NCad opinion Rehoming of former laboratory animals

The aim of this opinion by the Netherlands National Committee for the protection of animals used for scientific purposes (NCad) is to guarantee the quality of life of non-human primates (NHPs), dogs and cats that remain alive at the end of an animal procedure. The terms ‘putting up for adoption’ and ‘retiring’ are often used for such situations. In this advisory report we use the term ‘rehoming’, by which we mean that, remaining alive at the end of an animal procedure, an animal is able to spend the rest of its life at a location suitable for its needs without being subjected to any further animal procedure.