The World Day for Laboratory Animals is annually observed across the globe on 24th April. The day is observed as a movement to end the suffering of the animals in laboratories across the globe and replace animal testing with advanced scientific non-animal techniques.
The World Day for Laboratory Animals is associated with the Lab Animal week which has been observed from 20th to 26th April since 1979.
Background:
The World Day for Laboratory Animals was instituted by the British National AntiVivisection Society (NAVS) in 1979.
Why April 24?
The day April 24 was chosen to honour the birth anniversary of Hugh Dowding, the President of NAVS.
Highlights:
The NAVS established the statue of a little brown dog in Battersea Park, London, on 12th December 1985 to commemorate the sufferings of the animals in laboratories across the globe.
Alternate for animal testing:
i.Animal testing can be replaced by one-to-one or a combination of advanced techniques like epidemiological studies of human populations, research into human genetics, stem cell research and other human tissue use.
ii.Databases of known information, sophisticated analytical techniques, computer simulations and modelling, human tissue and 3D cell cultures can be used as the alternate to animal testing in drug development and safety testing.
