ETH Zurich's position
As an institution with a state mandate and responsibility to society, ETH Zurich is committed to considering different perspectives on animal research and to acting as a mediator between them. This includes not only the views, needs and expectations of researchers but also those of the public, the fields of medicine and agriculture, as well as legislators and policymakers.
ETH Zurich believes that experiments that culminate in important knowledge gain are necessary. However, these must comply with the legal regulations, and efforts must be made to reduce animal testing and ensure the best possible care of the animals (the 3R principles: Refine, Reduce, Replace). This view appears to be shared by the Swiss public, external page 79 percent of whom voted against the abolition of animal experiments called for by the Animal Experimentation Ban Initiative in a referendum in 2022.
ETH Zurich is aware of the responsibility that comes with animal research. It aims to ensure that laboratory animals are treated with respect and due care and strives to generate meaningful and relevant research results. Accordingly, ETH Zurich supports the external page ARRIVE guidelines , which are aimed at guaranteeing the full, transparent and reproducible reporting of research involving animals. ETH Zurich has set out principles on animal testing in its policy on animal research.
“ETH researchers who carry out animal experiments are aware of their responsibility to treat animals with respect and to ensure animal welfare.”Christian Wolfrum, Vice President for Research at ETH Zurich
ETH Zurich also welcomes and supports the work of the cantonal veterinary offices, as it does their strict inspections of animal experimentation and animal husbandry licences. The university has its own additional internal control mechanisms in place.
ETH Zurich is a member of the national 3R Competence Centre (external page 3RCC), where it works with other universities, animal welfare associations, the pharmaceutical industry association Interpharma and federal offices to promote the 3Rs at national level. ETH Zurich founded its own ETH 3R Hub in 2024 to further strengthen the promotion of these principles at our university. The hub focuses on the two principles of refining (Refine) and reducing (Reduce) animal testing across different universities. Since replacement (Replace) methods must be precisely tailored to specific research questions, research groups are responsible for this within their own fields. However, depending on the type of research in question, replacement methods are often only possible for some aspects, and animal testing cannot be fully replaced in the foreseeable future.
In addition to promoting the correct handling of laboratory animals and the application of the 3R principles, ETH Zurich as a signatory of external page STAAR (Swiss Transparency Agreement on Animal Research), is committed to open and transparent communication on this topic external page (current STAAR annual report).