Open Data in Animal Welfare Research

Sharing welfare research data openly accelerates scientific progress and enables independent verification; open data practices in animal welfare science are improving but inconsistent.

Key Facts

Open data policies in academic journals have increased welfare data availability significantly since 2010
Sharing raw data enables meta-analyses that increase statistical power beyond individual study limitations
Government welfare monitoring data is often not publicly accessible limiting independent analysis
Commercial welfare data owned by retailers and certification bodies rarely enters the scientific literature
Preregistration of welfare studies reduces publication bias toward positive results

Welfare Considerations

Open data practices in animal welfare science have real welfare implications: data that is shared enables the meta-analyses and systematic reviews that provide the most reliable evidence base for welfare standards and interventions. Data that is withheld because it is commercially sensitive, because it shows negative results, or because researchers prioritise competitive advantage over scientific progress limits welfare knowledge and the standards that depend on it. The welfare movement as a whole benefits when welfare research operates on open science principles that maximise the value of every study conducted. Advocacy for open data in welfare research is therefore a welfare improvement effort as well as a scientific governance one.

What You Can Do

Support academic journals with strong open data requirements for welfare research
Advocate for government welfare monitoring data to be publicly available for analysis
Donate to organisations conducting welfare research under open data and preregistration commitments
Raise awareness about open science as a welfare improvement mechanism
Engage with meta-analysis and systematic review outputs that synthesise welfare evidence most reliably