Animal Welfare Development in China

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The third Chinese veterinary conference was held in Suzhou, China, from 28 to 30 October ([ 1 ][1]). For the first time at a Chinese national conference, a forum on Animal Welfare Development was included on the schedule. The addition of this topic reflects the growing recognition of the importance of animal welfare issues among the Chinese academic community. At the forum, Chinese veterinarians and international experts agreed that improving animal welfare in China will require the development and enforcement of a national code of animal welfare, and that reference texts and educational materials in Chinese will be needed to standardize teaching and to make the issue broadly accessible. Animal protection and welfare issues are also gaining increasing attention in mainstream Chinese society. Take, for example, the recent public support for banning the practice of medicinal bear farming, which involves repeatedly extracting bile from live, captive animals ([ 2 ][2]). Popular figures are also promoting animal welfare issues: For example, the legendary basketball star Yao Ming is the face of a new WildAid campaign, which is combating the ivory trade by targeting potential consumers ([ 3 ][3]). A suite of other animal advocacy nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) such as the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) ([ 4 ][4]), Animals Asia ([ 5 ][5]), and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) ([ 6 ][6]) also operate within China. Despite this growing awareness, however, China has a long way to go in developing and implementing animal welfare standards at an international level. We offer the following suggestions to facilitate this process. China must develop and enact national animal welfare legislation and policies. Although related legislation has been in preparation for years, there are still only fragmentary professional requirements and no national laws dealing directly with animal welfare. The legislation has been delayed by a range of issues, including the need for measurable animal welfare criteria, and the potential for conflict between policy supporters and commercial interests. These issues must be resolved and the legislation process completed as a matter of urgency, in order to provide a stable basis for the improvement of animal welfare across China. Effective implementation of such legislation will require the establishment of government institutions as a platform for the assessment and monitoring of the welfare of farmed, captive, and pet animals across China. Such institutions will require the participation and cooperation of relevant government departments, the academic community, commercial interests, and consumers. Together, these stakeholders can develop and enforce effective and sustainable animal welfare procedures and standards. To accurately convey the concepts of animal welfare and the need for animal welfare standards, community education will be critical. These activities should be targeted especially to professionals who work closely with animals—veterinaries, animal keepers, and researchers—who, by changing their own behaviors, can influence the behavior of the communities in which they work. Relevant educational materials should also be distributed through collaborations with schools and community groups in an effort to educate and influence the largest possible cross section of society. Animal welfare research in China has been limited, in large part due to a lack of funding. This is in turn partly due to the lack of enforced animal welfare standards for animals-related industries, and also to the perception that introducing animal welfare standards can only negatively affect production and profits. Relevant research should therefore be supported and encouraged. Collaborations among Chinese researchers, NGOs, and the international academic communities will result in the incorporation of the most effective international policies, industry standards, and research into the development of Chinese education programs and standards. 1. [↵][7] The Third Chinese Veterinary Conference ([www.cnvc.org.cn/en][8]). 2. [↵][9] 1. X. Sheng 2. et al ., Nature 484, 455 (2012). [OpenUrl][10][PubMed][11] 3. [↵][12] WildAid, “Yao Ming Heads to Africa to Document Rhino and Elephant Poaching Crisis,” 10 August 2012 ([www.wildaid.org/yaomingblog][13]). 4. [↵][14] World Society for the Protection of Animals, China ([www.wspa.org.cn/][15]). 5. [↵][16] Animals Asia ([www.animalsasia.org][17]). 6. [↵][18] International Fund for Animal Welfare ([www.ifaw.org/china][19]). 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