IACUC Federal Regulations

Below are helpful resources from various animal welfare oversight bodies. It is advised that PIs familiarize themselves with these resources prior to submitting protocols to the IACUC to ensure compliance with all regulations.

Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW)

The Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) provides guidance concerning the implementation of the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals by responding to policy-related questions in Commentaries, Articles, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), and the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts Notices.

• Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: Eighth Edition: The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Guide) describes currently accepted standards in the care and housing of animals used in research, the conduct of research programs, and the design and maintenance of research facilities.
• PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: The Public Health Service (PHS) Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (PHS Policy) provides the regulatory framework for the use of live, vertebrate animals in any activity supported or conducted by the PHS agencies and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services components, or with entities which have an MOU with NIH.
• The U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research and Training: Provides an ethical framework for conducting research
• Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee Guidebook (2002): This Guidebook is provided for informational purposes only. It neither establishes nor reflects a change in PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.
• Article: Everything You Need to Know About Satisfying IACUC Protocol Requirements
• Prompt Reporting to OLAW
• OLAW Topic Index on Animal Care
• OLAW FAQs
• PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals FAQs
• Use of RePORTER for 3 Rs: RePORTER offers tools to summarize this information through visualization tools web interface and to export details for large numbers of projects. Users can also register a MyRePORTER account, where they can save frequently-used queries and receive email updates when new projects, publications or other results are added to the RePORTER database.

American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)

Per PHS Policy, "methods of euthanasia used will be consistent with the recommendations of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Panel on Euthanasia, unless a deviation is justified for scientific reasons in writing by the investigator References the AVMA Euthanasia Guidelines."

• AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals: 2020 Edition

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

• USDA Regulations
• Animal Welfare Act
  • The term “animal” means any live or dead dog, cat, monkey (nonhuman primate mammal), guinea pig, hamster, rabbit, or such other warm-blooded animal, as the Secretary may determine is being used, or is intended for use, for research, testing, experimentation, or exhibition purposes, or as a pet; but such term excludes (1) birds, rats of the genus Rattus, and mice of the genus Mus, bred for use in research, (2) horses not used for research purposes, and (3) other farm animals, such as, but not limited to livestock or poultry, used or intended for use as food or fiber, or livestock or poultry used or intended for use for improving animal nutrition, breeding, management, or production efficiency, or for improving the quality of food or fiber. With respect to a dog, the term means all dogs including those used for hunting, security, or breeding purposes (see section 1.1 for definition).
• USDA Pain Categories
• The 3 Rs of Alternatives: Reduction, Refinement, Replacement

Resources by Animal Type

Birds

• The Ornithological Council
• Wild Birds in Research

Mammals

• Use of Wild Mammals in Research
• American Society of Mammalogists

Reptiles and Amphibians

• Center for North American Herpetology
• American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
• Guidelines for Live Amphibians and Reptiles in Field and Laboratory Research
• Scientific and Standard English Names List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles North of Mexico, 8th Edition
• African Clawed Frog Care

Fishes

• American Fisheries Society
• Use of Fishes in Research guideline (2013)
• Guidelines for the Use of Fishes in Research (2014)