Animal Experimentation and Research Commons^™

Letter To Editor: Animal Suffering: Ethical Dimensions, Judith E. Hampson

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The author comments that the report (in IJSAP 3(3):254) of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) meeting has a misleading description of her exchange with Professor Dollery. The relevant text in the BAAS proceedings of the meeting is quoted.

Letter To Editor: Firm Support For Culture Training, H. C. Rowsell

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Dr. Rowsell corrects a report in the Journal (IJSAP 3(3): 185) regarding official funding support for a tissue culture training course offered by Professor Sergey Federoff at the University of Saskatchewan.

Vivisection And Misanthropy, George P. Cave

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The author comments on several articles in the media that imply or state that antivivisectionists are misanthropes who like animals more than people. The author notes that one commentator mistakenly claims that Peter Singer, author of Animal Liberation, equates animals and people. Singer does not claim that animals and people should be treated identically. Instead, Singer argues that animals and people are entitled to equal consideration of their interests. Different treatments will be justified if there are relevant differences between animals and people.

Protection Of Animals And Animal Experimentation: A Survey Of Scientific Experts, Norbert Lagoni, Joachim Fiebelkorn, Hans-Joachim Wormuth

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

This article summarizes information from a survey of biomedical scientists. The survey focuses on pharmacologists and toxicologists, their use of laboratory animals, and the potential for replacing their use with alternative methods for developing and evaluating pharmaceutical substances. Most surveyed felt the alternatives could supplement or complement animal tests but not replace the tests altogether. However, most favored the use of non-sentient material in safety tests.

The Potential Role Of Local Ethical Committees In The Moderation Of Experiments On Animals In Britain, D. P. Britt

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Scientists working with laboratory animals in Britain are made aware forcibly that a severe ethical dilemma surrounds using animals in experiments. Certain vociferous sections of the community press the issue on the general public's attention, and media sources tend to propagate views expressed by the most extreme parties while neglecting coverage of mature, rational opinions. It is, perhaps, no bad thing for the scientific community to be frequently reminded to take a responsible attitude to the use of animals. Still, recent overt, even illegal, activity on the part of extremist animal protectionist groups has encouraged a regrettable polarization of viewpoints, …

Book Reviews

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Fox reviews two books. The first is a collection of papers from the First Conference on Scientific Perspectives in Animal Welfare organized by the Scientists Center for Animal Welfare. The second book is All that Dwell Therein. Animal Rights and Environmental Ethics by Tom Regan.

Letter To Editor: Reply To "In Defense Of Pound Dogs In Teaching And Research", A. F. Fraser

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The use of dogs from civic pounds in medical research and teaching is the subject of concern in animal welfare circles today. This matter was the subject of a four-page comment in a recent issue of your journal (Volume 2 (5):241-244, 1981). The title of that item was provocatively given as "Sewer Science and Pound Seizure" by author Kenneth P. Stoller. It should be noted that the use of dogs in biomedical institutions greatly relates to the instruction of medical and veterinary students. Also, millions of dogs are currently being euthanized annually in shelters across the continent. Their use, "before …

The Ld50-The Beginning Of The End, Andrew N. Rowan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

It has long been recognized that the LD50 measure (usually conducted using rats or mice) provides only a rough estimate of the acute toxicity of a chemical in humans. The Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry and the UK Chemical Industries Association have spoken out against the production of precise estimates of LD50 in rodents. However, the UK Home Office Report on the LD50 recommended that the LD50 should be allowed to continue. But scientific support for the test, as exemplified by recent papers in academic journals, has eroded significantly in the last few years.

Alternatives To Animal Experimentation, Steven M. Niemi

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Alternatives to animal experimentation are highly touted today by animal welfare advocates. Their campaign for adopting alternatives has caused much discussion and debate within and outside the biomedical community. This paper aimed to examine the controversy and assess the more common alternatives, including the bacterial mutagenicity assay or Ames test, cell culture, and mathematical models for toxicity prediction. Chemical safety testing is the most promising of the fields for alternatives where laboratory animals are used, and incorporating alternatives with live-animal assays is increasing. However, due to the limitations of alternatives in use currently, there is still a considerable need for …

Laboratory Animals: Unification Of Legislation In Europe, H. Rozemond

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

A committee of experts, Comite Ad Hoc pour Ia Protection des Animaux (CAHPA), has been convened by the Council of Europe to prepare a European convention on the protection of laboratory animals. The chief goal of the Council of Europe is to implement peaceful cooperation concerning cultural, economic, and social affairs in Europe. Matters of military concern are excluded. The countries represented on the Council include Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Greece, Great Britain, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Turkey, Sweden, and Switzerland. The Council holds conventions on various topics …

A Message From Pano, William G. Conway

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

William Conway, the CEO of the Wildlife Conservation Society, was an innovative Zoo Director who, at times, presented his ideas in unusual ways. The Conway article reprinted in this issue of IJSAP is in the form of a memorandum from a field agent of the chimpanzee species to the “Most High Primate” resigning from his position. In Conway’s description, the memo was found in an unstamped envelope with no return address on the grounds of the Bronx Zoo. The memorandum appeared to have been written by a chimpanzee on assignment from a clandestine organization in Africa that sent undercover chimpanzees …

