World Laboratory Animal Day | Spring light reflects on the silent guardians of life
2026/04/27
In the warmth of spring flowers, we extend our gratitude to every experimental animal for your silent dedication. May every sacrifice be treated with gentleness, and may every life be respected and cherished. Spring has its end, and love has its echo. We pay tribute to all the silent guardians of life!
Experimental Animal Day
April 24th of each year is designated as "World Laboratory Animal Day", an international commemorative day initiated by the UK's National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS) in 1979 and recognized by the United Nations. The establishment of "World Laboratory Animal Day" aims to advocate for the scientific and humane conduct of animal experiments, remember the immense contributions and sacrifices made by laboratory animals to human health, respect and treat laboratory animals with kindness, uphold the welfare and ethics of laboratory animals, follow the 3R (replacement, reduction, and refinement) principles, and standardize and utilize laboratory animals in a reasonable manner.
3R Principle
Replacement: Advocate the use of non-sentient materials to replace sentient animals. For instance, utilizing histological, embryological, or computational methods to replace whole animal experiments, substituting higher-level animals with lower-level ones, or employing computer simulations.
Reduction: Minimize the number of animals used while ensuring the acquisition of a certain amount and level of accuracy of information, through selecting high-quality animals, improving experimental design, standardizing operational procedures, and so on.
Optimization: Minimize the scope and extent of inhumane procedures when using animals. Optimize the breeding methods and experimental steps to obtain authentic and reliable experimental data under normal animal conditions.