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11 Info. Rep.: Animal Welfare Inst. 1 (1962)

handle is hein.animal/awiqu0011 and id is 1 raw text is: January-February 1962 ANIMIAL WVELFARIE INSTITUTE 22 EAST 17th STREET, NEW YORK 3, N. Y. Vol. II No. I A STATEMENT ON HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHING BY DEAN ARMISTEAD Dr. W. W. Armistead, Dean of the College of Veterin- ary Medicine of Michigan State University, has made an excellent statement which might well be used as a guide by all teachers of high school biology. Extra copies are available without charge on request from the Animal Wel- fare Institute for distribution to schools and science fairs. The statement is as follows: Although the interest of high school students in biological research certainly is commendable and should be encouraged, living animals some- times are mistreated in laboratory exercises. Such practices must be condemned by all legitimate scientists who respect life and understand re- search. There is no justification for conducting in the secondary school an experiment which would cause pain to an animal. Secondary school administrators should insist that every experiment involving live animals ful- fill at least the following conditions: 1. No experiment using live animals should be attempted unless comfortable quarters, ade- quate food and water, and humane treatment can be provided. 2. Such an experiment should have as a clearly defined objective the teaching of some bio- logical principle which can not be taught effectively without animals. 3. Important collateral objectives of every such experiment should be to train students in the proper handling of animals and to teach reverence for life in any form. 4. If the school faculty includes nobody with training in the proper care of laboratory animals, the services of such a person on a consulting basis should be sought. Often a local veterinarian is happy to offer this kind of help. DIRECTIVE ON THE TREATMENT OF EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS With the kind permission of Dean Charles G. Wilber of Kent State University, the following memorandum which he has issued to ensure proper care of experimental ani- mals is published below. The Animal Welfare Institute is glad to provide Basic Care of Experimental Animals in the amounts needdd to all institutions using animals. There is no charge for this service. KENT STATE 'UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL KENT, OHIO 16 February 1962 MEMO To: From: All Departments Concerned The Dean of the Graduate School Subject: Care of Laboratory Animals 1. Directors of theses and dissertations are urged to re- mind graduate students that acceptable experimental results cannot be obtained from sick, abused, or im- properly handled animals. (Continued on Page 3) VISITS TO LABORATORIES SHOW NEED FOR H.R. 1937 During the past ten years, representatives of the AWI have visited laboratories throughout the country making careful note of the conditions of experimental animals. Wherever bad conditions have been observed, and they are discouragingly common, we have requested that they be corrected. Occasionally, as in the case of a hospital in New York which received strong adverse newspaper publicity on these conditions, we have succeeded in obtaining the neces- sary changes. In many cases, however, the conditions have either been unchanged, or only slightly modified. The provision to laboratories of thousands of free copies of our educational manuals Basic Care of Experimental Animals and Comfortable Quarters for Laboratory Ani- mals, as well as other free information, has, we believe, prevented some animal suffering which would otherwise have taken place. It is clear, however, that education alone is totally inadequate to deal with the negligence, callous- ness, and the sometimes extreme obstinacy which are at the root of most of the worst conditions. Only a mandatory law can give the reasonable protection urgently needed by experimental animals in regard to their care, their housing, and their use in experiments, so that civilized standards will obtain in laboratories throughout our nation. H.R. 1937, which is now pending before Congress, and which is modelled on the British Act in effect since 1876, would provide this protection. A few specific examples of the type of mistreatment which is common, taken from notes compiled over the ten-year period, are submitted below. Eastern Hospital Laboratory, 1961 Rabbits in cages too small for them to lie down and stretch out. They must sit perpetually with legs underneath them or bent sideways. Doctor in charge of rabbits said he saw no reason to change since he had had a rabbit in such a cage since 1958 and it can still walk when taken out of the cage, which means to him as a doctor that it is all right. Sick rabbit shown to another doctor whose name was on this animal's cage (rabbit was coughing, sneezing, yellow mucous running from nose and encrusted on paws.) This doctor declined to look at the rabbit but instead stated that they take very good care of the animals, that they don't let them become ill because it is to our interest to have them in the best health. He left the room a few minutes later without examining the rabbit. On a return visit to this hospital a thin kitten with a head operation was observed with one paw bent back and drag- ging; the foot was covered with dried discharge. The doctor stated that they could not 'examine the cats from head to foot (though he received over $30,000 U.S. Public Health Service grant money using these cats last year). Eastern Medical School, 1961 All dogs caged, never released for exercise. Three emaci- ated dogs curled up and uninterested even though most of the dogs were barking furiously. A grey poodle with in- credibly matted fur, with food and filth stuck in it. said he had trimmed it once, so it must have been there for a long time. This dog did not respond in any way but stood mute and motionless in its cage. A black and tan mongrel was too tall to hold its head normally. When standing, the dog's back was rubbing against the top of the cage. The university refused to build cages any bigger despite urgent requests to do so when the building was ,97

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