3Rs - search page

AALAS is an association of professionals that advances responsible laboratory animal care and use to benefit people and animals.

Vaccination of animals against disease protects them from suffering. However, this comes with an animal welfare cost - the safety and efficacy of vaccines is assessed in experimental animals and the tests involved can cause significant pain and distress. There is an ethical dilemma in protecting one set of animals at the expense of others but implementation of the 3Rs can help to resolve this. The research animals department works with researchers involved in vaccine testing and regulators to promote the 3Rs in this important area.

Guiding principles on good practice for Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Bodies (2015) (PDF 1.76MB). Developed and published jointly by the RSPCA and the Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA), this resource aims to help in the efficient and effective operation of local animal welfare and ethical review bodies.

TSAR is a tool aimed at providing a transparent view on the status of alternative methods as they progress from purely scientific protocols submitted for eventual validation to being actively used in a regulatory context. This tracking system intends to cover all steps, from the initial submission for validation until final adoption by inclusion in the EU legislation and/or related Guidance Documents, when appropriate.