The following tables provide an overview of the species of animals, and their numbers, used for scientific purposes at Münster University from 2019 up to 2023. This is broken down into the total number of laboratory animals used for scientific purposes and the total number of animals killed for scientific purposes.
The figures shown comprise only data relating to vertebrates and include the species, and their numbers, of animals which were used in accordance with § 7, Section 2 of the German Animal Welfare Act, as well as the species and numbers of animals killed for scientific purposes in accordance with § 4, Section 3 of the same Act. The data come from the Faculty of Medicine (Faculty 5), the Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy (Faculty 12) and the Faculty of Biology (Faculty 13)
These include the species, and their numbers, of animals which were used as part of a project involving animal testing in accordance with § 7, Section 2 of the German Animal Welfare Act. The number includes all animals which were used as part of a notifiable project, or one requiring approval, which involved animal testing for scientific purposes. In the statutory report to be made annually on animal experimentation, the degree of suffering is recorded to which each individual animal was subjected through being used as part of a project involving animal testing. This degree of suffering can be “mild”, “moderate” or “severe” or, in the case of final experiments, be allocated to the category “No recovery of the vital functions”. The distinction from the killing of animals for scientific purposes in accordance with Section 4 (3) TierSchG is that interventions or treatments were carried out before the animal was killed for scientific purposes or a genetic phenotype is present.
Not all animals which were used as part of a project involving animal testing in accordance with § 7, Section 2 of the Act were killed at the end of the experiment.
These include the species, and the numbers, of animals which were killed for scientific purposes in accordance with § 4, Section 3 of the Animal Welfare Act. This figure includes all animals killed for scientific purposes without prior intervention or treatment or without a genetically modified phenotype. This happens, for example, when organs or cell material need to be used for scientific purposes.
| Species | Numbers under §7 | Numbers under §4 | Total number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mice (Mus musculus) | 19,889 | 15,425 | 35,314 |
| Rats (Rattus norvegicus) | 391 | 368 | 759 |
| Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) | 102 | 0 | 102 |
| Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) | 16 | 0 | 16 |
| Sheep (Ovis aries) | 26 | 0 | 26 |
| Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 7,582 | 0 | 7,582 |
| Other fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus/Three-spined stickleback) | 700 | 0 | 700 |
| Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) | 2 | 199 | 201 |
| Marmosets and tamarins (e.g. Callithrix jacchus) | 0 | 15 | 15 |
| Crab-eating macaque (Macaca fascicularis) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 28,708 | 16,007 | 44,715 |
| Species | Numbers under §7 | Numbers under §4 | Total number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mice (Mus musculus) | 19,655 | 11,547 | 31,202 |
| Rats (Rattus norvegicus) | 309 | 284 | 593 |
| Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) | 155 | 0 | 155 |
| Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) | 19 | 0 | 19 |
| Sheep (Ovis aries) | 16 | 0 | 16 |
| Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 9,540 | 0 | 9,540 |
| Other fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus/Three-spined stickleback) | 70 | 0 | 70 |
| Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) | 2 | 117 | 119 |
| Marmosets and tamarins (e.g. Callithrix jacchus) | 0 | 15 | 15 |
| Crab-eating macaque (Macaca fasciclaris) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 29,767 | 11,963 | 41,730 |
| Species | Numbers under §7 | Numbers under §4 | Total number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mice (Mus musculus) | 15,939 | 14,186 | 30,125 |
| Rats (Rattus norvegicus) | 1,034 | 203 | 1,237 |
| Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) | 39 | 0 | 39 |
| Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) | 17 | 0 | 14 |
| Sheep (Ovis aries) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 6,476 | 0 | 6,476 |
| Other fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus/Three-spined stickleback) | 36 | 0 | 36 |
| Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) | 2 | 107 | 109 |
| Marmosets and tamarins (e.g. Callithrix jacchus) | 0 | 11 | 11 |
| Crab-eating macaque (Macaca fasciclaris) | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Total | 23,547 | 14,507 | 38,054 |
Due changes in the Animal Welfare Experimental Animal Reporting Ordinance, the statistical recording of laboratory animals has been adjusted.
| Species | Numbers under §7 | Numbers under §4 | Total number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mice (Mus musculus) | 13,223 | 32,573 | 45,796 |
| Rats (Rattus norvegicus) | 1,643 | 442 | 2,085 |
| Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) | 37 | 0 | 37 |
| Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) | 43 | 0 | 43 |
| Sheep (Ovis aries) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 7,265 | 4,355 | 11,620 |
| Other fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus/Three-spined stickleback) | 55 | 0 | 55 |
| Other fish (Astyanax mexicanus/Blind cave tetra) | 42 | 0 | 42 |
| Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) | 0 | 120 | 120 |
| Marmosets and tamarins (e.g. Callithrix jacchus) | 0 | 36 | 36 |
| Crab-eating macaque (Macaca fasciclaris) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Axolotl | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Total | 22,309 | 37,528 | 59,837 |
| Species | Numbers under §7 | Numbers under §4 | Total number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mice (Mus musculus) | 12,127 | 22,026 | 34,153 |
| Rats (Rattus norvegicus) | 1,038 | 801 | 1,839 |
| Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) | 113 | 0 | 113 |
| Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) | 25 | 0 | 25 |
| Sheep (Ovis aries) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 3,616 | 501 | 4,117 |
| Other fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus/Three-spined stickleback) | 521 | 0 | 521 |
| Other fish (Astyanax mexicanus/Blind cave tetra) | 104 | 0 | 104 |
| Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) | 0 | 72 | 72 |
| Marmosets and tamarins (e.g. Callithrix jacchus) | 0 | 25 | 25 |
| Crab-eating macaque (Macaca fasciclaris) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 17,544 | 23,425 | 40,969 |
The graphics show the species of animals used for scientific purposes at Münster University from 2019 up to 2023. They show the contents of the above tables.
