We are delighted to present the RSPCA’s new ‘Focus on Severe Suffering’ web resource, with our colleagues at the Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA), Laboratory Animals Veterinary Association (LAVA) and the Institute of Animal Technology (IAT). We all share the aim of reducing suffering and improving the welfare of laboratory animals for as long as their use continues, and we want this resource to help all those involved in the care and use of lab animals to reduce or avoid ‘severe’ suffering.
Whatever your role and wherever you are in the world, we hope that this resource will inform, guide and inspire you. Many of the principles – like the Roadmap – apply to any level of severity, so you can use them to apply refinement in general and feed into your establishment’s Culture of Care. Please use these pages, share them with colleagues and tell us what you achieve.