breathlessness, nausea, fear, anxiety, hunger, thirst and even loneliness, frustration or boredom, depending on the kind of animal. Good experiences might include feelings of pleasure, comfort, safety and companionship, again depending on the kind of animal. The animal’s mental state is influenced by its perception of both its physical health and its environment. How can we understand an animal’s welfare state to make improvements? Often in research, it is necessary to perform procedures that may cause animals to experience negative states like fear, pain, nausea, or breathlessness. In addition to compromise during procedures, animals may also experience compromise in their home environment, during day-to-day husbandry and handling, preparation for, as well as recovery from, the procedure. An animal may be more likely to experience welfare compromise because of its age, physical state, particular type or breeding. When using animals in research, testing, and teaching, we have a responsibility to promote good welfare, meaning minimizing welfare compromise due to negative experiences and enhancing welfare by providing opportunities for positive experiences. The people responsible must consider the ways that their use of, or interaction with, the animals may impact their welfare. Another way to think about this is to ask “What mental states will the animal experience in this situation, in this physical condition or due to this procedure?”. We can understand the degree to which welfare is compromised by evaluating the quality, likelihood, severity/intensity and duration of any and all negative experiences; we do this using observable or measurable indicators of mental states, including behavioural, physiological and neurophysiological measurements. Likewise, we can understand the degree of welfare enhancement, primarily by evaluating animal’s behavioural responses to opportunities that arise or we provide. One model we can use to organize investigations of welfare and the evidence for an animal’s mental experiences and its overall welfare state is the Five Domains Model. This is an internationally recognised welfare assessment framework developed in New Zealand. It reflects modern understanding of animal welfare by breaking down the factors that influence welfare into four categories (Domain 1 Food and water; Domain 2 Physical environment; Domain 3 Health and physical status; Domain 4 Behavioural interactions) and includes the associated mental experiences in a fifth category (Domain 5 Mental states). With care, the Model can be used for any species in any context. It allows the user to apply their own knowledge of the animal species to identify potential sources of welfare compromise and opportunities for welfare enhancement. How can we improve the welfare of animals used in RTT? The Three Rs The Three Rs provide guidance on ways to minimize welfare compromise for animals used in RTT by avoiding animal use altogether (Replacement), reducing the number of animals that might experience welfare compromise whilst still achieving the purpose of having used them (Reduction) or reducing the likelihood, severity and/or duration of negative mental experiences arising due to the ways animals are used and managed (Refinement). Providing opportunities for positive experiences, while continuing to minimise negatives, is another way to refine animal use. For more information about the Three Rs see NC3Rs . Minimizing welfare compromise (Refinement) depends on what the problem is for the animal. Importantly, animals must be conscious to be having any mental experiences, including pain, so using general anaesthesia to make an animal unconscious is one way to reduce welfare compromise during a procedure. Pain can also be alleviated or reduced by using drugs that block or reduce pain signals (local anaesthetics or analgesics). However, pain-relieving drugs won’t reduce hunger, thirst, breathlessness, nausea, fear or loneliness. So, the remedy must be appropriate for the problem, and the effectiveness of the intervention should be evaluated using methods like those described above. For example, fear due to human-animal interactions can be reduced by avoiding or refining handling procedures, while anxiety might be relieved by manipulating animal housing or social groupings. Likewise, such changes in animal housing and management can provide animals opportunities for positive experiences. Promoting these feelings wherever possible can enhance the welfare of animals, as well as making them easier to handle and work with. Resources for minimizing welfare compromise: Beausoleil, N., & Mellor, D. (2015). Introducing breathlessness as a significant animal welfare issue. New Zealand Veterinary Journal , 63 (1), 44–51. https://doi.org/10.1080/00480169.2014.940410 Resources for enhancing welfare: ·Baumans, V. (2005). Environmental Enrichment for Laboratory Rodents and Rabbits: Requirements of Rodents, Rabbits, and Research. ILAR Journal , 46 (2), 162–170. https://doi.org/10.1093/ilar.46.2.162 Rault, J.