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Since the fifth century BC, there have been reports of scientific experiments involving animals, but their use has become more frequent since the nineteenth century. Animal welfare would then comprise only stress reduction, animal suffering not being taken into account for many years.1 In 1824, the first animal protection society, the Society for the Preservation of Cruelty to Animals, was established in England to promote animal comfort, thereby helping to prevent cases of cruelty.2 In 1959, Russell and Burch described the principle of the “3 Rs” – Replace, Reduce, Refine – for research using animals. This principle recommended substituting conscious living vertebrates with phylogenetically more primitive life forms, such as the more degenerate metazoan microorganisms and endoparasites, or with computerized simulations. The reduction principle advised that research and procedures should be carried out with as few animals as possible, while the refinement principle suggested that the techniques used should decrease their pain and distress at all stages of the study.2,3 In Brazil, Law No. 11,794/08, also known as the Arouca Law, regulates the use of animals in scientific experiments. Chapter IV of the Arouca Law describes the conditions for breeding and using these animals in teaching and scientific research, such as the use of sedation, analgesia or anesthesia in any experiment that may cause pain or distress. It also recommends performing euthanasia whenever the experiment is terminated or at any of its phases when there is intense suffering of the animal.4 The Arouca Law created Brazil’s National Council for the Control of Animal Experimentation (Concea, Portuguese acronym for Conselho Nacional de Controle de Experimentação Animal), assigned to draw up the guidelines and enforce compliance with them regarding the humane use of animals in scientific research. It also set up the Ethics Commissions on the Use of Animals (CEUAs, Portuguese acronym for Comissões de Ética no Uso de Animais) as an indispensable condition for the accreditation of teaching and research institutions that use animals in scientific experiments.4 The purpose of using animals in teaching is to illustrate or carry out procedures that are already known, unlike their use in research, which is aimed at contributing to developing new drugs or treatments, in addition to clarifying certain biological phenomena.5 Many advances in health sciences were possible thanks to scientific experiments conducted on animals. However, actions from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) towards protecting and preserving animals are still frequent. Some scientists argue that the predictive value of this type of research is often low and may lead to biased or imprecise results, which would result in unnecessary suffering to the animals and clinically irrelevant data.6 It can therefore be stated that the practice of animal experimentation is considered a widespread activity in the scientific environment. Nevertheless, it has provoked public reactions, and this practice has been intensely debated both in society and academic institutions.5,6 Our study was aimed at undertaking a narrative review on ethics and welfare in animal experimentation, as well as discussing alternative methods to its use.

Animal experimentation: A look into ethics, welfare and alternative methods