Painfully slow decline in animal testing exposes a government dragging its feet

New Home Office statistics have laid bare the true extent of our government’s broken promises when it comes to animal testing and animal rights.

Researchers in UK laboratories carried out scientific procedures on animals 2.5 million times in 2025. This is a pathetic 4% decrease from 2024, revealing a government that is failing to meet the expectations of the public it supposedly serves.

Despite releasing the Replacing animals in Science strategy in November 2025, the state has still condemned millions of animals to suffer disgusting and painful procedures.

We need to transition to modern, humane scientific methods of testing. Now.

Animal testing per species

The data shows a horrifying trend for certain species, with the torture having increased for so many.

Use of animals by species in 2025, compared with 2024:

• Mice – 1,776,506 (-5%)
• Rats – 126,500 (-16%)
• Horses – 12,101 (+5%)
• Rabbits – 5,291 (-15%)
• Dogs – 2,889 (+ 9%)
• Monkeys – 2,236 (+15%)
• Guinea pigs – 1,676 (-38%)
• Cats – 91 (+11%)

Why the hell are we experimenting on any of these poor creatures?! And where has this 4% decrease you might ask?

The decline only happened because labs have reduced testing on the most common species such as mice and rats. This is alongside a 22% drop in regulatory testing.

Seems like a good thing doesn’t it? But these small creatures still remain the most abused as 1.8 million mice and 126,500 rats were tortured in 2025.

And to top it all off, needless, curiosity-driven research accounted for 54% of all experiments. Therefore, more hundreds of thousands of animals suffered just to satiate scientific curiosity, rather than to develop lifesaving treatments.

A nation of animal lovers? Far from it, based on the actions of our government.

Broken promises and more bull

Our country’s slow progress is totally and utterly unacceptable. Approved, non-animal replacements exist for a reason!

Cruelty Free International currently maintains a Replace Animal Tests (RAT) list that shines a light on tests still being performed in the UK which have validated, humane alternatives. That means no more sentient beings locked in cages and tortured to death. Ending these specific tests alone could save more than 80,000 animals a year.

Six months after the state published its transition strategy, this progress remains ridiculously slow. Dr Emma Grange, director of science and regulatory affairs at Cruelty Free international, said:

With 2.54 million uses of animals in British laboratories in 2025, a meagre 4% decrease from 2024, the rate of decline remains painfully slow. We ask that the government now starts to show the sort of bold leadership and ambition promised in its strategy…”

It’s a hard ask from Labour, let’s be honest. It’s not exactly known for following through with pretty much anything.

Whoever our new prime minister is, they need to show some spine and push forward the transition to only use non-animal specific methods.

The UK public wants animal testing to end. It’s time for the government to stop dragging its heels and finally ban these painful experiments.

We’re a nation of animal lovers and it’s way past time that the government reflected that.

Featured images via Pinterest 

By Antifabot