The Council of Europe was founded in 1949. It is considered to be the bastion of human rights in Europe. Its aims are:

• To work for greater European unity
• To uphold the principle of parliamentary democracy and human rights
• To improve living conditions and promote human values

The Council of Europe became concerned about animal welfare because it realized that the dignity of mankind could not be disassociated from the respect man owed to his environment and the animals which inhabited it.

The Council of Europe believes that a society is hallmarked by the way in which it treats its less fortunate creatures. There is therefore a moral responsibility to make proper provision for their care and welfare.

The Council of Europe's website gives the full texts of each of the five animal welfare conventions (covering pets, animal experimentation, farm animals, animal transport and slaughter) and up-to-date tables showing member countries that have signed and/or ratified these.

The five Council of Europe conventions on animal welfare are as follows:

• European Convention for the Protection of Animals Kept for Farming Purposes
  No. 87 of 10 March 1976.
• The Protocol of Amendment to the European Convention for the Protection of Animals Kept for Farming Purposes
  No. 145 of 6 February 1992.
• European Convention for the Protection of Animals During International Transport
  No. 65 of 13 December 1968.
• European Convention for the Protection of Animals for Slaughter
  No. 102 of 10 May 1979.
• European Convention on the Protection of Pet Animals
  No. 125 of 13 November 1987.
• European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals Used for Experimentation and other Scientific Purposes
  No. 123 of 18 March 1986.
• Protocol of Amendment to the European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals used for Experimental and other Scientific Purposes
  Strasbourg, 22 June 1998.

There are also two relating to the environment:

• Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats
  No. 104 of 19 September 1974 (The Bern Convention).
• Convention on Civil Liability for Damage resulting from Activities Dangerous to the Environment (ETS No. 50).

Once these conventions have been signed and ratified, they should be transposed into national law, and be enforced in practice.

The Council of Europe obligation is a moral one, rather than a legal one. However, it should be noted that the European Union has also passed Decisions on the conclusion of European Conventions no. 87 (farm animals), 65 (transport), 102 (slaughter) and 123 (experimentation). These decisions are legally binding upon EU member countries.

There are also detailed recommendations under some of the conventions, and the texts of these may be helpful as a guide to those drafting legislative provisions.