Venomous animals including snakes, spiders, and scorpions are kept in research facilities worldwide. Their specific welfare needs are frequently overlooked due to low public empathy and limited welfare science for these species.
Venomous animal welfare in research requires species-specific approaches that are often absent. Standard laboratory housing for rodents adapted to reptiles fails to account for fundamentally different thermoregulatory, social, and environmental needs. Snakes requiring specific temperature gradients kept at uniform temperatures suffer metabolic and immune consequences. Solitary species housed together experience aggression and social stress. Venom extraction procedures cause acute fear and physiological stress requiring careful assessment and refinement. The welfare science for invertebrate venomous species including scorpions and spiders is even less developed. The importance of venom research for human medicine provides a strong rationale for investing in welfare improvements that also improve research quality through reduced stress variability.