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CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - LONG TITLE

An Act to amend the Law relating to Cruelty to Animals.{1}
[15th August 1876]
Preamble rep. by SLR 1894

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 1
Short title.

1. This Act may be cited for all purposes as the Cruelty to
Animals Act, 1876.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 2
Prohibition of painful experiments on animals.

2. A person shall not perform on a living animal any experiment
calculated to give pain, except subject to the restrictions imposed
by this Act. Any person performing or taking part in performing any
experiment calculated to give pain, in contravention of this Act,
shall be guilty of an offence against this Act, and shall, if it
be the first offence, be liable to a penalty not exceeding fifty
pounds, and if it be the second or any subsequent offence, be
liable, at the discretion of the court by which he is tried, to a
penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds or to imprisonment for a
period not exceeding three months.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 3
General restrictions as to performance of painful experiments on
animals.

3. The following restrictions are imposed by this Act with respect
to the performance on any living animal of an experiment calculated
to give pain, that is to say,

(1)The experiment must be performed with a view to the advancement
by new discovery of physiological knowledge or of knowledge which
will be useful for saving or prolonging life or alleviating
suffering; and

(2)The experiment must be performed by a person holding such licence
from the Secretary of State, as is in this Act mentioned, and in
the case of a person holding such conditional licence as is
herein-after mentioned, or of experiments performed for the purpose
of instruction in a registered place; and

(3)The animal must during the whole of the experiment be under the
influence of some an'sthetic of sufficient power to prevent the
animal feeling pain; and

(4)The animal must, if the pain is likely to continue after the
effect of the an'sthetic has ceased, or if any serious injury has
been inflicted on the animal, be killed before it recovers from the
influence of the an'sthetic which has been administered; and

(5)The experiment shall not be performed as an illustration of
lectures in medical schools, hospitals, colleges, or elsewhere; and

(6)The experiment shall not be performed for the purpose of
attaining manual skill.

Provided as follows; that is to say,

(1)Experiments may be performed under the foregoing provisions as to
the use of an'sthetics by a person giving illustrations of lectures
in medical schools, hospitals, or colleges, or elsewhere, on such
certificate being given as in this Act mentioned, that the proposed
experiments are absolutely necessary for the due instruction of the
persons to whom such lectures are given with a view to their
acquiring physiological knowledge or knowledge which will be useful
to them for saving or prolonging life or alleviating suffering; and

(2)Experiments may be performed without an'sthetics on such
certificate being given as in this Act mentioned, that insensibility
cannot be produced without necessarily frustrating the object of such
experiments; and

(3)Experiments may be performed without the person who performed such
experiments being under an obligation to cause the animal on which
any such experiment is performed to be killed before it recovers
from the influence of the an'sthetic on such certificate being given
as in this Act mentioned, that the so killing the animal would
necessarily frustrate the object of the experiment, and provided that
the animal be killed as soon as such object has been attained; and

(4)Experiments may be performed not directly for the advancement by
new discovery of physiological knowledge, or of knowledge which will
be useful for saving or prolonging life or alleviating suffering,
but for the purpose of testing a particular former discovery alleged
to have been made for the advancement of such knowledge as last
aforesaid, on such certificate being given as is in this Act
mentioned, that such testing is absolutely necessary for the
effectual advancement of such knowledge.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 4
Use of urari as an an'sthetic prohibited.

4. The substance known as urari or curare shall not for the
purposes of this Act be deemed to be an an'sthetic.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 5
Special restrictions on painful experiments on dogs, cats, &c.

5. Notwithstanding anything in this Act contained, an experiment
calculated to give pain shall not be performed without an'sthetics
on a dog or cat, except on such certificate being given as in
this Act mentioned, stating, in addition to the statements
herein-before required to be made in such certificate that for
reasons specified in the certificate the object of the experiment
will be necessarily frustrated unless it is performed on an animal
similar in constitution and habits to a cat or dog, and no other
animal is available for such experiment; and an experiment calculated
to give pain shall not be performed on any horse, ass, or mule
except on such certificate being given as in this Act mentioned
that the object of the experiment will be necessarily frustrated
unless it is performed on a horse, ass, or mule, and that no
other animal is available for such experiment.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 6
Absolute prohibition of public exhibition of painful experiments.

6. Any exhibition to the general public, whether admitted on payment
of money or gratuitously, of experiments on living animals calculated
to give pain shall be illegal.

Any person performing or aiding in performing such experiments shall
be deemed to be guilty of an offence against this Act, and shall
if it be the first offence, be liable to a penalty not exceeding
fifty pounds, and if it be the second or any subsequent offence,
be liable, at the discretion of the court by which he is tried,
to a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds or to imprisonment
for a period not exceeding three months.

And any person publishing any notice of any such intended exhibition
by advertisement in a newspaper, placard, or otherwise shall be
liable to a penalty not exceeding one pound.

A person punished for an offence under this section shall not for
the same offence be punishable under any other section of this Act.

