| Brief
Overview / Significance |
- It is an offence under this Act for a person to carry out an operation on an animal
involving its sensitive tissue or bone structure without the use of anaesthetic sufficient
to prevent its feeling pain.
- Failure to provide such anaesthesia is deemed to be an operation performed without due
care and humanity, which is a specified offence under the Protection
of Animals Act 1911.
- Exceptions include:
- giving first aid in an emergency to save life or relieve pain.
- hollow needle injections or extractions.
- minor procedures which either would not normally be carried out by a veterinary surgeon
or would normally be carried out by a veterinary surgeon without anaesthesia.
- any experiment duly authorised under the Animals
(Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
- N.B. the Removal of Antlers in Velvet (Anaesthetics) Order 1980 requires
that anaesthesia sufficient to prevent pain must be used for the removal of deer antlers
in velvet unless in an emergency to save life or relieve pain, or in the course of any
experiment duly authorised under the Animals
(Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
- These Acts do not apply to birds, fish or reptiles. However operations on
these animals would require anaesthesia in order to fulfil the general requirements of the
Protection of Animals Acts, as
these require an operation to be carried out with due care and humanity and without
unnecessary suffering.
(B142.4.w4, B156.21.w21, B223)
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