-L., Waiblinger, S., Boivin, X., & Hemsworth, P. (2020). The Power of a Positive Human–Animal Relationship for Animal Welfare. Frontiers in Veterinary Science , 7 . https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.590867 Resources for understanding animal welfare and its assessment: Mellor, D. J. (2017). Operational Details of the Five Domains Model and Its Key Applications to the Assessment and Management of Animal Welfare. Animals, 7(8), Article 8. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani7080060 Mellor, D. J., Beausoleil, N. J., Littlewood, K. E., McLean, A. N., McGreevy, P. D., Jones, B., & Wilkins, C. (2020). The 2020 Five Domains Model: Including Human–Animal Interactions in Assessments of Animal Welfare. Animals, 10(10), 1870. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10101870

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Openness Agreement The New Zealand Board of the Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART), a Committee of the Royal Society Te Apārangi, has supported the development of an Openness Agreement on Animal Research and Teaching for New Zealand. A draft version of the Agreement went out for consultation in 2020/21, and was launched at the ANZCCART 2021 conference on 27 July 2021: Press release about launch of Openness Agreement Media coverage: New Zealand Herald ; Science Media Centre NZ ; Radio New Zealand ; Farmers Weekly; the Mandarin New Zealand has long been committed to maintaining and improving high standards of animal welfare as well as undertaking world-leading research and teaching using animals. Those involved in research have an obligation to demonstrate and promote these values, and in order to be seen as trustworthy they must be open, transparent, and accountable for the research and teaching that they conduct, fund or support, including when the high standards they strive for are not achieved. Doing more to communicate the context in which animal research and teaching takes place, the work that organisations undertake to incorporate the Three Rs (the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of animals), the regulations that govern this research, and the systems that are in place to report and rectify poor practice is key. The objective of this Agreement is to ensure that the public are well informed about what animal research involves, the role it plays in the overall process of scientific discovery, how such research is regulated in New Zealand, and what researchers and animal care staff do to promote welfare, reduce animal usage and minimise suffering and harm to the animals. Several countries have now implemented (or are actively working on) formal ‘openness agreements’ to improve public understanding of animal research. Under such agreements, stakeholders make a public pledge to be more open about their involvement in animal research and explain details and reasons underlying it. The European Animal Research Association has several examples of openness agr eements. The longest established openness agreement is the UK Concordat on Openness on Animal Research . The UK Concordat has operated successfully since 2014 and now has over 120 signatories representing leading universities, research institutes, government agencies, funders and industry. Commit m e nts The Openness Agreement on Animal Research and Teaching in New Zealand sets out five Commitments that require signatories to take steps to be more open about the use of animals in research and teaching. The five commitments are: We will be clear about why and how we use animals in research and teachin g. We will enhance our communications with the media and the public about our use of animals in research and teaching. We will be proactive in providing opportunities for the public to find out about research and teaching using animals. We will enhance our communications with tangata whenua about our use of animals in research and teaching. We will report on progress annually and share our experiences. Following a review of the Agreement in 2024, an additional category of "Supporter" was added as a type of signatory for organisations that do not conduct animal research or teaching directly but have indirect involvement in ways such as providing funding, regulatory oversight, supplying equipment or animals for, or serving as professional bodies. View the agreement here: ANZCCART Openness Agreement on Animal Research and Teaching in New Zealand – 2025 Openness Agreement Annual Report Signatories report annually on their progress and share experiences: 2022 An nual Report: Download (Press Release ) (infographic ) 2023 Annual Report: Download (Press Re lease ) (infographic ) 2024 Annual Report: Download (Press Release ) (infographic ) 2025 Annual Report: Download (Press Release ) (infographic ) Signatories The signatories to this agreement are: Research & Teaching Signatories Supporter Signatories If your organisation would like to join the Agreement, please contact: anzccart@royalsociety.org.nz

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