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| legislation | legislation > Animal Welfare Act > standards
As stated on the USDA-APHIS website, the Animal Welfare Act “requires that minimum standards of care and treatment be provided for certain animals bred for commercial sale, used in research, transported commercially, or exhibited to the public. Individuals who operate facilities using animals in these ways must provide their animals with adequate housing, handling, sanitation, nutrition, water, veterinary care, and protections from extreme weather and temperatures.” Further details of AWA standards are outlined within the Act.
AWA requirements fail to meet modern animal care standards Even in the words of the USDA, animal care and breeding standards are “minimum.” Some AWA care standards, as written, are considered by many to be inadequate for the species and subject to interpretation by breeders and inspectors. One example often cited is cage size. The USDA uses a formula to determine the minimum cage size ("primary enclosure") for each dog at a USDA-licensed facility. The formula measures the dog from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail. To meet AWA standards, all dogs, no matter what breed or size, must have a cage size that is six inches wider and longer than the width and length of the dog. Many people question this standard (six inches) and the USDA's focus on engineering requirements (size of a cage) rather than performance requirements (whether the animal is properly socialized and exercised in order to be both mentally and physically healthy).
Studying the impact of confinement on commercial breeding dogs Scientists have studied large number of dogs kept in kennels. One study, from Raymond Coppinger and Jule Zuccotti, printed in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, questions the emphasis on cage size alone: “Recently, interest has grown in improving the minimum standard kennel, with a goal of bettering the welfare of dogs. Many investigators have studied single parameters of kennel design. What is the optimum temperature, optimum size (square feet per dog), or optimum noise permissible for the kenneled dog? … The very assumption that each kennel parameter has an optimum dimension may be faulty, but, at present, this is what drives the regulation for dogs’ welfare needs. For example, if animals are to be healthy, they should have enough room to exercise, if they want to. Thus, present United States Department of Agriculture standards for exercise require that dogs be provided with the opportunity to exercise. The minimum standard for the opportunity to exercise is to simply double the minimum cell dimensions. Even if the dog never moves, the legal exercise requirement is met.” Minimum AWA standards do not fulfill the physical and mental needs of the animals. A dog or cat’s overall health and well-being does not appear to be the driving force behind the AWA standards or inspections to enforce these standards.
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