Registry of place for performance of experiments.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 7

7. The Secretary of State may insert, as a condition of granting
any license, a provision in such license that the place in which
any experiment is to be performed by the licensee is to be
registered in such manner as the Secretary of State may from time
to time by any general or special order direct: Provided that every
place for the performance of experiments for the purpose of
instruction under this Act shall be approved by the Secretary of
State, and shall be registered in such manner as he may from time
to time by any general or special order direct.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 8
License by Secretary of State.

8. The Secretary of State may license any person whom he may think
qualified to hold a license to perform experiments under this Act.
A license granted by him may be for such time as he may think
fit, and may be revoked by him on his being satisfied that such
license ought to be revoked. There may be annexed to such license
any conditions which the Secretary of State may think expedient for
the purpose of better carrying into effect the objects of this Act,
but not inconsistent with the provisions thereof.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 9
Reports to Secretary of State.

9. The Secretary of State may direct any person performing
experiments under this Act from time to time to make such reports
to him of the result of such experiments, in such form and with
such details as he may require.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 10
Inspection by Secretary of State.

10. The Secretary of State shall cause all registered places to be
from time to time visited by inspectors for the purpose of securing
a compliance with the provisions of this Act, and the Secretary of
State may, with the assent of the Treasury as to number, appoint
any special inspectors, or may from time to time assign the duties
of any such inspectors to such officers in the employment of the
Government, who may be willing to accept the same, as he may think
fit, either permanently or temporarily.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 11
Certificate of scientific bodies for exceptions to general
regulations.

11. Any application for a license under this Act and a certificate
given as in this Act mentioned must be signed by one or more of
the following persons; that is to say,

The President of the Royal Society;

The President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh;

The President of Royal Irish Academy;

The Presidents of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons in London,
Edinburgh, or Dublin;

The Presidents of the Royal Colleges of Physicians in London,
Edinburgh, or Dublin;

The President of the General Medical Council;

The President of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow;

The President of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, or the
President of the Royal Veterinary College, London, but in the case
only of an experiment to be performed under an'sthetics with a view
to the advancement by new discovery of veterinary science;

Provided that where any person applying for a certificate under this
Act is himself one of the persons authorised to sign such
certificate, the signature of some other of such persons shall be
substituted for the signature of the applicant.

A certificate under this section may be given for such time or for
such series of experiments as the person or persons signing the
certificate may think expedient.

A copy of any certificate under this section shall be forwarded by
the applicant to the Secretary of State, but shall not be available
until one week after a copy has been so forwarded.

The Secretary of State may at any time disallow or suspend any
certificate given under this section.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 12
Power of judge to grant license for experiment when necessary in
criminal case.

12. The powers conferred by this Act of granting a licence or
giving a certificate for the performance of experiments on living
animals may be exercised by an order in writing under the hand of
any judge ... of any of the superior courts in Ireland, including
any court to which the jurisdiction of such last-mentioned courts
may be transferred, in a case where such judge is satisfied that
it is essential for the purposes of justice in a criminal case to
make any such experiment.

Entry on warrant by justice.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 13

13. A justice of the peace, on information on oath that there is
reasonable ground to believe that experiments in contravention of
this Act are being performed by an unlicensed person in any place
not registered under this Act may issue his warrant authorising any
officer or constable of police to enter and search such place, and
to take the names and addresses of the persons found therein.

Any person who refuses admission on demand to a police officer or
constable so authorised, or obstructs such officer or constable in
the execution of his duty under this section, or who refuses on
demand to disclose his name or address, or gives a false name or
address, shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 18
Prosecution of offences in Ireland.

18. In Ireland, offences against this Act may be prosecuted and
penalties under this Act recovered in a summary manner, subject and
according to the provisions with respect to the prosecution of
offences, the recovery of penalties, and to appeal of the Petty
Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851, and any Act amending the same ... All
penalties recovered under this Act shall be applied in manner
directed by the Fines (Ireland) Act, 1851, and any Act amending the
same.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 19
Power of offender in Ireland to elect to be tried on indictment,
and not by summary jurisdiction.

19. In Ireland, where a person is accused before a court of
summary jurisdiction of any offence against this Act in respect of
which a penalty of more than five pounds can be imposed, the
accused may, on appearing before the court of summary jurisdiction,
declare that he objects to being tried for such offence by a court
of summary jurisdiction, and thereupon the court of summary
jurisdiction may deal with the case in all respects as if the
accused were charged with an indictable offence and not an offence
punishable on summary conviction, and the offence may be prosecuted
on indictment accordingly.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 20
Interpretation.

20. In the application of this Act to Ireland the term "the
Secretary of State" shall be construed to mean the Chief Secretary.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 21
Prosecution only with leave of Secretary of State.

21. A prosecution under this Act against a licensed person shall
not be instituted except with the assent in writing of the
Secretary of State.

CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT 1876 - SECT 22
Not to apply to invertebrate animals.

22. This Act shall not apply to invertebrate animals.