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In 2006, China issued the Guidelines on the Humane Treatment of Laboratory Animals. These guidelines mention, for the first time in China's formal policy and regulations, the words "animal welfare." This regulation was issued in addition to other laboratory animal-related policies in China like the 1988 Statute on the Administration of Laboratory Animals, 1997 Laboratory Animal Development Program for the Ninth Five-Year Plan, the 2005 Guidelines on Beijing Municipality on the Review of Welfare and Ethics of Laboratory Animals. Unlike the 1988 Statute on the Administration of Laboratory Animals which focuses solely on controlling the quality of the laboratory animals being tested on, the Guidelines on the Humane Treatment of Laboratory Animals officially expands into the realm of animal welfare and protection through addressing problems in procurement, husbandry, environmental conditions, experimental usage and transportation.

A particular focus that the Guidelines on the Humane Treatment of Laboratory Animals has is on animal suffering. Concerning the level of pain that laboratory animals feel during the experimental process, the Guidelines require that pain and panic be inflicted as little as possible. Pain relief medication and anesthesia must be prescribed to laboratory animals undergoing procedures like surgery and dissection. When the animal is deemed unusable for further testing, the Guidelines also require that the lives of the animals be ended humanely.

Many scientists like Jianfei Wang, the director of laboratory animal science at GlaxoSmithKline Research and Development Center in China, maintain that China has made considerable progress to work towards animal protection and welfare, especially considering that the concept of laboratory animal science did not exist in China until the late twentieth century. According to Wang, international collaboration with research institutions have brought animal welfare concepts from abroad back to China. Additionally, as China gets more involved in international trade, there are many pressures placed on China throughout the world over concerns for animal welfare and protection. For example, organizations like PETA were instrumental with stopping a shipment research primates from Chinese laboratories to Los Angeles, the U.S.'s largest port of entry for research primates. Major airlines such as Air China and China Eastern Airlines have also joined in on the global challenge of stopping laboratory tests on animals like primates and rodents. China's entry in the World Trade Organization could also be stymied if adequate progress is not made towards pressuring Chinese laboratories to follow international regulations for laboratory animal welfare.

China has also felt domestic pressures to give laboratory animals more protection. In 2007, a photo taken by Li Feng depicting captive primates in cages waiting to be tested on won prizes in the economy and science categories in the China International Press Photo Contest. Such glimpses into the conditions that laboratory animals in China are subject to have sparked outrage amongst the Chinese population and cries for further reform.

Despite foreign and domestic pressures, the country still uses, on average, about 12 to 13 million laboratory animals every year, with many being used towards making advances in drug and medical discovery. Because international research institutions and companies face strict laws regarding ensuring the welfare of laboratory animals, many of these institutions and companies look towards China as the place to outsource animal testing and as a market for buying research animals.

However, some animals are also being tested for cosmetic purposes as well.