SPCA New Zealand
Animal Advocacy

Position Statements

Training of Personnel

SPCA advocates that all staff who are involved with the care and use of animals in research, testing, or teaching must receive appropriate, rigorous, and ongoing animal handling, husbandry, and welfare training.

Our organisation advocates that training must include techniques for recognising and alleviating pain and welfare harms (including analgesia, anaesthesia, and humane killing), and the ethical consideration of animal use. All staff interacting with animals must be skilled at applying low-stress handling techniques to minimise negative animal welfare impacts during animal movement. Personnel responsible for designing procedures and programs must receive training on using non-animal alternatives, reducing the number of animals used, and refining processes to minimise the negative impacts to animal welfare for all animals used in research, testing, and teaching.

All animal technicians should participate in professional development programme at diploma or certificate level in relation to the care and use of animals in research, testing, and teaching as offered through the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS).

All personnel involved in RTT should be provided opportunity the complete the ANZCCART Compass training programme and other institutional based training to maintain and enhance knowledge and skills related to use of animals in research, testing, and teaching.

All research, testing and teaching facilities must ensure that an appropriate number of people be nominated to have overall responsibility for the day-to-day care of the animals in their establishment.

Our organisation advocates that a veterinarian with appropriate expertise and experience must be appointed to and regularly attend each facility to monitor the health and welfare status of all animals. In addition to this, staff should have access to accurate information and the resources necessary to provide high quality of care for the species concerned.

All institutions that use animals in research, testing, and teaching should participate in intra and inter-institutional activities to help ensure continuous improvement in animal welfare.

SPCA advocates for institutions to seek voluntary accreditation from organisations such as the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC International) to promote continuous improvements in the quality of care and oversight of the welfare of animals used in research, testing, and teaching.

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