How guinea pigs have been used in NZ
Lovingly called cavies by their fans (from their Latin name Cavia porcellus), guinea pigs are known as easy-to-care-for companion animals. Sadly, these small, cute rodents are used for science in NZ, where they rarely make it out alive.
In 2021, 3,431 guinea pigs were used for science in NZ. Most (97%) were killed.
Sad fact: The percentage of guinea pigs who were killed after or during use has never been below 91% since 2010.1
Guinea pigs in NZ have been used for:
- Testing animal vaccines.
- The production of biological agents.
- Veterinary Research, including research examining:
- reactions to anaesthesia.
- Drug research.
- Medical research, including trying to model:
- pre-term labour and birth.
- dietary influence on foetus development and milk composition.
- cochlear/vestibular (sense of hearing and balance) and ocular (sense of vision) healing and surgery techniques.
- secondary infections.
- pupil assessment (to determine damage to the nervous system).
- Teaching.
- Basic biological research, including examining:
- how intestines move.
- heart function.
- spermatogenesis.
- eye development.
- muscle development.
Discover real-life examples of how guinea pigs have been used in NZ below.
High Impact Studies with guinea pigs
Every year, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) reports on projects that caused a lot of harm or stress to animals that were very severe, very long in duration, or both. These cases are rated high (grade D) or very high impact (grade E).
In 2021, 1,255 guinea pigs were rated this way:
- 786 guinea pigs were graded D during a trial using batch-release testing for animal vaccines.
- 469 guinea pigs were graded E during a trial using batch-release testing for animal vaccines.
In 2020, 1,216 guinea pigs were rated this way:
- 731 guinea pigs were graded D for use in batch testing of animal vaccines as a regulatory requirement to demonstrate potency.
- 485 guinea pigs were graded E for use in veterinary research, production and evaluation of biological reagents.
In 2019, 1,321 guinea pigs were rated this way:
- Guinea pigs were used in veterinary research and production & evaluation of biological reagents, as well as in batch-release testing for animal vaccines. This is a regulatory requirement to demonstrate potency.
It’s left up to the institutes using the animals to grade the level of impact they experience during a project. Making this grading system highly flawed and subjective. Learn more about this grading system here.
HOW GUINEA PIGS WERE USED FOR SCIENCE IN NZ: |
Purpose |
2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
Basic biological research |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Veterinary research |
16 | 39 | 99 | 93 |
Teaching |
78 | 68 | 25 | 37 |
Animal husbandry research |
0 | 0 | 0 | 1,247 |
Medical research |
292 | 693 | 109 | 373 |
Testing |
1,926 | 1,608 | 1,402 | 1,681 |
Environmental management |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Species conservation |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Production of biological agents |
92 | 151 | 109 | 0 |
Development of alternatives |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Producing offspring with compromised welfare |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other |
0 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
Total number used |
2,404 | 2,565 | 1,744 | 3,431 |
Animals killed |
2,256 | 2,336 | 1,719 | 3,336 |
Animals killed that were bred but not used |
NA | 1,977 | 1,945 | 2,218 |
Total number including those bred and killed but weren't used |
NA | 4,542 | 3,689 | 5,649 |
The figures in the table above were provided by MPI.
Note: In 2020, more guinea pigs were bred for science and ended up just being killed as “excess” than were actually used.
Where guinea pigs have been used
Private companies, universities, and polytechnics use Guinea pigs for research, testing and teaching purposes. Find out more.
Where guinea pigs have been sourced from
Most guinea pigs used for science were sourced from breeding units. Many institutions breed the animals they use themselves, but they are also rather easy to obtain from public sources. Find out more.