octopuses used in laboratories They will have the same protections as monkeys and mice when experiments are conducted on them in the United States. This means that it will be mandatory for American scientists, for example, to provide them. give them sedatives or anesthesia During work where they may cause harm.
Once this directive is approved, the United States will join the still short list of countries and continents that also ensure the welfare of cephalopods in the laboratory. Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland and Norway protect octopuses in scientific research, as does the European UnionIt was actually one of the countries that was ahead of the rest of the planet with a directive issued in 2010. government in 2021 United Kingdom It included cephalopod molluscs such as octopus, squid and cuttlefish in the Animal Welfare Bill, officially recognizing them as “sentient beings”.
Scientifically validated pain
There is a Royal Decree in Spain regulating experiments with octopuses as a result of a European directive. and other cephalopods. The reason why these invertebrate animals are among the animals that need to be protected during experiments in Europe is that there is scientific evidence proving this situation. the ability of these animals to “experience pain, suffering, suffering, and permanent damage.”
In the United States, the situation is not yet that advanced, as cephalopods are not subject to most current animal welfare regulations. However, steps are also being taken here to improve experimental arrangements and therefore the welfare of these animals. That’s why the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued a call for information to help shape recommended guidelines for the conservation of octopuses and squids.
Although there is still much to know about octopuses, Current scientific evidence has already shown that they are intelligent, sensitive, and probably also self-aware.. Also some documentaries, e.g. ‘What did the octopus teach me?‘ (Netflix, 2020) explored the incredible abilities of these cephalopods and showed them as sentient animals capable of interacting with humans.
“Increasing evidence shows that Cephalopods have biological mechanisms necessary to detect pain“They add the document signed by the NIH, which insists that these animals have nociceptors and a central nervous system. “Cephalopods have also been shown to exhibit adaptive learning, change their behavior in response to noxious stimuli, and exhibit mammal-like responses to anesthetics,” they emphasize.
The result of everything researched was this: The nervous system of these animals is very complexTherefore, more research is needed to fully understand them, and studies on octopuses have increased in the country.
Lack of regulation regarding production for consumption
Despite advances in the conservation of these animals, cephalopods intended for human consumption are still not recognized as sentient beings and are therefore denied protection. Neither the European Union nor Spain has specific laws regulating the welfare of octopuses if they are produced for human consumption.. It is a situation that has been highly criticized, especially after the emergence of octopus “farm” projects in our country.
Specifically, the Spanish company Nueva Pescanova has already shown plans to create it. A factory near the port of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where they plan to raise about a million octopuses a year It is consumed as food worldwide. Documents published by various organizations reveal the “cruel” conditions in which the octopuses would be raised, as well as suggested methods for killing them; some of these are as controversial as using ice water down to -3 degrees Celsius.
………..
Contact address of the environmental department:[email protected]