Frogs are among the most widely used animals in biological research, yet their welfare in laboratories receives less attention than that of mammals. Improving frog laboratory welfare is an achievable goal.
Frog welfare in research suffers from the assumption that their simpler nervous systems mean reduced capacity for suffering. Evidence increasingly challenges this view: nociception, stress responses, and avoidance learning are all documented in frogs. Pithing produces an animal capable of physiological responses without the ability to escape — the welfare implications of this state are deeply uncertain. Applying the 3Rs framework more rigorously to amphibian research would reduce unnecessary harm.