Animal care and use protocols must address the following:
The IACUC or research committee should seek to avoid
reviewing projects for scientific merit and should instead focus on the welfare
of laboratory animals and their caretakers.
In an effort to aid the committee in this respect, the principal
investigator should provide the information needed for the committee to make
basic judgments about the rationale for the use of animals (including species
and numbers), the training and experience of investigators and research
personnel, and the ability for the researchers to provide adequate animal care
in existing facilities with minimal or reasonable modifications to those
facilities.
The US Government Principles for the Utilization and Care
of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training states that “the
animals selected for a procedure should be of an appropriate species and quality
and the minimum number required to obtain valid results.
Methods such as mathematical models, computer simulations and in vitro
biological systems should be considered.”
The National Research Council uses the term
“alternative” to refer to research, testing, or training methods that result
in the reduction of number of animals required, that incorporate refinements of
procedures which result in the lessening of pain or distress, or that provide
for replacement of animals with non-whole animal systems, or the replacement of
one animal species with another, particularly if the substitute species in
non-mammalian or invertebrate.
It is important that the researcher provide evidence that
he or she has considered whether alternatives are available, and if so, why
these alternatives will not be utilized. The
Animal Welfare Act requires that investigators provide an indication of the
methods and sources utilized to make this determination, whether it is a
bibliography, a relevant database, the investigator’s documented experience in
the field, documented consultation with an expert in the field, publications,
etc. Although the Animal Welfare
Act only applies to warm-blooded animals (excluding mice, rats, and birds bred
for research), following this guideline will provide the committee with a
reasonable assurance that the investigator is using the appropriate animal(s)
and provide documentation of the determination should such justification be
required in the future.
a. In vitro methods, including cell or tissue culture
b. Mathematical models or computer simulations
c. Audiovisual technologies
d.
Replacements of the animal species with “lower” species, particularly
non-mammalian or invertebrate species
a. Increase the ability to determine the effect of interest by increasing the size of the effect, decreasing extraneous variability, optimizing sensitivity of the detection methods, changing the scale of the outcome variable
b. Minimize the number of treatment groups
c. Wise use of controls
d. Repeated measures, replicative sample designs
e. Tissue sharing with other investigators
a. Administration of anesthetics or analgesics where pain or distress is unavoidable.
b. Selection of less stressful endpoints
c. Careful monitoring to detect pain/stress as early as possible
d. Careful attention to housing and access to food and water in animals that are impaired
e. Humane methods of euthanasia
The Animal Welfare Act requires that the committee determine that “The principal investigator has provided written assurance that the activities do not unnecessarily duplicate previous experiments.” The key word is “unnecessarily.” The investigator should provide an explanation of how the project differs from previous work, or if it duplicates previous work, provide justification of why this is necessary. Examples of necessary duplication might include demonstration experiments in a course or repeating experiments as learning tools in student research.
The investigator should provide an adequate description of
the steps that will be taken to adequately train students and other research
personnel in the appropriate care, handling, and use of the species.
Training programs must include familiarization with committee guidelines
with a focus on the standards for humane care and use.
Training should also include necessary information about diseases that
may be passed to personnel by the animals or from personnel to the animals,
identification and treatment of those diseases, and general first aid procedures
that are commonly required as a result of injuries sustained while caring for
the animals. Evidence of training
of students and personnel authorized to handle a given species should be listed
in the laboratory records along with the appropriate protocol, and each person
on the list should be notified of changes in the care, handling, or use protocol
for that species.
Good animal care is essential to good science.
Animals that are sick, stressed, or housed without appropriate attention
to the maintenance of a standard, stable environment cannot be expected to
provide accurate reproducible data. Prevention
of disease is the primary objective of an animal health maintenance program. Limited space for animal housing poses special challenges
when two or more species are located in the facility, and many of the standards
for care are aimed at preventing unintended consequences (disease, death,
interference with experiments) of these interactions.
Newly acquired animals can introduce disease into
established colonies. The first
step in the process of disease prevention is therefore procurement of healthy
animals. All incoming animals
should be inspected on arrival and housed in quarantine separately from
acclimated animals until their health status has been established.
Newly arrived animals should be permitted a stabilization period to allow
them to physiologically and behaviorally adapt to their new environment before
any experimental use is initiated.
Some species of animals carry latent or subclinical
infections that can cause serious disease if transmitted to other species.
Because of this consideration, physical separation of species is
recommended to reduce the possibility of disease transmission, and intraspecies
separation is advisable if the animals are obtained from different vendors, or
if the differ in microbiological status.
All laboratory animals must be inspected regularly by a
trained individual to recognize signs of illness or injury.
Sick or injured animals must receive immediate attention.
Methods of diagnosis, therapy, and disease control should follow
appropriate standards for the species. If
a contagious disease is suspected, appropriate measures must be taken to prevent
the spread of the infection to healthy animals.
Animals that die unexpectedly should be examined to determine the cause
of death.
Animals that are in pain or are severely distressed cannot
be expected to demonstrate “normal” physiologic responses.
The appropriate use of anesthetics, analgesics, and tranquilizers
provides humane care and assists in collection of valid research data.
Attention should be given to the selection of agents that are appropriate
to the species and for effective dosage regimens.
If a painful procedure must be conducted without the use of analgesics,
the procedure must be carried out under the direct supervision of the
responsible investigator until the students or personnel are adequately trained
to recognize and minimize the pain without jeopardizing either the research or
the care of the animal.
Individuals performing survival surgical procedures must
provide evidence that the procedures will be conducted with appropriate aseptic
techniques, with well-maintained equipment, and with appropriate surgical and
post-surgical care strategies outlined in protocol form.
