Cambridge University found to carry out highest number of animal procedures

University of Cambridge has been found to be the UK scientific organisation which carries out the highest number of procedures on animals for the purposes of “medical, veterinary and scientific research”.

According to statistics released on the 11th September, the university carried out 223,787 procedures in 2023.

These statistics represent a marked increase since 2019, in which Cambridge carried out 114,640 procedures on animals. 97 per cent of procedures were carried out on mice or zebrafish, but the university’s website explains that it also uses a “small number of other animals”, including xenopus frogs, rats, sheep and marmosets.

Pigs have also been used in scientific research by the university (via YouTube)

While 97,556 of procedures in 2023 were classified as “mild”, meaning “animals are likely to experience short term mild pain, suffering or distress”, and 38,794 as “moderate”, meaning “animals are likely to experience short term moderate pain, suffering or distress”, there were a number of procedures that were classified as being more severe.

In fact, 1,535 procedures were classified as “non-recovery”, which are those “from which the animal shall not recover consciousness.”

The university’s website states that “research using animals is essential for understanding the biology that underpins health and disease” and that “animal research is only undertaken when there is no alternative.”

The University of Cambridge is a signatory of the Concordat on Openness, along with around 125 other UK-based scientific organisations, which commits its signatories to “enhance their communication about their use of animals in research.”

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Concerns about the university’s use of animal testing have been raised in the past, including by the Animal Aid organisation, which raised concerns in February of this year about the 206,992 animal procedures carried out by the university in 2022. In particular, Animal Aid highlighted a case in which the university had drilled into the skulls of 11 marmosets and injected a substance “into their brains.”

Jessamy Korotoga, Head of Campaigns at Animal Aid, stated that “we believe it is time to challenge all universities’ use of animals in experiments”, with the organisation launching its ‘Universities Challenged’ campaign in 2023, which aims to “help students choose universities that do not conduct animal experiments.”

The University of Cambridge was approached for comment. 

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Feature image credits: Youtube