Animal Welfare Act Timeline

Sports Illustrated* reports the story of Pepper, the Lakavage family's Dalmatian that was stolen from their farm in Pennsylvania in June 1965 and sold to a research facility in New York City. Pepper's theft and eventual death prompts Rep. Joseph Resnick (D-NY) to introduce a Laboratory Animal Welfare bill in Congress, an early milestone in the history of the Animal Welfare Act.

*Phinizy, C. (1965, November 29). The Lost Pets That Stray to the Labs. Sports Illustrated. https://perma.cc/8NW7-2BMJ. Accessed 3 April 2024.

Rep. Resnick's efforts lead to the passage of the (Laboratory) Animal Welfare Act, of which the stated intention is "…to protect the owners of dogs and cats from theft of such pets, to prevent the sale or use of dogs and cats which have been stolen, and to insure that certain animals intended for use in research facilities are provided humane care and treatment…". The new law establishes licensing for dog and cat dealers and authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to regulate the transport, sale, and handling of animals pre-research or “for other purposes”. The Act covers six species: dogs, cats, nonhuman primates, guinea pigs, hamsters, and rabbits. 

This amended law expands the Animal Welfare Act's protections to cover all warm-blooded animals used for research, testing, experimentation, or exhibition, except horses and farm animals not used for research. Additionally, the Act now regulates more research facilities to protect animals throughout the entire research process and exhibitors, such as carnivals, circuses, and zoos.

The 1976 amendments expand the definition of "carrier" to include “any airline, railroad, motor carrier, shipping line, or other enterprise” transporting animals for hire and establish shipping standards for transported animals. The law now also covers animal fighting ventures by outlawing interstate and foreign transport of animals in these ventures.

The 1985 amendment introduces new requirements for enriching the lives of nonhuman primates, providing exercise for dogs, considering alternatives to painful or distressful procedures, establishing Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUCs), and creating an information service at the National Agricultural Library (now the Animal Welfare Information Center, AWIC).

This new amendment to the Animal Welfare Act adds a requirement that all dogs and cats held at animal shelters must be kept there for at least 5 days before being sold to a research facility.

The 2002 amendment limits the definition of "animal" in the Animal Welfare Act to exclude “birds, rats of the genus Rattus, and mice of the genus Mus, bred for use in research.”

The 2007 amendments prohibit the attachment of knives, gaffes, or any other sharp instruments to bird’s legs during animal fighting. Criminal penalties for fighting ventures are also increased.

The 2008 amendments stipulate that dogs imported into the United States must be at least six months of age, in good health, and have all necessary vaccinations. They also strengthen dog fighting prohibitions and increase fines for violating the Animal Welfare Act.

In response to concerns of small-scale exhibitors, Congress amends the Animal Welfare Act to exclude owners of common, domesticated household pets who derive less than a substantial portion of their income for exhibiting an animal that exclusively resides at their residence from licensing requirements.

The 2019 amendments to the Animal Welfare Act prohibit animal fighting in U.S. territories such as Guam, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands, where animal fighting was previously permitted by local laws.