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Home > Get Involved > Issues - take action > Testing on animals
Testing on animals
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Cosmetics |
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Code of Practice |
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The issue
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The RSPCA is opposed to the use of live animals in experimentation that causes suffering, pain, distress, or lasting harm. Animals are used in biomedical research, medical research, agricultural research, safety testing and education. During 2008, over 1.2 million animals were used in Victoria for research and teaching purposes.
Animal experimentation means any action, demonstration, procedure, test,
experiment, inquiry, investigation or study which is carried out on or
in connection with an animal:
- Which is undertaken to ascertain or establish or discover by trial something which is unknown or uncertain;
- In the course of which an animal is
subjected to surgical, medical, psychological, biological, chemical or
physical treatment or facilities, diet, noise, isolation, overcrowding
or conditions to which an animal of that species is not accustomed, or
- When any tissue, material or substance is extracted or derived from or implanted in the body of an animal;
- For the purpose of essential scientific research, teaching or the production of biological;
- To establish significant information
relevant to the understanding of humans or other animals, to the
maintenance or improvement of their health, to the improvement of animal
management or production or to the achievement of educational
objectives.
Although the RSPCA is opposed to the use of animals in experimentation, we understand until alternative techniques are developed, the use of live animals in some experiments will occur. However, such experiments should only be permitted when their aims are to provide direct benefits to humans or animals. Research animals must be treated with respect and not as scientific objects.
If suffering is observed (which may manifest itself in abnormal behaviour) then the experiment should cease immediately or anaesthesia be used, and in any event, where required, analgesics be used.
The RSPCA believes that the number of animals
used in an experiment should be minimised by attention to statistical
methods. We strongly believe that any individual or institution licensed
and registered to conduct experiments on animals and who fail to comply
with the requirements of the regulations, should automatically have
their licence and/or registration cancelled.
Greater efforts should be made to develop suitable
alternative techniques such as in-vitro procedures, computer models,
epidemiological studies with co-ordinated reporting and films/videos for
teaching.
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Cosmetics
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Are animals used for cosmetics testing in Australia?
There is no testing of cosmetics involving animals conducted in Australia. However, the majority of cosmetic products sold here contain ingredients that will have been tested on animals at some time. Cosmetic products include make-up and skin-care products as well as soaps, shower gels, deodorants, shampoos, toothpastes, sunscreens and similar products.
Campaigns in other countries where cosmetics testing has been carried out have resulted in the phasing out of the use of animals to test both the final products and their ingredients. In the UK, both types of testing have been banned since 1998 and in the EU since 2009. However, testing continues to be permitted in other countries where cosmetics are developed and produced, such as the United States.
While the use of animals in cosmetics testing continues, the RSPCA recommends that consumers only buy products supplied by companies operating a cruelty-free policy. There are three criteria for such a policy:
- The company manufacturing the cosmetic product does not originate, endorse or finance any form of testing on animals. This includes testing by the company themselves or through contractors at any stage of product development, production or marketing.
- The cosmetics must not contain ingredients tested on animals by or on behalf of the cosmetics industry, after a fixed cut-off date. This means the company uses only established ingredients which need no further animal testing, and no ingredients or products have been tested on animals for the purpose of developing the cosmetic after the stated cut-off date.
- The policy includes a commitment to take reasonable steps to achieve a reduction in, and eventual ending of animal use in industry. Funding research into humane alternatives to animals testing could be one way to help achieve this.
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Code of Practice
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In Australia, all research and teaching that involves the use of live animals must be carried out in accordance with the Australian Code of Practice for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes. Under the Code, which is enforced by State and Territory legislation, applications for research using animals must be assessed by an institutional Animal Ethics Committee (AEC).
The AEC must include at least one animal welfare member and a lay member as well as a veterinarian and a scientist. The AEC decides whether or not an experiment can be conducted and can place provisions on the numbers of animals used, the care and use of the animals involved and on how the project will be monitored. If a researcher does not comply with the AEC then approval for the project can be withdrawn, and the researcher can be charged under the relevant State legislation. Most other developed countries have similar systems in place to regulate the use of animals in research, although they vary considerably in the way in which the regulations are enforced and the standards of housing and care that are applied. Standards of animal care in Australian laboratories are generally considered to be high compared to other countries.
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