The investigator has limited control of an animal’s
environment in field study situations. When
laboratory animals are to be utilized in field experiments, the investigator
should provide evidence that the animals will not be subject to undue stress or
harm. Many professional societies
provide guidelines for use of different groups of organisms (i.e. fish,
amphibians, etc.) in field studies. The
committee will accept these guidelines (where available) as an attachment to the
protocol request in lieu of the standards for humane care and use portion
of the application.
The following guidelines are based on the 1993 report of
the AVMA Panel on Euthanasia. Students
or personnel with job responsibilities requiring animal euthanasia should be
well-instructed about theory and technique of the methods used.
Consideration should be given not only to the use of humane methods, but
also to the use of methods which produce minimal emotional distress to the
personnel carrying out the procedure. Investigators
may request to use a procedure that varies from these guidelines through
providing written justification for review and approval by the committee.
Acceptable Methods
a. Anesthetic overdose—barbituates or nonflammable gaseous anesthetics
b. Carbon dioxide
c. Commercial euthanasia agents (FP3, T61, etc. administered IV)
d. Cervical dislocation—poultry, mice, rats, and fish less than 200gm
a. Exsanguination
b. Decapitation preceded by loss of consciousness or immediate freezing of head in liquid nitrogen
c. Air embolism
d. Potassium chloride
Methods Requiring Specific Justification—cost or convenience are not acceptable justifications.
a. Rapid freezing in liquid nitrogen—restricted to animals less than 40 g
b. Stunning immediately by an irreversibly fatal procedure such as decapitation, bilateral pneumothorax, or exsanguinations
c. Decapitation without prior loss of consciousness
d. Captive bolt pistol—penetrating type
e. Electrocution
f. Microwave irradiation
Laboratory animal husbandry covers (1) facilities and
operating procedures in facilities including temperature and humidity, lighting,
cage construction and maintenance, cage size, and waste disposal and (2) animal
health and husbandry including feeding, water, sanitation, staffing,
classification and separation, and veterinary care.
Animal housing systems should facilitate animal
well-being, meet research requirements and minimize experimental variables.
Minimal space requirements are mandated in the Animal Welfare Act and
recommended by various funding agencies. Housing
systems should provide sufficient space to allow freedom of movement and normal
postural adjustments, contain a resting area appropriate to the species, confine
the animal safely, provide easy access to food and water, be well-ventilated,
and meet the biological needs of the species.
All housing should be kept in good repair and allow cage occupants to be
inspected with minimal disturbance.
Animals should be maintained in an environment
appropriate to the species. Care
should be taken to minimize fluctuations in environmental conditions and to
ensure that the environment within the containers is measured and not the
macroenvironment of the holding facility. When
the environmental conditions for a given species are critical, conditions should
be monitored and recorded at regular intervals, and the records should be
available in the facility at all times.
Room light should be uniformly diffused and should
provide sufficient illumination to allow regular observation and care of the
animals and safe working conditions for personnel. Lighting should meet the biological needs of the animals in
terms of intensity and periodicity. If
normal lighting in the facility does not meet the needs of all the species
housed there, arrangements must be made to provide appropriate lighting to each
species as necessary. The
appropriate light cycle should be noted on the protocol label displayed in the
facility.
Food must be fresh, palatable, uncontaminated with
biological or chemical agents, and nutritionally adequate for the intended
species. Feeders must allow easy
access to food while minimizing contamination by feces and urine.
Animals should be given enough food to permit normal growth, maintenance
of age-appropriate body weight, reproduction, and (where appropriate) lactation.
Food should be stored in designated restricted areas that are cool,
clean, dry, and free of vermin. Food
containers must not be stored or prepared in rooms with chemicals or biological
agents. An appropriate feeding
schedule should be displayed alongside the protocol label for each species, and
feeding records should be maintained in the facility as necessary.
Clean, fresh water must be available at all times
as appropriate for the species. Empty
containers should be replaced, not refilled, to prevent disease.
Good sanitation is essential to maintaining healthy
animal populations. Cages and tanks
must be washed and sanitized before animals are placed in them.
Bedding or water must be replaced and the containers cleaned as often as
necessary to keep the animals clean and in an optimal environment.
Cleaning schedules should be posted alongside the protocol label for each
species, and cleaning records should be maintained in the facility as necessary.
Animal facilities and other areas in contact with
laboratory animals must be cleaned and disinfected often to keep them free of
dirt, debris, and biological or chemical contaminants.
Cleaning utensils must not be used for multiple species, and they must
not be moved from room to room. Deodorizers
should not be used to mask animal odors.
No chemical cleaning agent or pesticide is to be
used in the animal facility under any circumstances unless its use has first
been approved in writing by all investigators housing animals in the facility.
Failure to follow this guideline may harm the health of the animals or
interfere with experiments underway or scheduled in the near future.
Unnecessary noise can be stressful to animals and
should be minimized. Whenever
possible, noisy activities should be restricted to non-housing areas.
Animal identification is important to good animal
care and data collection. Permanent
individual identification of animals using tattoos, ear notches, fin clipping,
or other methods should be supplemented by identification cards that include
stock or strain, vendor, responsible investigator, and protocol number.
Additional information should be included on the protocol labels as
needed.
Emergency, holiday, and weekend care must be
available as dictated by the species and care schedule.
Emergency contact and normal care contact information should be posted
alongside the protocol care label, in prominent locations in and outside the
animal facility, and in the care records.
For each protocol approved by the committee, the investigator must maintain a record of animals received/born, diseases/deaths, care schedules, and any other pertinent information as described above or as necessitated by the species or protocol. These records must be available for inspection in the animal facility at all times.
Return to Research Protocols
School of Natural Sciences | Biology | Chemistry | Math and Computer Sci. | Physics