How are animal experiments regulated in Switzerland?
In an international comparison, Switzerland has one of the strictest animal protection laws. However, this does not mean that there is no potential for improvement. In Switzerland, too, some provisions are inadequate from the point of view of animal protection or leave room for interpretation, which is often used to the disadvantage of the animals.
Animal protection in Switzerland is enshrined in the Constitution. Article 80 of the Federal Constitution states that the Confederation shall issue regulations for the protection of animals and, in particular, regulate animal experiments and interventions on live animals.
The provisions in the Animal Welfare Act
This provision is incorporated in the Animal Welfare Act. Article 3 first defines the term «animal experiment.» Articles 10-12 deal with breeding, licensing requirement and reporting obligation for genetically modified animals. The crucial articles related to animal experimentation are found in the 6th section of the Animal Welfare Law:
Article 17 stipulates that animal experiments must be limited to the indispensable minimum. This lays the foundation for the balancing of interests. For an «indispensable minimum» naturally leaves some room for interpretation.
Article 18 stipulates that anyone who wants to conduct animal experiments requires a licence from the responsible cantonal authorities.
Article 19 states that the Federal Council defines the requirements for institutes and laboratories in which animal experiments may be conducted. For example, what training and continuing education of personnel is required and the necessary animal housing, breeding and operations. In addition, certain experimental purposes can also be declared impermissible.
Article 20 regulates the conduct of experiments. Among other things, it is stated here that experiments on animals relatively high on the evolutionary scale may only be carried out if no suitable alternative method is available.
Article 20a specifies what information is released to the public at what time. This includes, for example, the purpose of the experiment or the number of animals used. However, it is also specified here that additional information must not conflict with overriding private or public interests worthy of protection.
Another relevant article is Article 20b, which stipulates that there must be an animal experiment information system. Also important is Article 22, which stipulates that the federal government must conduct scientific research relevant to animal welfare, in particular on alternative methods that can replace animal experiments. Article 34 provides the basis for the Cantonal Committee on Animal Experiments, and Article 35 for the Federal Committee on Animal Experiments. Finally, Article 36 stipulates that the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office shall publish annual statistics on all animal experiments conducted in Switzerland.
The provisions in the Animal Protection Ordinance
Finally, the Animal Protection Ordinance regulates the implementation of the Animal Welfare Act. It also supplements and completes the law. Ordinances, unlike the law, are issued by the Federal Council and not by Parliament. In Article 112 is determined, which animals in experiments are protected by the law: vertebrates, decapods and cephalopods, last embryonic stages.
In other articles, the requirements and tasks of experiment keepers and enclosures are specified. Article 122 regulates the implementation of the licensing requirement for laboratory animal facilities, which is prescribed in Article 18 of the Animal Welfare Act. This is then further elaborated in Articles 139-142. Article 129 stipulates that an animal welfare officer must be designated for every institute or laboratory. Article 135 regulates the conduct of experiments, Article 136 defines what constitutes constraining animal experiments and Article 137 sets out the criteria for assessing the indispensability of constraining animal experiments. There are also articles concerning the information of the public and the Cantonal and Federal Committees on Animal Experiments.
The most important terms simply explained
In a weighing of interests, the «good» of the welfare and dignity of animals is compared with the «good» of expected scientific progress and social interests. In the case of weighty human interests, even the most severe animal experiments can be permitted.
The Cantonal Committee on Animal Experiments is consulted when a planned animal experiment with severity level 1 to 3 is to be carried out. It reviews the researcher’s application and makes a recommendation to the Veterinary Office, which informs the applicant of the decision. Decisive for the tendencies of the Committee on Animal Experiments is its composition. For instance, in the canton of Zurich, animal protection organizations can propose only 3 out of the 11 members, which means that animal interests are often underrepresented in the committee.
The information available to the public regarding animal experiments conducted in Switzerland is limited and only accessible after the experiments have been completed. Animalfree Research proposes the creation of a public register of approved animal experiments, which would increase transparency towards society and politics. This register could also help researchers avoid duplicating experiments carried out by other researchers, making their work more efficient.
In principle, the Animal Welfare Act applies to all vertebrates. It additionally grants the Federal Council the possibility to extend the scope to individual animal species or groups. The Animal Protection Ordinance has been amended to include decapods and cephalopods due to scientific evidence of their sentience. However, all other invertebrates are not protected under animal protection law. It should be noted that not all countries make this distinction, as in Germany and Austria, all invertebrates are covered by animal protection law.