English: The visualization represents the number of animals in research facilities in the U.S. reported as being used or held for research, testing, teaching, experimentation, and/or surgery in 2021.

The aim of the visualization is comparing the most common species used for research and the pain level involved in the procedures. The different color and the position in the y-axis categorizes a different pain level, while the dimension of the circle is proportional to the number of animals, as shown in the legend.

Each research facility of the U.S. is required to send an annual report of the animals it uses for research purposes, as established in the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). Research facilities sometimes include additional data on their annual reports that is not required under the Animal Welfare Act, such as data about rats of the genus rattus, mice of the genus mus, and birds bred for use in research, animals used in excluded field studies, animals used in clinical trials in the context of a veterinary client relationship, and reptiles, fish, or other animals that are not covered by the AWA. The 2021 data is the most recent, since USDA-APHIS Animal Care provides Annual Usage Summaries for the previous three fiscal years.

Original graph created using RawGraphs.io, then edited by own user.

Source: Research Facility Annual Usage Summary Report (2024), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. link to the dataset: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/awa/research-facility-report/annual-summary

Data were summed by own user, and major categories of animals were created from the dataset.