Analysis reveals discrepancy in the assessment of animal suffering in animal experiments

The study found that two thirds of animal experiments that would be classified as "severe" under EU criteria had been assigned a lower severity classification by German researchers. To reach this conclusion, researchers analyzed 4,780 Non-Technical Project Summaries (NTSs) from 2014 and 2015, published in the AnimalTestInfo database on animal research projects in Germany. The NTSs were searched for keywords that, according to an EU list of indicators, suggest severe pain, suffering, distress, or lasting harm. Using these criteria, 235 NTSs were identified. However, only 83 of these had been classified as "severe." The remaining 152 (65%) had been classified as "moderate" or "mild," indicating that their severity had been underestimated.

Reference

Strittmatter S. Undervaluation of suffering of experimental animals in Germany. ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation 2017; 34:435–438