The Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 (39 & 40 Vict. c. 77) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which set limits on the practice of, and instituted a licensing system for animal experimentation, amending the Cruelty to Animals Act 1849 (12 & 13 Vict. c. 92).
Provisions
The act stipulated that researchers would be prosecuted for cruelty, unless they conformed to its provisions, which required that an experiment involving the infliction of pain upon animals to only be conducted when "the proposed experiments are absolutely necessary for the due instruction of the persons [so they may go on to use the instruction] to save or prolong human life".
Furthermore, the act stated that should the experiment occur, the animal must be anaesthetised, used only once (though several procedures regarded as part of the same experiment were permitted), and killed as soon as the study was over.Kean, Hilda. "An Exploration of the Sculptures of Greyfriars Bobby, Edinburgh, Scotland, and the Brown Dog, Battersea, South London, England," Society and Animals, Volume 1, Number 4, December 2003, pp. 353–373. Prosecutions under the act could be made only with the approval of the Secretary of State.Mason, Peter. The Brown Dog Affair. Two Sevens Publishing, 1997, p.10 The Act was applicable to vertebrate animals only.
History and controversy Opposition to vivisection had led the government to set up a Royal Commission on Vivisection in July 1875, which recommended that legislation be enacted to control it. This Act was created as a result, but was criticized by National Anti-Vivisection Society – itself founded in December 1875 – as "infamous but well-named," in that it made no provision for public accountability of licensing decisions. The law remained in force for 110 years, until it was replaced by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986,"The history of the NAVS" , retrieved 4 December 2007. which is the subject of similar criticism from the modern animal rights movement.
Such was the perceived weakness of the act, that vivisection opponents chose, on at least one occasion – the Brown Dog affair – to incite a libel suit rather than seek a prosecution under the act.
Penalties The act stated, in part:
Subsequent developments The whole act was repealed by section 27(1) of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
See also Wild Animals in Captivity Protection Act 1900 Animal welfare in the United Kingdom
Notes
References Halsbury's Statutes of England. (The Complete Statutes of England). First Edition. Butterworth and Co (Publishers) Ltd. 1929. Volume 1: . Page 367. Third Edition. 1968. Volume 2. Page 222. Cumulative Supplement. Part 1. 1985. Paragraph for page 221. John Mounteney Lely. The Statutes of Practical Utility. (Chitty's Statutes). Fifth Edition. Sweet and Maxwell. Stevens and Sons. London. 1894. Volume 1. Title "Animals". Pages 12 to 17. Paterson, William. The Practical Statutes of the Session 1876. Pages 245 to 255. Coleridge, Bernard. Commentary on the Cruelty to Animals Act, 1876. Victoria Street and International Society for the Protection of Animals from Vivisection. Victoria Street London. 1896. Google Books. Reprinted from the Zoophillist as chapter 23 of "The Anti-vivisection Question". Coleridge, Stephen, "The Administration of the Cruelty to Animals Act of 1876" (1900) 67 Fortnightly Review 392 (No 399, March) "The First Conviction under the Vivisection Act" (1876) 61 The Law Times 382 (7 October)
External links