Meetings & Announcements

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The first international meeting on the Human/Companion Animal Bond was held at the University of Pennsylvania during October 5-7, 1981. The meeting brought together persons concerned about animal welfare and a broad spectrum of healthcare professionals. Two symposia were held in Europe in late 1981 (The Netherlands and Sweden) on the LD50 test. In October 1981, a symposium was organized in Switzerland on using animals in research and testing. At the end of 1981, the National Society for Medical Research organized an “adjunct” methods seminar. Finally, the Scientists Center for Animal Welfare organized a conference on the regulation of animal …

Letter To Editor: Journal Editorial Vindicates Vivisectionists, Pat Allan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

M.W. Fox's editorial, "The 'Show Dog' Syndrome" (IJSAP 3(1):3, 1982) cannot help but be extremely upsetting to any person who wants to see the particularly sadistic and useless experiments involving sentient beings recognized as such. I am referring to Fox's reference to Overmeier's "learned helplessness" experiments involving intense unavoidable electrical shock administered to dogs. Through reference to these kinds of experiments, Fox lends credibility to them; it would seem there is no other way to understand the "show dog" syndrome from a scientific perspective. Fox therefore

validates Overmeier's research and others who engage in similar research.

Letter To Editor: M.W. Fox Response To Allan's Letter To Editor, M. W. Fox

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

I have never condoned animal studies of learned helplessness that entail significant physical and psychological trauma - such as five milliamperes of inescapable electrical shock repeated at intervals for several days. I have also forcefully criticized psychologists (Fox, 1981, Psychopharmacol. Bull. 17:80-84) for poor experimental design and needless repetition.

The Issue Of Science And The Issue Of Care, Andrew N. Rowan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Dr. Edward Taub, Director of the Behavioral Biology Center of the Institute for Behavioral Research, was, on

November 23, 1981, found guilty of 6 counts of cruelty to animals. Dr. Taub has cried "victimization" and has attempted.

(with some success) to rally researchers to his defense. However, scientists should beware of taking up this case as a cause celebre. Taub was not being tried because his research was cruel (and hence unjustified); he was being tried because his laboratory was grossly unsanitary and did not provide adequate veterinary care. According to one respected laboratory animal veterinarian, the conditions were …

News And Analysis

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The section includes reports on the use of pound animals for research; EEC standards for battery cages for laying hens; a declaration that fish are considered to be animals in Massachusetts, the rescue of dogs from research in Maryland; determining wildlife populations in Virginia; the tuna-dolphin controversy; the protection of laboratory animals; animal experimentation in the UK; the AVMA Animal Welfare Committee; broiler chicken welfare; ignorance regarding wildlife in the USA, the Ames Test as an alternative; the ban on sperm whale hunting; and an analysis of alternatives research supported by the NIH.

Reporting Requirements Under The Animal Welfare Act: Their Inadequacies And The Public's Right To Know, M. Solomon, P. C. Lovenheim

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The Animal Welfare Act is the only federal statute designed to protect animals used in laboratory research. This law requires research facilities to register with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and meet minimum housing standards, care, and treatment standards for most warm-blooded animals. The Act is administered by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), an agency of the USDA. Research institutions are required to file annual reports. However, the reports are frequently deficient. The authors argue that the USDA should issue clear definitions for what is meant by “pain” and “distress. ” They should also provide further …

The Silver Spring 17, Andrew N. Rowan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

On November 23, 1981, in a Maryland District Court, Dr. Edward Taub was found guilty under a Maryland state anti-cruelty statute of not providing adequate veterinary care for 6 of the 17 monkeys confiscated from his laboratory two months earlier. The case has received extensive press coverage and caused widespread alarm in the scientific community. According to Science (274:121, 1981 ), "scientists throughout the country have been shocked by the Taub case, initially perceiving it as a bid by antivivisectionists to procure a court ruling against animal experimentation." Taub has fostered this impression and has drawn a false analogy between …

Legislation And Regulation

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The idea of new federal regulation on the care and use of animals in research is no longer novel; bills that would control and refocus the conduct of animal experimentation in the U.S. have been pending since the last session of Congress. Last autumn, however, a new phase in the process began. On 13-14 October 1981, the House Subcommittee on Science, Research, and Technology held information-gathering public hearings to evaluate existing bills and possibly formulate its own legislation.

How To Compose A Laboratory Animal Use Report For The Usda, J. M. Cass

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

All research facilities must submit an annual report on laboratory animal use to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal Care Staff as part of the legal requirements of the Federal Laboratory Animal Welfare Act (P.L. 89-544) and its subsequent amendments. This report (USDA: V.C. Form 18-23, Annual Report of Research Facility) must include an explanation of the scientific bases for conducting any research and tests that involve unalleviated distress (the "Pain-No Drugs" situation) in animal subjects. In some cases, only one of these reports is required.

Updating The British Cruelty To Animals Act Of 1876: Can The Center Hold?, Judith Hampson

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Long experience with unsuccessful attempts by British animal welfare groups to promote private members' bills for reform or replacement of the 1876 Cruelty to Animals Act has convinced reformists that achieving this kind of change by lobbying Parliament may be impossible. For this reason, a small reformist group- spearheaded by the ex-chairman of the Labour Party, Lord Houghton, and an eminent surgeon, the late Lord Platt- was formed and drafted reform proposals in a document widely known as the Houghton/Piatt Memorandum (paper submitted to the Home Secretary, 1976). This report called for a substantial tightening of controls established under the …

Some Thoughts On The Laboratory Cage Design Process, Margaret E. Wallace

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

A block to progress in the design of cages and other restricted environments for animals has been the notion that animal and human needs are necessarily in conflict. The design process should list the established and suspected animal needs separately from human needs- husbandry and experimental. Comparison of the two lists will often show more compatible needs than expected, and design features can be worked out to fulfill them. Adjustments may be made where needs are less compatible until "sufficient" compatibility is achieved. An innovative design for a mouse cage is described to show that this process can lead to …

Deep Woodchip Litter: Hygiene, Feeding, And Behavioral Enhancement In Eight Primate Species, Arnold S. Chamove, James R. Anderson, Susan C. Morgan-Jones, Susan P. Jones

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Sixty-seven animals from eight primate species were used to assess improved husbandry techniques. The presence of woodchips as a direct-contact litter decreased inactivity and fighting and increased time spent on the ground. Placing food in the deep litter led to further behavioral improvement. Frozen foods improved distribution and reduced fighting in most situations, especially when buried in the litter. With time, the litter became increasingly inhibitory to bacteria. The results suggest that inexpensive ways of increasing environmental complexity are effective in improving housing for primates.

Breeding And Use Of Nonhuman Primates In The Usa, Joe R. Held

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Several species of nonhuman primates, each possessing specific characteristics of particular value, are used by the United States biomedical community in various health-related activities. These animals are man's closest relatives and are indispensable in understanding and controlling human health problems. The destruction of primate habitats and embargoes on the export of primates from source countries have decreased the supply of these animals. The inadequate and erratic supply of these resources threatens the continuation of many ongoing and new activities contributing to improving human health. In the U.S., a program has been developed to meet the health needs of primates:

1) …

Scientific Issues And Regulation Of Primate Use, Andrew N. Rowan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Some of the use patterns of nonhuman primates in the USA and Europe are outlined, and a few specific examples of inappropriate and unnecessary use are described. The primate research resources program in the USA is examined, and some suggestions as to how the program could be more responsive to humane and conservation concerns are presented.

The Case For Revising Our Laws On Animal Experimentation, David L. Markell

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The current laws regarding experimentation on animals should be dramatically revised. These laws permit virtually unrestricted animal experimentation without regard to the benefits obtained from such experiments

and the consequences of such experiments upon the subject animal. Legislation constituting a two-step jump from the current laws is needed. Laws sanctioning and requiring animal experimentation should be repealed. Laws significantly restricting acceptable experimentation should be enacted. The principle underlying this proposal for change is straightforward: Nonhuman animals, like human animals, have interests in the integrity of their

bodies which deserve legal protection. Only by repealing the present laws and enacting new …

Ethical Concerns In Primate Use And Husbandry, Ardith A. Eudey

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

After World War II, a dramatic increase occurred in the utilization of nonhuman primates in biomedical and psychological research and industry. At the same time, field studies on the ecological and social behavior of natural

populations of primates also increased, making possible more realistic assessments of both the behavioral potentiality of primate populations and their conservation status. Despite the growing body of information indicating the endangered or threatened status of most species, many laboratory workers and planning agencies continue to regard primates as renewable resources, even seeking to bypass protective legislation in habitat countries to obtain them. As a consequence, …

Lab Animal Housing: Numbers Or Common Sense?, Andrew N. Rowan

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The editorial includes comments on the various presentations at an ISAP symposium on laboratory primate husbandry that document the complexity of enriching housing on animal health and well-being.

History Of The Humane Movement And Prospects For The 80s, Robert A. Brown

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

It was in 1836 that the oldest humane society currently in existence, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, was founded in London. Many others were formed during the nineteenth century, such as the organization I now represent, which was founded in Chicago in 1899. Above all else, there is one distinguishing feature of this period for me: the movement had what is known in Chicago as clout. In marked contrast to the years following the First World War, humane societies enjoyed support from individuals of wealth, influence, and brains. That was a high point for the …

Biomedical Research And Animal Welfare: Traditional Viewpoints And Future Directions, Franklin M. Loew

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

It has been twenty years since C.P. Snow first presented the concept of "The Two Cultures,"; referring to the "culture" of scientists and the "culture" of literary intellectuals (mainly writers), Snow said (1969): "constantly I felt I was moving among two groups- comparable in intelligence, identical in race, not grossly different in social origin, earning about

the same incomes, who had almost ceased to communicate at all, who in intellectual, moral and psychological climate had so little in common." In some ways, "Two Cultures" goes far to characterize the current state of affairs surrounding those whose scientific endeavors involve the …