TOTAL ANIMALS USED: 309,872

A total of 308,872 animals used for research, testing and teaching purposes were reported in 2021, that's 64,350 more than the previous year.

The rolling 3-year average was 290,323, which is an increase of 2,846 from the previous year.

NUMBER OF ANIMALS WHO DIED: 146,362 (47%)

A total of 146,362 animals died or were euthanised during or after manipulations (including animals who were killed for the purpose of using their tissues). This is 47% of the total number of animals used that year. See a breakdown below.

Animals who died or were euthanised during or after manipulations: 121,128.
Animals who were killed for their tissues: 25,234.

Additional animals killed:

In 2021, 178,569 animals that were bred for research, testing or teaching purposes but not used were killed. This included mice, rats, fish, guinea pigs, rabbits, sheep, possums and amphibians.

This is 29,073 more animals than the previous year.

PURPOSES

Animals were used in the following ways in 2021:

Basic biological research: 63,762
Veterinary research: 26,989
Teaching: 41,325
Animal husbandry research: 62,879
Medical research: 17,753
Testing:15,628
Environmental management research: 71,151
Species conservation: 8,003
Other: 1965
Production of biological agents: 255
Development of alternatives: 163
Producing offspring with compromised welfare: 0

TYPES OF ANIMALS

The following categories of animals were used in 2021:

Alpacas/llamas: 40
Amphibia: 408
Birds: 6,711
Cats: 762
Cattle: 57,308
Cephalopods/crustaceans: 5,218
Deer: 3,656
Dogs: 1,719
Fish: 61,861
Goats: 5,639
Guinea pigs: 3,431
Horses/donkeys: 475
Marine mammals: 654
Mice: 48,201
Pigs: 706
Possums: 680
Rabbits: 56,187
Rats: 11,068
Reptiles: 3,580
Sheep: 41,423
Misc. species: 145

ORGANISATION TYPE

The following types of organisations used animals in 2021:

Universities: 72,290
Commercial organisations: 137,447
Crown Research Institutes: 60,295
Other (non-university medical research institutes, zoos/wildlife parks and individuals): 20,737
Government departments: 7,069
Polytechnics and institutes of technology: 9,939
Schools: 2,095

SOURCE

Animals were sourced from the following places in 2021:

Farms: 77,410
Breeding units: 85,598
Captured: 81,930
Commercial sources: 34,459
Public sources: 21,312
Born during project: 8,477
Imported: 686

MORE INFO

The most commonly used species in 2021:

Fish were the most used species in 2021 followed by cattle and rabbits.

Animals used for environmental management

A majority of animals used for this purpose were made up of rabbits. 55,000 rabbits were part of a trial to assess the impact of an experimental formulation containing 1080 in carrot baits.

“OTHER” species used

In 2021, 145 animals were reported in the “other species” category. This group was made up of: