German Animal Research Statistics

In accordance with EU guidelines the Bundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft produces annual statistics showing the number of procedures on animals in German research. This includes many types of research including basic and translations studies, animal testing for safety, and the breeding of GM mouse lines. EU guidelines demand that all vertebrates and Cephalopoda be counted, however other invertebrates, such as fruit flies or nematode worms, are not.

In 2018, there was approximately 2.1 million procedures on animals, excluding re-use. Since 2014, the figures count the number of animal procedures completed in the current year (previously it was the number started). Since some animals may be used more than once (usually larger species), there is a difference of 1-2% between the number of procedures and number of animals.

*Excludes 40,480 animals that were re-used in procedures. Click to enlarge.

Germany’s statistical releases also include a second set of data which includes animals killed solely for tissues or organs (under §4(3) of the Animal Protection Act). Since the animals undergo no experimental procedure, they are not included in the above statistics. Prior to EU Directive 2010/63, Germany counted only numbers of animals, including those killed for tissues and organs (without other procedures); this data is still collected but is not broken down in the detail provided by the newer procedure-oriented statistics. We can see both data below.

Click to enlarge.

Rodents (mainly mice and rats), fish, birds and rabbits account for 98% of the animals used in research, with mice being by far the most common species (72% of total procedures). Dogs, cats and primates together accounted for less than 0.34% of all animals used.

Click to enlarge.

EU guidelines also demand that countries retrospectively report the suffering of animals after the procedures. The latest report (Table 5) showed that 61% of procedures were classed as mild, 27% as moderate, 6% as severe, and 6% as non-recovery, where an animal is anesthetized for surgery, and then not woken up afterward.

*These data include animals 40,480 animals that were re-used in procedures. Click to enlarge.

Data Sources: