Development of a System for Quality Assurance and Refinement of Animal Experiments With Sheeps Based on Objective Sensory Behaviour Parameters
The distress of the animals in current animal experiments is often determined by screening and scoring of health and experimental relevant symptoms, which is carried out by veterinarians and animal caretakers by means of mostly paper-based anaesthesia and/or clinical examination of the individual animal at certain intervals. However, this seems to be deficient, as the legal regulations concerning animal protection and animal welfare, which demand an increased operational self-control on the basis of objective, animal-based indicators, are not fully considered.
The project object is the development of transferable demonstrators of the following products and processes:
1. a measuring device, in particular headbelt integrated radio sensors for the determination of parameters of movement, feeding and rumination behaviour
2. a data processing system for the derivation of animal welfare and animal health-relevant stresses and of animal-related indicators from the measured behavioural parameters
3. a quality management system for automated, data-based assessment of:
a. stress levels of sheep in experimental animal husbandry, especially in animal experiments for experimental surgery (as equivalent and supplement to screening and scoring) according to the legally required 3R principles.
b. the quality of husbandry systems and processes of experimental animal husbandry.
4. an interactive assistance system:
a. for alarming, data control and visualization.
b. to propose measures and their guided and documented implementation.
c. for the preparation of protocols and reports.
Financer
Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie
Duration of project
Start date: 08/2020
End date: 09/2024
Research Areas
Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine, Animal Breeding, Animal Nutrition, Animal Husbandry
Research Areas
Tierwohl
